A smoothie has the same effect as a glass of soda: in other words, by drinking it too often, you say goodbye to the line and hello to the calories! This accusation against the star drinks of the summers popular with people who pay attention to their figure is made by Barry Popkin and George Bray, professors in the Department of Nutrition at the University of North Carolina.
These two American scientists assure in an interview with the Guardian that “smoothies and fruit juices represent a new danger”. The problem with these drinks, condemn the experts, is that they contain too much sugar, the famous fructose. A smoothie contains the equivalent of four to six squeezed oranges or a glass of soda.
In addition to being loaded with sugar, smoothies do not bring the expected feeling of satiety. “It’s very disappointing,” say the researchers who recommend replacing fruit juice with vegetable juice. Better, prefer raw fruits, much more satiating, to smoothies and fruit juices. Their theory is supported by the publication last week of a study on the British Medical Association. This argues that eat raw fruit three times a week reduces the risk of type 2 diabetes by 7%. Conversely, fruit juice lovers increase their risk of being diabetic.
A lucrative business but “harmful to health”
Barry Popkin denounces the new “unhealthy and unsustainable” business of these fruit juices which compete with sodas, without being healthier. The researchers who already pointed out in 2004 the dangers of corn syrup used as an additive in sodas thus begin a new battle against the multinationals, which hold the monopoly on the manufacture of fruit juices: “In each country, we have replaced the sodas to fruit juices and smoothies under the new health drink. You find out that Coca Cola and Pepsi have bought dozens of fruit juice manufacturers around the world.”
Some brands of smoothies communicate on the guaranteed low sugar content, with no added sugars. Should we trust the messages of advertisers? In the absence of certainty, respect the principle of a balanced diet: a smoothie from time to time but not all the time!
