Fructose is a type of fruit sugar occurring naturally in all fruits and juices. Citrus and orange juice provide high amounts of fructose, which absorbs quickly in your digestive tract. Drinking a glass of juice helps bring your blood sugar back up, especially beneficial if you are diabetic or suffer from hypoglycemia.
Types of Carbohydrates
Carbohydrates can be either complex or simple. Complex carbohydrates, such as starch in grains and potatoes, undergo different steps before they fully absorb as glucose. Since complex carbs take a while for you to digest, they help keep you full for an extended period of time. Simple carbohydrates, including fructose and lactose, which is milk sugar, head right down to your small intestine, where enzymes turn them into glucose. From there, glucose absorbs through intestinal walls directly into your bloodstream. You may notice a sudden "sugar rush" shortly after drinking a glass of orange juice. This happens from the quick absorption of fructose, which raises your blood sugar levels.
Fructose in Juice
Citrus and orange juices often provide added sugars to cut out some of the bitterness. Typically between 20 to 25 percent of the total sugar in citrus and orange juice comes from fructose. The nutrition facts label lists total grams of sugar, but doesn't usually distinguish the amount of fructose. For example, combination grapefruit and orange juice that is unsweetened, offers approximately 25 g of total sugar, according to the USDA National Nutrient Database for Standard Reference. Approximately 5 to 6 g, or 20 to 25 percent, comes from fructose.
Additional Fructose Content
Your average chilled orange juice from concentrate provides 20 g of total sugar. About 25 percent, or 5 g, comes from fructose. Sweetened grapefruit juice contains as much as 28 g of total sugar, with about 20 percent, or 5.5 g, stemming from fructose. An 8 oz. glass of blended citrus juice from concentrate has 20 g of sugar, of which, 4 to 5 g comes from fructose.
Fructose and Calories
Fructose, like all types of carbohydrates, offers 4 calories per gram. Between 45 and 65 percent of your total calories should come from carbohydrates, says the McKinley Health Center. Following a 2,000 calorie diet requires you to have 225 to 325 total grams of carbohydrates for the day. Having a glass of orange juice that has a total of 25 g of sugar, takes up between 7 and 11 percent of your total daily allotment for carbohydrates.
References
- Centers For Disease Control and Prevention; Carbohydrates; February 2011
- USDA National Nutrient Database for Standard Reference
- McKinley Health Center; Macronutrients: The Importance of Carbohydrate, Protein, and Fat; March 2008
- National Digestive Diseases Information Clearinghouse; Your Digestive System and How It Works; April 2008
Member Comments