Healthy Fruit Juice Checklist - How to Choose a Bottled Fruit Juice

Not every bottled, canned, or boxed fruit beverage is a healthy fruit juice. Here is a checklist for evaluating juices to get the most health for your money.

Look for the words "100% fruit juice" on the label. This exact wording means that the beverage contains only fruit juice, flavors, and additives. Other wordings without the term "100%," such as "orange juice drink" or "fruit juice cocktail," mean that as little as 1% of the beverage might be fruit juice: the rest will typically be corn syrup.

Avoid flavors and additives as much as possible. Read the ingredients list in the fine print to see the number and names of additives.

"Pulp" or "puree" in the ingredients list indicates extra fiber, taste, and nutrition from the crushed flesh of the fruit.

On the label, look for the words "not from concentrate." This means that the juice was bottled when it was pressed. In contrast, "from concentrate" means that the juice was first dehydrated and then later reconstituted by mixing with water. The additional processing of making the concentrate harms the quality of the juice.

Look for the words "USDA organic" for the extra taste and nutrition of organic fruit. Organic fruit is grown without synthetic pesticides, which can concentrate in the juice. "100% organic" indicates entirely organic ingredients; "organic" indicates 95% organic ingredients. "Made with organic ingredients" means that only some of the ingredients are organic. The word "natural" means nothing at all!

Make sure that you get the fruit that you think you are buying. The ingredients are listed in the order of volume: the largest ingredient first and the smallest last.

Look for juice made from high-antioxidant fruits. Antioxidants are healthful nutrients that help maintain the body against the ravages of age, metabolism, and toxins. Fortunately, some antioxidants in fruits survive the bottling process! High-antioxidant fruit juices include bilberry, blueberry, cherry, concord grape, cranberry, and pomegranate.

Low-quality juices and corn syrup waste your money; whereas the highest quality juices enhance your health. This checklist will help you get the most from your juice purchases.