AIJN Ordinary General Assembly, 31 May 2007

AGD 5.5 Revision AIJN Position Paper “Fruit Juices and Healthy Diet”

The position paper which was adopted in the 2006 Summer Assembly in Copenhagen has been redrafted & renamed “The Contribution of Fruit Juice to a Healthy Diet” in order to make it less defensive and more focused on promoting the positive aspects of fruit juice and its dietary role.The table now shows, where available, RDA figures for micronutrients and the definition of obesity in Annex I was removed.

The position paper, which was approved by the Technical Committee on March 14, is intended to be used as part of the AIJN nutrient profiling campaign

The Contribution of Fruit Juice to a Healthy Diet

Introduction

As a result of the EU and World-wide debate about diet and a healthy lifestyle, the role of fruit juicein a healthy diet has come to the fore. The debate in most developed countries, including the EU Member States, has encouraged the implementation of national programmes to develop healthy eating and to promote the daily intake of significant amounts of fruit and vegetables, given their proven positive impact on health. Fruit juices, directly derived from the fruit, have been recognised as a valuable contribution to a healthy diet. They contribute the primary source of vitamin C, and are important sources of a number of nutrient minerals and other health-giving constituents e.g. anti-oxidants and folate.

The context of action and discussion

The World Health Organisation (WHO) has framed a global strategy on diet, physical activity and health4 and this is reflected at the European level by the by the publication of the European Commission Green Paper ‘Promoting healthy diets and physical activity: a European dimension for the prevention of overweight, obesity and chronic diseases’30 and the formation of the EU Platform for Action on Diet Physical Activity and Health5. These actions are addressing the obesity problem in the widest context, both geographically, and in terms of approaches to solutions, and many companies have made firm statements of action to achieve those objectives5. There is particular concern about diet at school and the increasing tendency to obesity, and many official bodies and food companies are issuing guidance on general dietary recommendations for school pupils6-14 as well as the contents of vending machines in schools15-18. Without exception, 100% fruit juicesare endorsed as healthy choices for children.

Fruit juice as part of a healthy diet

The predominant message from health professionals, governments, State authorities, and Regulatory authorities is to increase the consumption of fruit and vegetables to improve the human diet. The consumption of a portion of a fruit juice is clearly included in the detailed recommendations for increased consumption of fruit and vegetables in the World-wide accepted 5+ a day strategy19,20. Appropriate amounts of fruits and vegetables (including a daily portion of juice ) are also recommended for weight management. General dietary advice, including 5+ a day recommendations, has been published by the majority of European countries (UK, France, Germany, Sweden, Austria, Finland, Netherlands, Poland, Norway, Ireland, Denmark, Norway, Italy, Spain)32, the Australian government and Canadian dieticians note fruit juice as an appropriate part of a healthy diet23,24,25 In the USA the Dietary Guidelines for Americans 200521,22, advises following the DASH eating plan or the USDA Food Guide. Both of these guides specifically mention portions of fruit juice as contributors to a healthy diet. A recent report on a study of the relationship between fruit juice intake and obesity, based on 7,500 children between the ages of 2 – 18 years concluded that the ‘findings are consistent with many other research projects that have found no association between consumption of 100% juice and obesity.’ Moreover, the authors found that children who drank 100% fruit juice had healthier overall diets than non-juice consumers, and had significantly lower intakes of total fat, saturated fat and sodium.31

Fruit juice and nutrients

The EU Council of Ministers and the European Parliament have now adopted the Regulation to govern the use of nutrition and health claims on foods26. Within this legislation it is planned that nutritional profiles will be constructed for all foods, and the main focus will be on setting thresholds for high content of fat, salt and sugar, although it is likely that a food’s nutrient value will also be taken into account. Apart from the recommendations from numerous official bodies World-wide, that fruit juices are healthy foods, nutrition data27,28 demonstrate the particular value of fruit juices in the diet. Orange juice, for example, the most popular fruit juice, contains:

  • A high amount of vitamin C27
  • measurable quantities of nine other vitamins27
  • ten minerals and trace elements27
  • eighteen amino acids27
  • four of the six anti-oxidant carotenoids27
  • an amount of carbohydrate (almost all sugars) in a 100g serving which accounts for only 2% of the calorie GDA28,29
  • very low amounts of sodium, saturated fats and cholesterol27

Other fruit juices have a similar composition. The table shows examples of nutritional recommendations and related RDAs for micronutrients:

Type28of Fruit Juice / Nutritional recommendations / % GDA for calories/200ml * / Nutrient / % RDA/200ml
All juices listed here / Low or very low in sodium, saturated fats, and cholesterol
Apple, unsweetened, without added ascorbic acid / It is a good source of Manganese / 4.0% / Manganese / No official RDA Figure
Grape juice, unsweetened, without added vitamin C / It is a very good source of Manganese / 6.4% / Manganese / No official RDA Figure
Orange juice from concentrate / Good source of Thiamin and potassium / 4.0% / Thiamin / 44%
Potassium (K) / 50%
Tomato Juice / Good source of vitamin K, thiamin, niacin;
very good source of vitamin A / 1.6% / Vitamin K / No official RDA Figure
Thiamin / 2.8%
Niacin / 7.8%
Vitamin A / 8.3%
Pineapple juice, canned, unsweetened, without added ascorbic acid / It is a very good source of Vitamin C and Manganese / 4.6% / Vitamin C / 37%
Manganese / No official RDA
figure

*Based on a 200ml portion and a daily intake of 2250 calories

Conclusion

The information provided here is incontrovertible evidence that a moderate daily intake of fruit juices offers nutrient value as part of a healthy diet. Fruit juices are nutritious and enjoyable, and their enduring popularity with consumers should, rightly, place them on the list of healthy foods within a balanced diet.

Meeting documents AIJN GA 31 May 2007 Page 1 of 6

Protective Elements of Fruit and Vegetable Juices

Principal protective elements / Established Protective Effect
Experimental / Epidemiological
Vit C / Vit B9 / Polyphenols / βcarotene and carotenoids / Potassium / Cardio-Vascular Diseases / Cancers / Cardio Vascular Disease / Cancers
ORANGE JUICE / +++ / ++ / ++ / + / + / +++ / ++ / ++ / +
GRAPEFRUIT JUICE / +++ / ++ / + / + / ++ / + / ++ / +
GRAPE JUICE / +++ / + / +++ / + / ++ / +
APPLE JUICE / +++ / + / ++ / + / ++ / +
TOMATO JUICE / +++ / +++ / ++ / ++ / ++ / +++
CARROT AND APRICOT JUICE / +++ / +++ / + / ++ / + / +++
+ VERY HIGH LEVEL
++HIGH LEVEL
+++AVERAGE LEVEL / +POSSIBLE RELATIONSHIP
++PROBABLE RELATIONSHIP
+++DEFINITE RELATIONSHIP

Source: Institut Pasteur/Unijus

Meeting documents AIJN GA 31 May 2007 Page 1 of 6

REFERENCES

  1. Teff, K. (2005) Carbohydrates, glycemic responses and weight control in : Food, Diet and Obesity, Ed. Mela D.J., Woodhead Publishing Limited
  2. Partnership for Healthy weight management – Body Mass Index

3.Food Standards Agency eat well, be well – BMI calculator

4.WHO (2003) WHO global strategy on diet, physical activity and European consultation meeting, Copenhagen 2-4th April WHO publications

5.CIAA (2005) CIAA Final draft EU platform for Action on Diet, Physical Activity and Health, CIAA commitments for 2006 to drive action within in the EU Framework for Action on Diet, Physical Activity and Health. 12th October

6New Zealand Juice and Beverage Association (2004)

7.Scottish Executive (2006) Scottish nutrient standards for school lunches

8.Nutrition Health Review: (2004) Fruit juice, in moderation, good for children

9.Better Health Channel (2004) Child nutrition – juices and sweet drinks

10.AIJN (2004) France Situation on the obesity fight

(requires AIJN membership status to view this document)

11CaliforniaCenter for Public Advocacy

nutritionsense/WhatsHealthy.pd

12.C.S Mott Children’s hospital (2005) Healthy diet for teenagers

13.California Task Force on Youth and Workplace Wellness (2006)

14.Fruit juice – how much is too much (2006)

  1. Food Standards Agency (2004) Guide to healthy Vending machines launch

16. Cadbury Schweppes (2006) Vending in schools

17.Masterfoods – Smart Choice, a responsible approach to Vending in Schools

18Welsh Assembly Government (2005) Think Healthy Vending – Guidance on vending in schools

19Eat 5 to 9 a day for better Health (2006) What’s a serving ?

20Eat 5 to 9 a day for better health

21USDA (2005) The Dietary Guidelines for Americans 2005, Adequate nutrients within calorie needs

22.USDA (2005) The Dietary Guidelines for Americans 2005, Weight management

  1. Commonwealth of Australia (2003) Dietary Guidelines for Australian Adults; National Health and Medical Research Council

24Food Standards Agency – What is a healthy balanced diet ?

25.Dieticians of Canada (2004) – Recommendations for School Food and Nutrition for Ontario Ministry of Education

26.European Commission (2003) Proposal for a Regulation of the European parliament and of the Council on nutrition and health claims made on foods COM(2003) 424 final, 2003/0165 (COD), Brussels, 16.7.2003

  1. USDA National Nutrient Database for Standard Reference

28.Nutrition facts and analysis

EC Nutrition Labelling Directive 1990 and UK Department of Health

29.Institute of Grocery Distribution (2005) Working Group Report; Report of the IGD/PIC Industry Nutrition Strategy Group; Technical Working Group on Guideline Daily Amounts

30.European Commission (2005) GREEN PAPER Promoting healthy diets and physical activity: a European dimension for the prevention of overweight, obesity and chronic diseases Brussels, 08.12.2005 COM(2005) 637 final

  1. Fulgoni III, V.L. Fulgoni, S.A. and Taylor S.K, (2006) Consumption of 100% juices is not associated with being overweight or risk for being overweight in children. Program/Abstract # 139.5 in the Experimental Biology meeting, San Francisco April 1st – 5th
  2. AUSTRIA:

DENMARK:

FINLAND:

FRANCE:

GERMANY:

ITALY:

SPAIN:

NETHERLANDS: (Fruit and Vegetable Information Bureau)

NORWAY:

POLAND:

SWEDEN:

UK:

(The Fresh Fruit & Vegetables Information Bureau)

IRELAND:

Meeting documents AIJN GA 31 May 2007 Page 1 of 6