Why you should think twice about fruit juice at breakfast

February 10, 2018  10:30

Scientists have suggested why people should never drink fruit juice at breakfast.

Consuming OJ on an empty stomach 'overwhelms' the digestive system and may disrupt beneficial gut bacteria, a US study implies.

As The Daily Mail repots, fruit juice contains high levels of the sugar fructose, which is quick to reach the small intestine after consumption, the researchers found.

Following periods of 'fasting', such as in the mornings, the organ is unable to process large amounts of fructose, causing it to 'spill over' into the large intestine, the research adds.

Once in the large intestine, fructose comes into contact with 'good bacteria', which are not designed to process sugar, according to the researchers.

Although the results did not reveal if this has a negative health impact, the scientists believe 'an effect is likely'.

They therefore advise people stick to 'the most old-fashioned advice in the world' by 'limiting sweets to moderate quantities after meals'.

'Limit sweets to moderate quantities after meals'  

Although past studies suggest sugar is processed by the liver, the new research implies more than 90 percent of fructose is digested in the small intestine. 

Results further show the small intestine is better able to process fructose when it is consumed after a meal.

Study author Professor Joshua Rabinowitz from Princeton University, said: 'We saw that feeding mice prior to sugar exposure enhanced the small intestine's ability to process fructose and that protected the microbiome from sugar exposure.'

The researchers add the findings support 'the most old-fashioned advice in the world,' which is to 'limit sweets to moderate quantities after meals'. 

How the research was carried out   

The researchers fed mice a 1:1 mixture of fructose:glucose.

They then followed how the sugars were processed in the animals' digestive tracts. 

The findings were published in the journal Cell Metabolism.

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