How Much Fructose Is In Your Daily Juice?

Fructose is a type of sugar that occurs naturally in fruits and vegetables. When eating whole foods (apple, banana, orange, carrot, beets etc.) fructose levels are not of particular concern – all things in moderation. Issues begin to arise when fructose is consumed in refined forms such as fruit juice and corn syrup.

When whole fruits and vegetable are consumed the fructose (sugar) is surrounded by fiber. The fiber plays an integral role in regulating fructose levels. Firstly, fiber slows the rate at which fructose is absorbed by the body as it has to be broken down before the nutrients/energy is extracted. Fiber is also very important in contributing to a satisfied feeling and therefore we know when to stop consumption – most of the time. 

Consuming fruit and vegetable juice will most often mean that most (if not all) the fiber is removed. The great positive of removing the fiber (if the juice is of a high quality i.e. cold pressed juice) is that the body can consume large amounts of vitamins, minerals and enzymes that it would not be able to consume in whole food form - for example, there is 8kg of fresh produce in a 2-Day KARMIC Cleanse. The obvious downside to drinking sugary juice is that the fructose levels can spike your blood sugar levels very quickly – thus, it is very important to be aware of what type of juice you are consuming and how much fructose (sugar) is in that juice

“Imagine trying to consume 10 apples in 10 minutes - this is nearly impossible. However, in juice form this equates to a mere 500ml glass of pure Apple Juice. In sugar form, that equates to 55 grams, which is the equivalent of 13.75 teaspoons of sugar! That is more sugar then 500ml of Coka-Cola”

Referring to the below table we can get an idea of the level of fructose in different ‘healthy drinks’ and Coka-Cola (obviously not-healthy) Noting that, 1 teaspoon of table sugar = 4.2 grams. And, that the standard sugar intake of the average Australian is 90 grams per day (http://daa.asn.au/for-the-public).

*Data sourced by KARMIC Cold Pressed Juice

Please note that drinking ‘low-sugar’ or ‘diet-soda’ is potentially even more damaging than the ‘sugar’ version – artificial sweeteners are known to contain carcinogens. 

“It is interesting to note that many people actually suffer from Fructose malabsorption,” explains Phillip Watkins, Naturopath at The Good Life Clinic in Prahran.

‘One of the key things we see in people who have fructose malabsorption is an increase in symptoms of bloating and distension of the abdomen. This increase in gas (mainly hydrogen and methane) is caused by an increase in bad bacteria in the large intestine or some type of candida based symptoms,’ says Phillip.

Fructose is not only found in fresh fruit and juices – it can be found in vast, highly concentrated quantities in other processed foods (i.e. high fructose corn syrup). The consumption of these products can very quickly lead to fructose overload in the body. The main culprit is processed foods and drinks. For example, some major soft drink brands contain up to 65% fructose, table sugar approximately 50% and even so-called alternative sweeteners can contain high amounts of fructose, such as agave nectar (90% fructose).

How do I avoid the overconsumption of fructose? It’s simple and those already eating mostly whole foods (no junk food/soft drinks) are already on the right track. Don’t stop eating fruit or drinking fresh juice, rather, just become aware of the ingredients of food/drink that you consume. As you can assume, this is why KARMIC Cold Pressed Juice is passionate about providing the community with Low Fructose juice – to allow maximum nutrient, vitamin, enzymes and mineral absorption whilst minimising the risk of the overconsumption of fructose.