In Mexico, some steps have been taken to raise consumer awareness in terms of what they eat and why they should or should not buy certain products. It is true that most of us know that soft drinks have very high amounts of sugar, unnecessary calories for our diet and whose consumption can cause serious problems such as diabetes and obesity. On the other hand, there are other drinks that might appear to be healthier, natural, and low-sugar alternatives; however, a quick evaluation of their contents shows us that they are actually no better than a soda.
Commercial juices and nectars are in this last apparently healthy group. Without a doubt, many of us get carried away by the idea that these products use natural ingredients and, therefore, are good for our health. Unfortunately, this is not so. On average, a commercial juice or nectar contains the same amount of sugar as a soft drink, that is, about nine coffee spoons of sugar per cup and a half of liquid. A single serving is equivalent to 200% of the maximum sugar tolerated by an adult.
Below is a brief x-ray of a clarified apple nectar from the Valley brand:
Sugar: 45 grams per 413 milliliter bottle. According to the American Heart Association, this amount exceeds the recommended amount for an adult per day by 2 to 4 tablespoons. That’s three times the amount of sugar recommended for a child.
Sodium: 25 milligrams.
dyes: Not listed on the label, however, the ingredients include an “Apple Valley Concentrate”.
The ingredients leave a lot to be desired: apple juice concentrate (50%), water, sugars and “Valley apple flavor concentrate”, which could be anything. Now, it is important to pay particular attention to the fact that the label says «sugars», since according to the Official Labeling Standard, «sugar» describes that the content contains sucrose or cane sugar, while «sugars» can be refer to glucose, dextrose or artificial sweeteners such as syrups.
So, do you know what a commercial nectar contains? The labeling, which remains a bit misleading; however, we can infer that the sugar content (artificial sweeteners) makes it an unnecessary threat to your health. It’s not a little extra sugar every day, but a single drink that doubles the amount of sugars you consume every day or triples the amount a child consumes.
The best thing you can do if you want to take care of your health is to drink water. If you really fancy something sweet, you can make your own fruit drinks with plenty of water and sweeten them with brown sugar or stevia. Unfortunately, with a tagline that reads, «Fun That Nurtures» and advertising that appears to be aimed at children, what this brand advertises and what it delivers are two very different things.
For more information on this, you can consult The power of the consumer.
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