Is drinking orange juice for breakfast good for your health?

Who has never had a glass of orange juice for breakfast, guaranteed to start their day off right, feel good, give the body a dose of fruit, its kick vitamins? And for good reason, orange juice or squeezed oranges enjoy a reputation as a health drink. Who says juice, says sugar. So what is it really? Is Morning Posture So Good For Our Health?

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Blood sugar spikes and fatigue

When asked the question, Isabelle Descamps (1), a dietitian nutritionist, trainer in digestive and thyroid health, immediately answers in the negative. In the morning, orange juice is problematic for two reasons: its sugar content and its liquid form. Clarifications: At the risk of discouraging some, the body does not consume rapidly absorbed sugars in the morning. At breakfast, “our body ideally needs protein (eggs, cheese, butter…) because it needs dopamine, the neurotransmitter that “starts” the day, allows for concentration, energy, dietitian nutritionist reports. If we consume sugar, it will sit on the dopamine receptors and prevent the molecule from doing its job.”

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By drinking orange juice, blood sugar levels rise suddenly: this is what we call a blood sugar peak. “Then the pancreas releases a lot of insulin—the hormone that allows sugar to enter the cells—then the peak goes down rapidly, which we call hypoglycemia. “Reactive emia.” The results? We’ll feel tired, lose concentration, and roller-coaster blood sugar peaks, throughout the day. Responsible for cravings This will also encourage us to eat more at lunch and dinner.

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Consume whole oranges

If sugar is absorbed so quickly, it is because we consume fruit in its liquid version. By itself, orange juice is almost as sweet as a whole orange; 100 grams of fruit provides 7.9 grams of sugar, while the juice provides 9.6 grams. “But the liquid form is free of fruit fibers, fiber that slows the absorption of sugar into the blood,” explains Isabelle Descamps. Clearly, we only have water, sugar and a few vitamins.” Thus, the so-called “normal” blood sugar level (at 100 milligrams of sugar per deciliter of blood), will rise to 115 after eating an orange, but it will rise to 150 after drinking juice. ” “Eating the whole fruit provides gentle and progressive energy,” comments the dietitian. Not that the National Nutrition and Health Program (PNNS) has reclassified juice from the “fruit” category to the “sweet products” category.

The liquid form is free of fruit fibers, fiber that slows the absorption of sugar into the blood.

Isabelle Descamps, Dietitian Nutritionist

In summary, orange juice is a “pleasure” food but not a “health” food. So, consume with great moderation. And industrial juices should also become rare in our diet, because of the added sugars and additives. If you want to fully enjoy oranges for breakfast, it is better to choose the solid version. Even more so when we know that this form, and this alone, allows us to benefit from the benefits of the fruit. “The overall composition of foods is interesting,” asserts the dietician. Clearly, the sum of the nutrients, vitamins or minerals it contains is of little interest, what matters is how all these elements interact together; This is what we call the nutritional matrix of food.” Without forgetting that this form forces us to chew and therefore takes time. Sugar will reach the stomach slowly.

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If you want a cool, tasty drink for breakfast, Isabelle Descamps recommends a glass of water at room temperature, into which you’ve squeezed lemon and added mint leaves, for example. Dietitian adds, “Drinking something slightly acidic (adding lemon or apple cider vinegar to your water) can also moderate the glycemic peak of breakfast by up to 25%. Enough to kill two birds with one stone.

(1) Isabelle Descamps offers advice on her YouTube channel. On this topic, she is the author of these two videos “Sugar Test, Unstable Blood Sugar Level: Causes and Consequences” and “10 Tips for Eating Less Sugar”.