Well, to add a counterweight to his assertions, the NHS advice directly contradicts Spiller, they say only 1 smoothie OR juice counts towards your 5 a day. And they assert that it does release the sugars.
And they've actually reduced this figure, they used to say you could drink up to 2 of your five a day as a smoothie (mention of it in this article[2] for example).
If you read the NHS FAQ page though it seems bunk.
This because fruit juice and smoothies don't contain the fibre found in whole fruits and vegetables.
Fruit juices don't contain the fiber, but smoothies do. Its almost like they don't get the difference between a smoothie and fruit juice.
The sugars found naturally in whole fruit are less likely to cause tooth decay because the sugar is contained within the structure of the fruit.
That also seems like BS to me. I'm flossing more apple out of my teeth after eating an apple than after drinking a smoothie (where the fruit is going more straight down). I think they think you are swallowing whole fruit and not chewing it first.
And they've actually reduced this figure, they used to say you could drink up to 2 of your five a day as a smoothie (mention of it in this article[2] for example).
[1]http://www.nhs.uk/Livewell/5ADAY/Pages/FAQs.aspx#juices
[2]https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/wordofmouth/2013/ma...