(KOREA HERALD/ASIA NEWS NETWORK) - It's true - apple juice can pose
a risk to your health. But not necessarily from the trace amounts
of arsenic that people are arguing about.
Despite the government's consideration of new limits on arsenic,
nutrition experts say apple juice's real danger is to waistlines
and children's teeth. Apple juice has few natural nutrients, lots
of calories and, in some cases, more sugar than soda has. It trains
a child to like very sweet things, displaces better beverages and
foods, and adds to the obesity problem, its critics say.
'It's like sugar water,' said Judith Stern, a nutrition professor
at the University of California, Davis, who has consulted for candy
makers as well as for Weight Watchers. 'I won't let my 3-year-old
grandson drink apple juice.'
If you or your family drinks juice, here is some advice
from nutrition experts:
-Choose a juice fortified with calcium and vitamin D-3.
-Give children only pasteurised juice - that's the only type safe
from germs that can cause serious disease.
- Don't give juice before 6 months of age, and never put it in
bottles or covered cups that allow babies and children to consume
it throughout the day, which can cause tooth decay. For the same
reason, don't give infants juice at bedtime.
- Limit juice to 120ml to 180ml per day for children ages 1 to 6,
and 8 to 12 ounces for those ages 7 to 18.
- Encourage kids to eat fruit.
- Don't be swayed by healthy-sounding label claims. 'No sugar
added' doesn't mean it isn't full of naturally occurring sugar. And
'cholesterol-free' is silly - only animal products contain
cholesterol.
Many juices are fortified with vitamins, so they're not just empty
calories. But that doesn't appease some nutritionists. 'If it
wasn't healthy in the first place, adding vitamins doesn't make it
into a health food, and if it causes weight gain, it's not a
healthy choice,' said Ms Karen Ansel, a registered dietitian in New
York and spokesman for the American Dietetic Association.
Source: http://www.straitstimes.com/BreakingNews/ANN/Story/STIStory_741102.html
