{"id":6828,"date":"2020-10-15T19:16:00","date_gmt":"2020-10-15T19:16:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.floridacitrus.org\/oj\/?post_type=news&p=6828"},"modified":"2024-02-19T19:17:25","modified_gmt":"2024-02-19T19:17:25","slug":"four-year-study-concludes-that-drinking-100-orange-juice-is-unrelated-to-excess-weight-gain-in-children-teens","status":"publish","type":"news","link":"https:\/\/www.floridacitrus.org\/oj\/news\/four-year-study-concludes-that-drinking-100-orange-juice-is-unrelated-to-excess-weight-gain-in-children-teens\/","title":{"rendered":"Four-Year Study Concludes That Drinking 100% Orange Juice Is Unrelated To Excess Weight Gain In Children & Teens"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

BARTOW, Fla. \u2013 <\/strong>A growingbody of nutrition research suggests that children and teens can benefit from regularly drinking 100% orange juice without concerns about weight gain. A new, four-year longitudinal study<\/a> published in Public Health Nutrition<\/em> found that drinking 100% orange juice is not associated with negative effects on body weight, BMI or BMI percentile among 9 to 16 year olds, and higher orange juice consumption is associated with increased height for girls and increased trends for physical activity levels in both boys and girls.1<\/a><\/sup><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Based on the analysis by researchers at University of Connecticut and Harvard Medical School, the lack of a connection between orange juice consumption and increased body weight held true whether kids consumed just one glass of orange a month or one glass of orange juice per day. Average consumption of 100% orange juice among study participants was 2.6 6-oz. glasses per week for boys and 2.2 6 oz. glasses per week for girls. This level of consumption is well within the recommendations of the American Academy of Pediatrics, which suggests limits for 100% fruit juice consumption of 8 oz. daily for children over seven.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe question of whether fruit juice intake causes poor health outcomes, such as weight gain in children has been a subject of controversy for years,\u201d said Dr. Ock Chun, Professor in Nutritional Sciences at University of Connecticut and principal investigator of the study. \u201cI hope our findings reassure parents and health educators that regularly enjoying a glass of 100% orange juice can provide kids with beneficial nutrients without increasing the risk of becoming overweight or obese. In fact, consuming 100% orange juice regularly could help address shortfalls in the diet and bolster intake of key nutrients such as vitamin C, potassium, folate, thiamin, and riboflavin, as well as calcium and vitamin D found in fortified OJ.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This longitudinal study, funded by an unrestricted grant by the Florida Department of Citrus, adds to the growing body of scientific research supporting the role of 100% orange juice in children\u2019s diets.<\/p>\n\n\n\n