LAHORE – Orange juice is constantly praised as a natural and healthy beverage and as a result, it’s become a long-time breakfast staple. However, as the health trend that is juicing continues to gain momentum, there are a few concerns over how healthy orange juice really is.
Yes, oranges themselves are rich in nutrients that the body can benefit from, but does this still apply to orange juice? For a beverage that’s enjoyed around the world, one has to wonder just how beneficial squeezing oranges to extract the juice is.
Surprising to no one as it’s often the basis of its appeal, freshly squeezed orange juice is naturally high in vitamin C. What’s more, vitamin A, fibre, copper, and magnesium can also be found in a glass of orange juice.
Additionally, fresh juice is also rich in folate, and potassium as well as antioxidants. In fact, research published in the journal Food and Nutrition Research found that consuming a daily amount of orange juice helped to significantly increase antioxidant status.
Below are five wonderful health benefits of drinking orange juice:
It Can Protect You Against Kidney Stones: Kidney stones are an incredibly painful condition, yet research has found that a classic glass of OJ may be exactly what you need to prevent it.
It Contains Anti-Cancer Properties: Vitamin C works as an antioxidant, which means it helps to protect the body from the damaging effects of free radicals – compounds that can increase the risk of diseases such as cancer.
It Helps To Reduce Inflammation: Inflammation is the body’s natural response when it’s attempting to fight a disease or infection. However, when this becomes chronic, then it becomes a catalyst for a number of chronic diseases that include metabolic syndrome, heart disease, and certain cancers.
As a result, it’s always important to keep your inflammation in check and one way to do so would be by drinking orange juice.
It has a lot of other powerful vitamins and minerals: Though vitamin C gets all the attention, orange juice is also rich in potassium, magnesium, vitamin A, and several B vitamins. “Many brands are also fortified with calcium and vitamin D,” Taub-Dix points out.
It May Help Protect Your Heart Health: Heart disease continues to be the leading cause of death worldwide, yet a glass of orange juice may help curb these figures. This is because drinking orange juice may help to reduce the risk factors associated with heart disease.
For instance, research published in the journal Lipids in Health and Disease found that orange juice helped to reduce the levels of both total and ‘bad LDL cholesterol all while increasing the levels of ‘good’ HDL cholesterol.
Now it’s important to remember that the freshly squeezed orange juice that you make in the comfort of your home is different from the orange juice that you’ll find in the grocery store. This is because most processed orange juices contain added sugar, preservatives, and extra calories.
As a result, these store-bought juices can increase blood sugar levels, and thus increase the risk of diabetes as well as weight gain. So, its a better option to squeeze the oranges at home and enjoy fresh juice full of vitamins and nutrients.
