30 April 2010

Ask It: Sugar, We’re Going Down

jonconley asked: FWIW, Naked Juices have only the sugars that are naturally-occurring. I know natural is generally healthier than refined, but what are differences in negatives of natural sugars vs refined sugars?

I think this question was in response to my post about Fuze here.

The difference between naturally occurring and non-naturally occurring sugars is pretty simple: naturally occurring sugars tend to come in whole foods — foods that have OTHER good stuff in them. Fruit is a great example. Sure, some fruit is high in sugar, but you’re also going to get some good stuff with it: vitamins, minerals, other nutrients, fiber, etc.

With non-naturally occurring sugars, you’re probably just getting something processed (like packaged cookies, candies, and cakes).

So the only reason drinking a Naked Juice is better than eating a cookie is because with the juice, you’re also going to get some vitamins/minerals. But don’t fool yourself into thinking the juice is much better — the sugar content and calories in the juice and cookie are probably pretty similar. I wrote more about my thoughts on juice here.