Some brands of orange juice contain as much sugar as cola

Fruit juice 'shouldn't count in your 5 a day': 

Some brands have more sugar than cola says obesity tsar

• Dr Susan Jebb said public should wean themselves off certain products
• Some brands of orange juice contain as much sugar as cola
• Oxford professor claims they should be taxed for impacting health
• Even pure fruit juice is said to contain naturally-occurring sugar 

Unhealthy: Some pure fruit juices are even said to contain naturally-occurring sugars

Fruit juice is so high in sugar it should not count as part of a healthy five-a-day diet, the Government’s obesity tsar has warned.

The public should even start watering it down to wean themselves off it, said Oxford professor Dr Susan Jebb.

Some brands of orange juice contain as much sugar as cola and should be taxed because of their potential effect on the nation’s health, she claimed.

Experts say shoppers are now getting confusing messages about food, with a huge range of products saying they count towards a five-a-day diet. 

Tinned fruit, children’s drinks and even spaghetti hoops are all claiming health benefits – even though they are said to contain potentially unhealthy levels of sugar and salt.

Juice drinks have been singled out as a particular concern – lacking fibre and other nutrients as well as being high in calories. Even pure fruit juice is said to contain a large amount of naturally-occurring sugar – but people end up drinking too much of it because they do not see it as unhealthy.

Dr Jebb, a professor of diet and population health at Oxford University, said: ‘I would support taking it [fruit juice] out of the five-a-day guidance.

By SOPHIE BORLAND

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-2538328/Fruit-juice-shouldnt-count-5-day-Some-brands-sugar-cola-says-obesity-tsar.html#ixzz2qGxQNKrs