Added vs Natural Sugars, Juicing and More With Baptist Health South Florida

Before we dive into the discussion of juicing, added and natural sugars with Baptist Health South Florida, I just want to preface this blog by letting you know that I am not going to be another blogger/influencer who tells you to drink your 16 oz. of celery juice every morning. I’ve tried it and yes! If I am being honest, I felt a difference. I felt supercharged hydration, more power during my workouts and bloating became almost non-existent.  With that said, it takes a full head of celery every morning and an extra few minutes to clean the juicer, which can be a nuisance, but if you are suffering from bloating, food intolerance or skin issues. I would say, give it a try, but if you aren’t ready to hop on the Medical Medium bandwagon, stick to water with the juice of a lemon, eat your fruits and veggies for added digestive health and throw in a green juice here or there! Read on for more on WHY!

Baptist Health registered dietitians Amy Kimberlain and Lucette Talamas answered many questions about ongoing dieting trends and new studies that have made the headlines. Both of them were featured in a Facebook Live session. If I am being honest, I have been very annoyed lately by the “fruit sugar fear” displayed all over social media and I love the points both RD Amy and Lucette made during the Facebook Live session so I wanted to share them with all of you and encourage you to watch!

Like Ms. Talamas says, sugars are divided into two groups: naturally occurring and added sugars. The added sugar is what we need to look out for. Many foods like yogurt and milk have naturally occurring sugar, but when fruit is added to yogurt, there is a high likelihood of added processed sugar.

Ms. Talamas also states: “(The term) ‘added sugar’ can be a little confusing because a natural sugar can be turned into an added sugar when it’s extracted from its natural form. We can use the honey example. Honey is natural because we got it from nature. But it’s still a sugar. We can talk about refined white sugar or organic brown sugar. Whether it comes from something as natural as honey or even from extracted from fruit, it’s still considered, at that point, an added sugar. So we need to be watching how much-added sugar is in our diet throughout the whole day. The less, the better — for sure.”

What about juices? Do they have the same benefit as eating whole fruits and vegetables?

I love Ms. Talamas and Ms. Kimberlains take on juicing. Ms. Talamas explains that although vegetables do not have naturally occurring sugar, juicing them removes the fiber. Fiber is the non-digestible portion of a fruit or vegetable that adds bulk. It has been linked to cardiovascular health, weight management and increased digestive health. Remember, juicing is only water, vitamins and minerals and although there are some health benefits, it can’t replace eating whole fruits and vegetables.

Ms. Talamas also states: “The benefits of eating your vegetables is not obtained when you’re juicing them because when you eat them you get that fiber and fiber is very important for your heart health, maintaining your weight and also good for your gastrointestinal health.”

Ms. Kimberlain says, “I wouldn’t say there’s anything necessarily wrong if you want to drink celery juice by itself. It can be a good starting point. That’s what I tell people — if they’re not eating any vegetables at all and they’re gonna juice some. I think it’s like a stepping stone. And then you can move to the next step. The problem, truthfully, is that nine times out of ten they don’t just have the juice as green as they should.

“The trend right now is the celery juice, but some people are throwing in an apple to really kind of make it taste a little sweet to offset the bitterness. To distinguish between juicing and smoothies — the juicing really does extract all the fiber and the smoothies do have some of the fiber in it. Just keep in mind, (the fiber) is being obliterated, meaning it’s not really doing its job. So, again, it’s about going back to eating whole fruits and vegetables. That’s the ideal.”

Love your eggs? Me too!

Ms. Kimberlain focuses on saturated fat. She explains that it not necessarily the saturated fat in eggs that we must be wary of, it could be the foods served with eggs such as butter, bacon, and cheese that is connected to the link in increased cholesterol. She explains “It’s not the egg that’s necessarily raising blood cholesterol. It’s really about saturated fat and taking a step back to see what ultimately is the cause for raising those blood cholesterol levels.”

 
“So there’s one (study) that says they’re good and there’s one that says they’re bad. It really relates to the individual person. So after a person analyzes all of their sources of saturated fat that they typically eat, that person may realize: ‘I need to cut back on some form of saturated fat.’ It may be through egg yolks, particularly they can eat the egg whites. It’s pure protein, but they may choose to cut back on other sources of saturated fats, such as butter, bacon and so on, says Ms. Talamas.

“The other concern about these studies is that if you just eliminate eggs, the question is what are you going to eat? So people usually eat eggs for breakfast. Now, the substitution of eggs for sugary cereal or a doughnut or a quick carb may actually be worse for your health. So these studies may be in the news, but it always comes down to you knowing about sound nutrition. Think about your total saturated fat throughout the day. If you are going to cut back on eggs, make sure you replace it with healthy food, a healthy whole grain or a lean protein, or even just cutting back on the yolks and including the egg whites. It really comes back to what are you eating the eggs with.”

For more on juicing, natural sugars or eggs, make sure to watch the full Facebook Live here!