Fancy fruit drinks...are they really an alternative to real fruit? (ingredient, substitute)

[chiroptera]

My head tells me no they are not.

I'm taking about "premium" brands like Odwalla or Naked Juice; not much in the ingredient list except fruit and water.
Odwalla Good Products - Juices, Fruit Smoothies, Protein Bars & Super Foods
They tend to have label blurbs like "This bottle contains two cups of strawberries, a cup of blueberries and three bananas."
Obviously, no fiber, and obviously (I think) that is marketing blether to appeal to people who don't eat a ton of fruit but feel they should.

I am asking this because I don't eat a ton of fruit, but feel I should.
However, I eat a stupid high amount of vegetables and legumes, way more than the typical American. I just rarely seem to get around to eating fruit and berries.

Given that I eat lots and lots of lentils, beans and fresh vegetables, should I even concern myself about fruit and berry intake?
Are silly-expensive fruit juices a reasonable substitute assuming the answer to the aforementioned is yes and I eat lots of fiber already?
Are such products a total rip-off?*

*Maybe yes and I do understand that a $200 juicer and 20 lbs of carrots or blueberries etc would in the long run be a cheaper way to do whole juicing. But I'm just not that dedicated, to be honest.

[clevergirl05]

Originally Posted by chiroptera

My head tells me no they are not.

Your head is 100% correct .

Nothing compares to the real thing (real fruit). If you don't like fruit don't try to force yourself to eat it. You've made it this far without eating a lot of it, so why try fixing something that's not even broken ?

[Mikala43]

I disagree, I think Odwalla is a great way to get fruits and veggies if you don't eat them normally.

I usually buy 4 different ones each shopping trip and add them to my smoothies. I don't buy a lot of fruit.... more of a veggie eater so I use those to supplement.

Of course, I also buy the baby food in squeeze packets for on the go meals. Mixtures like spinach/pear, and apple/sweet potato. 100% natural, no fillers and 100 calories.

[Philosophizer]

Originally Posted by Mikala43

I disagree, I think Odwalla is a great way to get fruits and veggies if you don't eat them normally.

I usually buy 4 different ones each shopping trip and add them to my smoothies. I don't buy a lot of fruit.... more of a veggie eater so I use those to supplement.

Of course, I also buy the baby food in squeeze packets for on the go meals. Mixtures like spinach/pear, and apple/sweet potato. 100% natural, no fillers and 100 calories.

You're admitting this publicly? You totally just killed it for me...

[Mikala43]

Originally Posted by Philosophizer

You're admitting this publicly? You totally just killed it for me...

ROFL. How do you think I keep being a size 4?!!


Funny thing, my husband's 11 year old loves junk food, and I've been slowly getting him to enjoy healthy stuff.... he LOVES the squeeze packets of baby food. Great for going to beach, hiking, fishing and stuff.

[Philosophizer]

Originally Posted by Mikala43

ROFL. How do you think I keep being a size 4?!!


Funny thing, my husband's 11 year old loves junk food, and I've been slowly getting him to enjoy healthy stuff.... he LOVES the squeeze packets of baby food. Great for going to beach, hiking, fishing and stuff.

Would you like a pacifier to go along with Gerber mush in a packet? haha

Size 4? The more I get to know about you, the more I like... By all means, do what's necessary to maintain that figure.

[Mikala43]

Originally Posted by Philosophizer

Would you like a pacifier to go along with Gerber mush in a packet? haha

Size 4? The more I get to know about you, the more I like... By all means, do what's necessary to maintain that figure.

My husband provides the pacifier. Just can't really use that in public. /rofl

I'm stopping now before I have to give myself an infraction. That would be embarrassing.

[GrandviewGloria]

Fruit juices are definitely better for you than soda pop. But pasteurization changes the structure of the sugars from beneficial to bad. And many micronutrients/phytochemicals do not survive very well, the things that are done to stabilize the juices, to give them a shelf life.

A lot of nutrition remains, though: way more than the nutrition in processed cereals and frozen pizzas. So, I'd call the fancy fruit drinks 'relatively healthy'.

At breakfast, while DH is having his bunch of blanched broccoli, I'm generally having a box of blueberries I rinsed under the Insta-hot at the sink. I dice up a banana to sweeten the berries, and use either unsweetened almond milk or unsweetened soy milk. That's pretty easy. And when the farmers' markets have raspberries, I substitute those for blueberries.

We do benefit from the pigments in berries: particularly where eyesight is concerned. Otherwise, it sounds like you have an excellent diet. The vegetables are probably more important. You shouldn't worry too much.

[believe007]

Originally Posted by chiroptera

My head tells me no they are not.

I'm taking about "premium" brands like Odwalla or Naked Juice; not much in the ingredient list except fruit and water.
Odwalla Good Products - Juices, Fruit Smoothies, Protein Bars & Super Foods
They tend to have label blurbs like "This bottle contains two cups of strawberries, a cup of blueberries and three bananas."
Obviously, no fiber, and obviously (I think) that is marketing blether to appeal to people who don't eat a ton of fruit but feel they should.

I am asking this because I don't eat a ton of fruit, but feel I should.
However, I eat a stupid high amount of vegetables and legumes, way more than the typical American. I just rarely seem to get around to eating fruit and berries.

Given that I eat lots and lots of lentils, beans and fresh vegetables, should I even concern myself about fruit and berry intake?
Are silly-expensive fruit juices a reasonable substitute assuming the answer to the aforementioned is yes and I eat lots of fiber already?
Are such products a total rip-off?*

*Maybe yes and I do understand that a $200 juicer and 20 lbs of carrots or blueberries etc would in the long run be a cheaper way to do whole juicing. But I'm just not that dedicated, to be honest.

I love the Naked drinks, its a new favorite for me.
I don't think they're all that expensive either- they're less than a coffee at Starbuck's

Naked drinks are perfect for someone who doesn't eat fruits often so I don't consider them to be a rip off....

[weltschmerz]

How much of the natural fibre is left in the fruity drinks?