Orange Juice

Why orange juice is rated low

Orange juice is low FODMAP at about ⅓ cup (70mL), moderate at larger portions and high at much larger portions, so a full glass sits well above the low serve. Excess fructose is the group that builds. Juicing changes the food: it puts the sugars of several oranges into one glass and leaves the fibre behind in the press, so the load builds quickly with volume. That is why the juice and the whole fruit behave so differently, and why a whole orange is the easier way to get your citrus. Juice still has a place, as a small glass rather than a tall one.

What changes your risk

• Serving size About ⅓ cup (70mL) is low, larger portions are moderate and much larger portions are high. A standard breakfast glass holds far more than a third of a cup, so the pour is the lever that matters most.
• Juicing itself Squeezing fruit concentrates its sugars into liquid and removes the fibre, which is why juice and whole fruit are treated as different foods on this diet. Freshly squeezed at home and bottled juice are the same story in this respect.
• Blends and juice drinks A carton labelled orange can still be a blend. Apple juice, pear juice and high fructose corn syrup are common sweeteners in juice drinks and multifruit blends, and any of them makes the carton a different product from plain orange juice.
• Stacking across the meal A low rating is per serving, not per meal. A small glass of juice next to other foods that are each sitting near their own limits builds a larger total of excess fructose and other FODMAPs for that sitting, so it is easier to spread drinks and servings across the day.

What else works

Whole oranges and mandarins fill the same citrus role and bring the fibre that juicing removes, and a whole orange is a much more generous amount of fruit than a third of a cup of juice. Kiwi, strawberries, blueberries, raspberries, pineapple and cantaloupe round out the fruit side of breakfast. The lookalikes are where care is needed: apple juice and pear juice are not low FODMAP swaps, mango and watermelon are not the fruit to reach for, and multifruit blends or juice drinks sweetened with apple or pear concentrate or with high fructose corn syrup are a different proposition from a plain glass of orange. If you want the drink to go further, topping a small pour up with water or soda water is the honest way to stretch it.

How to keep it low

Pour about ⅓ cup (70mL) into a measuring jug once and then into your usual glass, so you know by eye what the low serve actually looks like at your own table, because most everyday tumblers hold several times that. A small juice glass makes the serve look reasonable rather than mean. Buying, check that the ingredients list reads as orange juice rather than a blend, and treat not from concentrate and from concentrate as the same for these purposes. At a cafe or hotel breakfast, pour it yourself rather than taking the pre filled tall glass, or eat a whole orange instead.

Common questions

is orange juice low fodmap

Only in a small glass. Orange juice is low at about ⅓ cup (70mL), moderate at larger portions and high at much larger portions.

how much orange juice can i drink on a low fodmap diet

About ⅓ cup (70mL) is the low serve. A full glass sits well above it, so keep the pour small or top it up with water.

is orange juice worse than eating an orange

They are different foods on this diet. Juicing puts the sugars of several oranges into one glass and leaves the fibre behind, so juice is low only at about ⅓ cup (70mL), while a whole orange gives you far more fruit for the same load.

can i drink orange juice on the elimination phase

Yes, at about ⅓ cup (70mL) of plain orange juice. Check the carton is not a blend, since apple or pear juice and high fructose corn syrup turn it into a different drink.