Food & Recipes

Juicy News for Fruit Lovers

Same Benefits, Cheaper Price continued...

Still, counters Shawn Talbott, PhD, chief scientific officer for SupplementWatch, for less money (Tahitian noni juice sells for $42/liter), you can find the same antioxidant, cancer-fighting, heart-protecting, and immune-boosting benefits in juices sold at your local grocery store.

"Yes, it is true that many of these exotic plants have a variety of antioxidants and polysaccharides - but so does EVERY plant and fruit juice. For every test tube study showing a chemical benefit of mangosteen or aloe or gac (as an antioxidant, immune stimulator, etc) - we can show the SAME effect in studies of other 'regular' plant extracts and juices (grape juice, orange juice, cranberry juice, tomato juice, etc.)," Talbott writes in his SupplementWatch newsletter.

The juicy bottom line, say the experts, is that juices can be part of a healthy lifestyle, especially when it's inconvenient or impractical to eat the whole fruit. But drinking more doesn't translate into more health benefits, so limit your juice to 1 serving a day (if you'd like to spread that out over the day, dilute a serving with sparkling water), make sure you stay well hydrated with other beverages like water, coffee, or tea (the latter two also have antioxidant properties), and don't make the mistake of thinking that a glass of juice takes the place of a balanced diet and healthy lifestyle.