Judi Wilcox, RD, CDE
Here’s the decision, courtesy of Judi Wilcox, one of Divabetic’s Charlie’s Angels of Diabetes Outreach.
Hands down the orange is a knockout!
Because of its fiber content the orange is a better choice. One orange contains 3 grams of fiber and that is 11% of your need for fiber. The recommended daily amount of fiber for someone living with diabetes is 35 grams per day. It takes 3 oranges to make a glass of juice and the fiber gets left behind in the juicer. Juice concentrate is made from the whole orange so if you have to have juice, juice concentrate would be a better choice. Orange juice with pulp has no fiber because the fiber is removed during the juicing process, and while pulp is added back, it’s not enough to beat the orange! Both oranges and orange juice have Vitamin C, flavonoids/antioxidants, potassium, and the B supervitamin, Folate. One small orange (or 2 tangerines) has 15 grams of carbohydrate. There are 30 grams of carbohydrates in a glass of Juicy Juice, which brings up another discussion. What is juice? Read the label and identify 100% REAL JUICE, and not Sunny D, Kool-Aid, Fruit Punch, or Nectars. Many juices are made with high fructose corn syrup so be sure to read the list of ingredients. A serving of juice is a 1/2 cup. Dilute it with water if you can’t resist to give it a fighting chance in your list of better food and beverage choices.
There are so many delicious types of oranges. My favorite is the Honeybell tangerine, a sweet, delicious and filling option to juice.
Listen to Judi’s ringside decision on Diva TalkRadio Diabetes Roundtable here:
http://www.blogtalkradio.com/divatalkradio1/2011/05/10/diabetes-roundtable-inspired-by-mothers
Tags: American Association of Diabetes Educators, at-risk for diabetes, blood sugar, diabetes, Diabetes Education, Diabetes Health, diabetes management, Diabetes Support, diet, Diva Talk Radio, fitness, food, health and wellness, health education, Judi Wilcox, nutrition, Type 1 Diabetes, Type 2 diabetes, wellness
