Recently, my editor passed along a note to me from “Appalled Reader.” At first, I thought that I had again offended someone without meaning to, and let me tell you, it is amazingly easy to do. But, thankfully, in this case, the anger wasn’t directed at me.
The reader took issue with a feature in the Sunday edition of the Courier-Journal called “The Best” in which folks write in and share their fondness for an item. In this case, the item was a drink called Sunny Delight. Here is the gist of the note.
“I am writing in regards to the article I read last Sunday in “The Best” on Sunny Delight.Quite frankly, I was sickened to see the article and promotion of Sunny Delight. It is misleading and this product shouldn’t even be allowed on the market.”
The writer went on to request that I look into this, dissect the product and provide my opinion. I was happy to comply and offer my two cents worth of input.
STARTING FROM SCRATCH
As a starting point, I went back and read the offending piece in “The Best.” It certainly was bullish, as expected, and loaded with accolades, like: “The best part is that it is tasty and sweet with no bitterness or aftertaste.” Throughout, I noticed that the author emphasized the notion that this was a juice. “When my favorite breakfast juice by Schwan's was discontinued, I was very upset. I browsed the juice aisles in a couple of stores looking for an alternative.”
So, is Sunny Delight actually a juiceor something close to it? With this question in mind, I put on my scientist hat and went looking for unbiased information. My first stop when it comes to such matters is always the Center for Science in the Public Interest. It’s a nonprofit advocacy organization dedicated to getting the truth out about dietary issues through its excellent monthly publication "Nutrition Action Healthletter"(for information call 202-332-9110).The Center’s mission is a steep uphill battle, of course, because big business has millions to spend on misleading advertising claims, and the CSPI is constantly trying to set the record straight.
I also searched through mainstream publications and found several that took issue with Sunny Delight, including a piece in TIME.comthat investigated popular food products for children that are best avoided. Conspicuously, making their top ten list was Sunny Delight. Interestingly, after reading this I saw that TIME.com used nutritional guidelines by the CSPI as their healthful reference.
A CRITIQUE OF SUNNY DELIGHT
OK, so what’s all the fuss about? Several things, and rising to the top, is the "juice" issue. Although Sunny Delight contains a trace of juice, it’s not a juice, and not even close.
Unfortunately, Sunny Delight contains more than a trace of sugar.
How much sugar? Lots! A typical soft drink contains about 26 grams of sugar per 8-ounces serving compared to 27 grams of sugar in 8-ounces of Sunny Delight. Worse, the sugar content is in the form of high-fructose corn syrup. Overall, 98 percent of Sunny Delight is water and high-fructose corn syrup.
Health benefits? The author of the piece touted health benefits because “… every 8-ounces has the daily recommended amount of Vitamin C.” That’s like saying a bone your dog buried in the yard is healthy because it contains calcium.
To put this in perspective, if you were to dump seven teaspoons of sugar (a teaspoon is 4 grams) in an 8-ounce glass of water, add a bunch of chemicals and a vitamin pill with a minimal dose of synthetic Vitamin C, would you call this a healthy drink and give it to your children? Hopefully not.
One additional disturbing fact is that in the supermarket, Sunny Delight is often located close to real juice. This is a deceptive marketing ploy, so don’t fall for it. Oh, and Sunny Delight is not cheap, even though it can be produced at very little cost.
THE BOTTOM LINE
As a result of my investigation of Sunny Delight, I agree with “Appalled Reader.” Sunny Delight is much closer to being a soft drink than a juice, and it’s best avoided. Let me add, if you trust advertising ploys, odds are very high that you will be misled. As always, buyer beware.
Reach Bryant Stamford, a professor of kinesiology and integrative physiology at Hanover College, at stamford@hanover.edu.
