The German Nutrition Society (DGE) recommends eating two portions of fruit a day (around 250 g in total) to give the body enough nutrients. Two portions a day sounds doable, but a hectic daily routine can make us forget about it. That is why more and more people reach for a quicker alternative: fruit juice. But is liquid fruit just as good for you as eating the fruit whole? We explain where the differences lie and what to look out for with fruit juices.
Fruit juice, not-from-concentrate juice and nectar - what is the difference?
Not all juice is the same. Did you know there are different types of juice? A distinction is made between fruit juices, fruit juice drinks, not-from-concentrate juices, fruit nectar and fresh and cold-pressed juices.
One difference, for example, is that sugar is added to fruit juice drinks and the fruit content is very low. They also contain artificial flavourings and hardly any valuable ingredients. So always check the back of the bottle before buying a juice! We advise against added sugar, flavourings and other additives. A portion of juice with the highest possible fruit content is always the better option.
Not-from-concentrate juice comes very close to natural juice. It skips some production steps and, after pressing, extracting and pasteurising , it is bottled directly or stored temporarily in juice tanks. To make it last, however, not-from-concentrate juice has to be pasteurised, and many vitamins are lost in the process.
Juice nectar is mostly made from fruit that naturally contains little water, such as banana. Nectar is 25-50% fruit and therefore tastes very intense. Even so, besides some water, sugar or honey is added to a nectar.
HPP as the best method for preserving juice
We chose a special method for making juice: cold pressing. The juices are not exposed to heat, but are preserved with pressure using the High Pressure Processing method (HPP). The fruit and vegetables are first turned into mash and then placed on press cloths in a belt press, where they are squeezed. This particularly gentle method allows us to retain as many of the nutrients, vitamins and important enzymes from the fruit and vegetables as possible.
Why is eating fruit so good for you?
Whole fruit contains plenty of fibre thanks to its skin and fibres. These help our gut and support our digestion. When you eat fruit, secondary plant compounds are retained, which may help keep your blood pressure and circulation stable and healthy. Another advantage is that the sugar is absorbed more slowly and reaches our bloodstream more gradually. Your blood sugar level therefore rises only slowly, and you stay full for longer. So if you want to beat a small hunger pang, we recommend eating a piece of whole fruit.
Benefits of juices
Cold-pressed fruit juices have the advantage that the nutrients and vitamins are retained even after pressing. The carbohydrates (fruit sugar) are absorbed and used faster. A pressed juice serves as an energy supplier, for example before a workout or at work.
Especially with juice cleanses the gut gets the chance to rest and recover. Whether you do a juice cleanse from us or press your own is up to you. Just give it a go and add other vegetables to your favourite fruit. That makes your juice even richer in vitamins and nutrients. Want to benefit from the nutrients in carrots but do not like the taste? No problem! Press other fruit or vegetables into your juice alongside the carrot. That way the taste of the carrot does not become too dominant and you can still benefit from the nutrients it contains..
Pressing your own juices can take a lot of time and effort: first you have to find the best machine for you and test combinations of fruit and vegetables. That is why the juices in our cleanses are already pressed and prepared for you. They contain a variety of fruit and vegetables. You can find out why we work with different fruit and vegetables in our blog post “The different juices in a juice cleanse".
Healthy-looking skin with our juice The Glow
Our The Glow, made of pineapple, carrot and orange, is not only eye-catching because of its bright colour, it may help make you one too! It does not just taste great, it also contains valuable collagen as well as vitamin A and vitamin C. Together, these ingredients can contribute to the appearance of your skin and let you glow!
Cell protection with our juice Marvellous Greens
Besides juicy cucumber, crisp apple and fresh spinach, our Marvellous Greens also contains added vitamin E. It helps protect your cells from oxidative stress, which is triggered by things like lack of sleep, smoking and alcohol.
Less stress with our juice The Crocodile
With apple, orange, pear and spinach, The Crocodile is the fruitiest of our green juices and is therefore very well suited to fasting beginners who are still easing into green juices. The Crocodile also contains around 50% of your daily requirement of vitamin B6 and vitamin B12. These two vitamins support your nervous system and may help you cope better with stress.
Drinking juice on a juice cleanse
With our juice cleanses you live on juice alone for 3, 5 or 7 days. This not only takes the load off your digestive tract, it also gets autophagy going. You can find out what other effects juice fasting has on your mind in our blog article “Fasting and its effects on the mind”.
Eating fruit vs. drinking juice
So which is it? Eat fruit or rather drink it? Admittedly, both options have their pros and cons. It depends on how the fruit juice was made. The reason you reach for fruit also plays an important part in the decision. If you eat an apple as a snack between meals, it makes more sense to eat it whole. But if you want to add more nutrients on top of your diet, a cold-pressed juice can help you keep going through your day with enough energy. On our site you will find nutrient-rich juices made from all kinds of fruit and vegetables to help you with that.
