Many parents consider fruit juice to be a healthy alternative to the sugary sodas on the market today. In fact some parents think that drinking fruit juice is as good as eating a piece of fruit. Well, sorry to break the news, but it just is not so.
The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) recommends that children under the age of 6 limit their juice intake to just 4-6 ounces per day. This is the amount in one small juice box. The limit is recommended because most juices contain added sugar, and if not still contain a significant jolt of sugar without the added fiber a whole piece of fruit would contain. In simple terms, a high caloric value with little nutritional value. The calories alone in a small juice box is about 100, so they add up when kids are drinking 3 or 4 a day. They also state that the body responds differently to liquids versus solids, so drinking a juice adds calories without the body signalling it has recieved any nutrients, so kids snack and eat more which can add up to excess calories.
A new study published this month in the prominent journal Pediatrics looked at the effect of juice consumption in children on weight gain. More than 2,800 children age 1-4 were used in the study. Information on their dietary habits including juice intake was gathered during 6 month intervals as well as height and weight measurements.
They found that children who consumed the most juice also gained the most weight. And those children who started the study overweight or in the higher percentiles for weight were more likely to gain excess weight and increase their juice consumption over time.
The study supports previous evidence that high juice consumption in children can impact weight gain, but perphaps more so in those children all ready at risk for being overweight or obese.
Children who were of normal weight at study onset did not increase juice consumption or weight during the study period.
Drinking juice is not bad for children and should not be avoided, but parents should be mindful of how much juice their children are drinking and how it is impacting their weight gain. Whole fruits should always be offered as an alternative and juice can be diluted with water to cut the total calories consumed, while still providing a refreshing beverage choice.
Posted by Dr. Christina Gutierrez on November 8, 2006 04:46 PM
