If you are a juice lover, it’s likely possible that you may have come across Minute maid pulpy orange in the stores or at least on TV ads.
Minute maid is a popular beverage brand owned by Coca-Cola that offers various fruit juices, including their popular pulpy orange flavor.
Minute maid pulpy orange is marketed as made with real orange pulp that can quench your thirst and delight your buds.
However, one common question that comes to people’s minds is whether Minute maid pulpy orange is good for health.
Short answer: Minute maid pulpy orange is not good for health as it is high in added sugar, lacks essential nutrients and contains artificial flavors and colors.
In this post, I have compiled a list of 5 reasons why Minute maid pulpy orange is not good for you.
But before getting to the list, let’s look at its nutritional value and ingredients.
Also read: Is Tang Good For Health? The Truth Behind This Popular Drink
Nutritional value of Minute maid pulpy orange
A 200ml serving of Minute maid pulpy orange provides the following nutrition:
- Calories: 104
- Carbohydrates: 26.2g
- Sugar(total): 25.4g
- Fat: 0g
- Protein: 0g
- Fiber: 0g
- Sodium: 9.6mg
What are the ingredients in Minute maid pulpy orange?
The key ingredients that you would find in Minute maid pulpy orange include:
- Water
- Sugar
- Orange juice(10.5%)
- Acidity regulators(330, 331(iii))
- Antioxidant(300)
- Artificial colors(110, 102)
- Natural and artificial flavors
5 Reasons Minute maid pulpy orange is not good for health
1. High sugar content
Minute maid pulpy orange is high in sugar containing 25g per 200ml of serving. This is 15% more sugar than in popular sodas like Coca-Cola or Pepsi.
According to American Heart Association, men should limit their daily sugar intake to 36g, while women should limit it to 24g.
Consuming just one 200ml(1 glass) serving of Minute maid pulpy orange exceeds the daily sugar limit for women by 100% and for men by 70%.
Additionally, the 90% sugar in Minute maid pulpy oranges comes from added sugar.
Drinking pulpy orange frequently or in excess amounts can increase the risk of various health issues such as:
- Weight gain
- Obesity
- Tooth decay
- Diabetes
- High blood pressure
- Heart disease
If compared to other popular fruit juice brands, Minute maid pulpy orange has slightly less sugar overall but more added sugar.
Here’s the table showing the sugar content of various popular fruit juice brands.
| Juice brand | Added sugar(g) | Total sugar(g) |
|---|---|---|
| Minute maid pulpy orange | 23 | 25 |
| B natural orange juice | 20.8 | 26 |
| Paperboat orange juice | 17.4 | 25.8 |
| Real orange juice | 13 | 26.4 |
2. Lack of fiber content
Despite being marketed as made from orange pulp, Minute maid pulpy orange, like most packaged fruit juices, lacks fiber content.
Oranges are generally known as a good source of fiber, with a single orange(140g) providing up to 10% of the daily value of fiber (3g).
However, this fiber is not present in Minute maid pulpy orange as the oranges used in it goes through processing, which results in loss of fiber.
Fiber is an essential part of fruits that helps to feel full and avoid overconsumption.
But because Minute maid pulpy orange lacks fiber, it is easier to drink larger quantities without feeling satisfied or full. This eventually leads to an increase in sugar intake.
Also read: Are Paper Boat Juices Healthy? Everything You Need To Know
3. Lack of other nutrients
Minute maid pulpy orange is not a nutritious drink because, aside from fibre, it lacks several other nutrients found in whole orange fruit.
A single serving of whole orange (140g) contains various nutrients, including vitamins A, C, folate, calcium, and potassium.
However, these nutrients are missing(not listed on the nutrition label) in Minute maid pulpy orange, making it significantly less nutritious.
Note that the Minute Maid orange sold in other countries may contain vitamin C and other nutrients. But the variety sold in India does not list any vitamins on the nutrition label, which simply means they do not exist.
4. Loaded with artificial colors
Minute maid pulpy orange contains artificial colors such as Sunset yellow FCF (110) and Tartrazine (102), which are associated with various health issues.
You may think that the orange color in minute maid pulpy orange is due to the addition of orange pulp. But in reality, the orange color of the drink is the result of added artificial colors.
While these artificial colors may enhance the drink’s appearance, they have been linked to various health issues.
For example, the artificial color 102, also known as tartrazine, has been linked to allergies, anxiety, hyperactivity, and abdominal pain and has been found to contain carcinogens[1][2].
Similarly, artificial color 110, also known as Sunset Yellow FCF, has been linked to hyperactivity, DNA damage, indigestion, hive, allergies, headaches, migraines and behavioral problems in children[3].
While these negative effects are more likely to occur with high doses of these colors, it is important to keep in mind that these colors are widely used in food industries, increasing the risk of overdosing.
5. Contain artificial flavors
Minute maid pulpy orange contain both natural and artificial flavors.
But what’s the need for artificial flavors in juices?
Typically, packaged fruit juices are made by extracting natural juices from fruits. During this process, they are pasteurised, filtered, and concentrated to extend their shelf life.
These processes not only remove the nutrients from the natural juice but also alter its natural flavor and aroma, as a result, beverage companies need to add artificial flavors to mimic the same flavor.
While the use of artificial flavors is mostly safe, they can cause various health problems in people, such as addiction or allergic reactions.
Additionally, the artificial flavors used in Minute Maid pulpy orange are not listed on the ingredients label.
Also read: Is Tropicana Juice Healthy As Everyone Thinks? Let’s Find Out
Is Minute maid pulpy orange good for weight loss?
Minute maid pulpy orange is not a good drink for weight loss because it contains added sugar and lacks essential nutrients for a weight loss diet.
Consuming just one 250ml PET bottle of Minute Maid Pulpy Orange would provide around 130 calories and 31g of sugar, which is too much when looking to lose weight.
Remember that weight loss doesn’t depend on only one specific food but rather on your overall diet and lifestyle.
Is Minute maid pulpy orange better than soda?
Even though Minute maid pulpy orange has high sugar content, it is better than soda because it contains fruit pulp and is preservative-free.
However, from a truly health perspective, neither Minute maid pulpy orange nor soda are healthy drinks as they are high in sugar and contain artificial colors.
Here is a quick nutrition comparison of Minute maid pulpy orange to popular sodas like Coca-cola and Pepsi.
| Nutrients | Pulpy orange | Coco cola | Pepsi |
|---|---|---|---|
| Calories | 52 | 44 | 43 |
| Carbohydrates(g) | 13.1 | 10.9 | 10.9 |
| Sugar(g) | 12.7 | 10.6 | 10.9 |
| Protein(g) | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Fiber(g) | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Sodium(mg) | 9.6 | 8.5 | 11 |
Final words
While Minute maid pulpy orange may satisfy your taste buds, it is not good for your health. It is high in sugar, lacks essential nutrients and contains artificial flavors and colors.
Even consuming Minute maid pulpy orange occasionally is not ideal due to its artificial ingredients.
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