Oranges vs OJ

Good morning and Happy Monday! How was your weekend? Did you manage to fit in some exercise? How was your motivation in the cold temperatures?

Speaking of cold, now that the temperature has dropped a few degrees, it will be important to try to avoid winter colds.  A lot of people reach for orange juice to boost their Vitamin C intake.  However drinking juice is not necessarily the best way of increasing your Vitamin C.
 
Instead, increase your fluid intake, eat more vegetables that are high in Vitamin C (particularly red peppers, kale and broccoli) and sleep more to help prevent colds.
 
Fruit juice is often in debate about whether it is healthy or not, especially for those trying to lose weight.  If you want to lose weight or are struggling to keep consistent weight loss, the best advice I can give you is to avoid fruit juice.  Fruit juices are high-carbohydrate and high-sugar. Even though they’re “good for you” there are better sources of nutrients with much less sugar (or none at all).  Eat fruit and vegetables, don’t drink them.  

But why is orange juice not ideal to be having regularly?
 
The key issue is a lack of fibre. When we eat fruit, the fibre forms a protective layer that acts as a barrier to the intestine, slowing down the absorption of sugar. The high sugar content obtained from the digestion of fruit juice can elevate your blood sugar levels, which in turn stimulate your pancreas to produce insulin. The more carbohydrates you eat at once, the higher your insulin levels are likely to increase. For example, your insulin levels will increase more after having a large banana and orange juice compared to after eating an egg and glass of milk, which is much lower in carbohydrate. Having other carbohydrates at the same time, such as a  a slice of bread or cereal, can also further increase your insulin levels.  If this blood sugar is not used for activity/body function, it may get stored as fat to use 'later'.  If you are very active or not trying to lose weight, this is not generally a problem as you are using the energy that you are consuming.

Oranges themselves are an excellent source of vitamin C, just one large orange contains a full day’s dose. Vitamin C is critical for producing white blood cells and antibodies that fight off infections; it’s also a powerful antioxidant that helps protect cells from free-radical damage and plays a key role in producing skin-firming collagen.

Oranges are also high in fiber and folate.  They contain on average:

60 calories for one, 12.5g of sugar, 3.1g fibre
116% of your recommended intake of Vitamin C.

Compare this to orange juice:
 
250ml: 125 calories, 25g of sugar, 0.6g of fibre
200% of your daily recommendation of Vitamin C.
 
Compare this to 1 slice of wholemeal bread (which people often cut out to try to reduce carbs):
 
80 calories, 15g of carbohydrates, 1.5g sugar, 2g of fibre

Please do ask me any questions at all if you want to know more.

Have a 

How much sugar are you really eating?

This week is all about sugar - we've been through the reasons why it's bad for you (leads to insulin resistance, fat gain inflammation and can damage the arteries), so this week I wanted you to take a little test for me. Download the app My Fitness Pal  on your phone (or you can use it on your computer)- https://www.myfitnesspal.com/.

Once you've got a profile (it's free to use), fill in your daily food and drink intake for a few days. Include sauces, condiments etc.

Here's a sample of what it looks like:

Next, take a look at the breakdown - go into the 'nutrition' section and have a look at the breakdown. Click on 'nutrients' and it will give you a breakdown of how much protein, carbohydrate, sugar and fat you are consuming. 

For the purpose of today just look at the sugar - what does it say? Your profile will set a target range of sugar for you to be having each day. Are you close to your target or way over? Have a look at the foods that may be the culprit - it's not always as obvious as avoiding sugar in your tea and not eating chocolate. Here is a list of products which are high in sugar which you may have thought were 'healthy':

• Muesli or granola (aim for one that has less than 15g of sugar per 100g)
• Yoghurt (aim for less than 5g of sugar per 100g)
• Juice (can contain up to 25g of sugar in a small glass)
• Sauces especially sweet chilli and tomato sauce
• Dressings - particularly ones that are fat free
• Baked beans - the second ingredient is often sugar!
• Pre made meals - even the 'healthy' ones can contain a lot of added sugar

So you see how easy it is to add up. Have a look at the ingredients on the foods you buy - check out if sugar is on the ingredients list. The higher up the list (i.e. if it's in the top 5 ingredients) then it is usually high in sugar.

Try to avoid as much added sugar as you can. There's nothing good to say about it! Stick to foods that are unprocessed and still in their 'natural' form. Vegetables, fruit, nuts, seeds, lean proteins and some good fats like avocado, olive oil etc. If you are worried about your food lacking flavour then try adding chilli, herbs, pepper, pesto etc to liven things up.

Check out this website for more ideas on how to reduce sugar:
https://iquitsugar.com/recipe/

Until next time....

Orange juice vs OJ - who wins?

Good morning and Happy Tuesday! I hope you had a great weekend. I am currently in Australia - a last minute trip and it is HOT! Let's hope that it is warm in the UK when I get back - I'm not spending 2 weeks acclimatising for nothing...

I did a bit of research at Christmas and asked people which country they thought was healthier - Australia or the UK. The UK wins points for being on the 'anti-sugar' wagon, however unfortunately Australia beat you to it. In supermarkets everywhere there are 'sugar free' products - mueslis, yoghurt, snacks etc. You can buy a healthy 'blissball' protein snack at lots of cafes (recipe for another day!) and there are plenty of fresh fruit options. 

HOWEVER, the UK wins more points for announcing that they will be taxing sugary drinks, being able to walk everywhere without overheating (I can't walk more than 250m without sweating here), having a 'cycle to work' scheme available in most workplaces and building cycle 'super highways' in London - cycling in Australia seems so much more dangerous (cars HATE cyclists in Oz). Where do you think it is easier to be healthier - warmer countries or colder ones?

Now that it is Spring, it is often the time that people come down with colds and flu. A lot of people reach for orange juice to boost their Vitamin C intake, which is known to help reduce the risk and severity of colds.  However drinking juice is not necessarily the best way of increasing your Vitamin C and in fact could be hindering your goals.
 
Fruit juice is often in debate about whether it is healthy or not, especially for those trying to lose weight.  If you want to lose weight or are struggling to keep consistent weight loss, the latest advice is to avoid fruit juice.  Fruit juices are high-carbohydrate and high-sugar. Even though they’re “good for you” there are better sources of nutrients with much less sugar (or none at all).  Eat your fruit and vegetables, don’t drink them.  More on why below.

Lastly thank you so much to those who forwarded my email last week on to your friends, family and colleagues. It means a lot that you find my emails useful and that you are helping to spread the word! Always happy to help so do let me know if there's anyone else who you think may benefit :) I'm always open to constructive feedback too if you have any.....

Why is drinking orange juice (and other fruit juices) not a great idea?

The key issue is a lack of fibre. When we eat fruit, the fibre forms a protective layer that acts as a barrier to the intestine, slowing down the absorption of sugar. The high sugar content obtained from the digestion of fruit juice can elevate your blood sugar levels, which in turn stimulate your pancreas to produce insulin.

The more carbohydrates you eat at once, the higher your insulin levels are likely to increase. For example, your insulin levels will increase more after having a large banana and orange juice compared to after eating an egg and glass of milk, which is much lower in carbohydrate. Having other carbohydrates at the same time, such as a  a slice of bread or cereal, can also further increase your insulin levels.  If this blood sugar is not used for activity/body function, it may get stored as fat to use 'later'.  If you are very active or not trying to lose weight, this is not generally a problem as you are using the energy that you are consuming.

Oranges themselves are an excellent source of vitamin C, just one large orange contains a full day’s dose. Vitamin C is critical for producing white blood cells and antibodies that fight off infections; it’s also a powerful antioxidant that helps protect cells from free-radical damage and plays a key role in producing skin-firming collagen. Oranges are also high in fiber and folate.  They contain on average 60 calories for one and 12.5g of sugar, with 116% of your recommended intake of Vitamin C.

Compare this to orange juice:
 
250ml: on average 25g of sugar, 0.6g of fibre, 125 calories. 200% of your daily recommendation of Vitamin C.
 
Compare this to 1 slice of wholemeal bread (which people often cut out to try to reduce carbs):
 
80 calories, 15g of carbohydrates, 2g of fibre.

A better way to stave off colds is to increase your fluid intake, eat more vegetables that are high in Vitamin C (particularly red peppers, kale and broccoli) and sleep more where possible. Take a high dose Vitamin C, Echinacea and Zinc if you feel a cold coming on. 

Please do ask me any questions at all if you want to know more. Let me know if you have any requests for topics for my weekly news.