Oranges vs. Orange Juice: Which Is Better for You?
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iStock/Thinkstock(NEW YORK) — Everyone knows that oranges are packed with vitamin C but some people prefer the convenience of drinking orange juice than having to peel through the fruit or cut up slices. This begs the question: is one better than the other?
Researchers at Hohenheim University in Germany says both an orange and orange juice each has its advantages and disadvantages. For instance, Ralf Schweiggert, Julian Aschoff and their colleagues point out that the drawbacks to juice is that it contains more sugar than a regular orange and because of pasteurization, there are also lower levels of vitamin C and nutrients such as carotenoids.
So that makes eating an orange the healthier choice, right? Not necessarily, according to the researchers. It turns out that the juice greatly improves the body’s ability to absorb vitamin C and the orange’s nutrients than by eating the fruit.
Juicing oranges also has a plus and a minus side. While it does reduce the flavonoids, which can lower cancer and cardiovascular disease risks, the juice makes what remains easier for the body to absorb than eating slices.
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