Fruit – especially the carefully engineered types of fruit we enjoy today – is a no-no word for certain dietary plans. Take low carb, for instance. Yes, you can eat fruit if you eat it “within your macros.” When it comes to many fruits, that’s not a whole lot, and it may limit you to only certain fruits.
Other lifestyles like the paleo diet often say berries are “better than” other fruits and that “if you want to lose weight, eat less fruit and concentrate on vegetables and protein.”
And increasingly, food lifestyle gurus are shunning fruit for its purported capability of aging the body faster and amping inflammation.
But taking your health and weight loss goals into consideration, is it all true?
Fructose: The Debbil?
The culprit in these assertions is usually not carbohydrates per se, but fructose, one of the two types of sugar usually present in fruits.
Concentrated fruit sugars, as found in some sweeteners like high-fructose corn syrup, are said to compound the negative health issues naturally-occurring fructose can create.
Fructose contains advanced glycation end products (AGEs), which, ironically or not, have been found in some studies to promote aging. They can also be pro-inflammatory, and inflammation can wreak havoc in the body.
Besides AGEs, fructose – at least by itself – is connected to an increase in bodily fat and my even be implicated in non-alcoholic fatty liver disease.
One other factor comes into play: modification of fruits. Genetic engineering is a comparatively recent method, but mankind has been cultivating fruits through cross-breeding for thousands of years in order to be as sweet and large as possible, which usually translates to a higher fructose:glucose ratio.
In fact, we’re going to talk about these two sugars below.
Should You STOP Eating Fruit?
Not necessarily. Here’s why.
While fructose by itself can wreak havoc, especially if isolated and concentrated into a syrup flavoring like high fructose corn syrup, fruit has a second sugar that can balance out these effects, allowing you all the nutrients you need without the degree of damage you’ve heard about.
That other sugar is glucose, a primary source of energy for your body. Fruits (and some vegetables) vary in their ratios of fructose to glucose, but in general, you’ll find a 40-55% ratio of fructose to glucose in fruits eaten whole (not juiced, which concentrates the sugars).
Fiber is another factor. Whole fruit contains fiber, which makes the digestive process a little longer and means a slower, steadier rise and fall of insulin. All of this translates to less immediate conversion to fat and potentially, less hunger after eating the fruit.
My Take
I’m not on paleo (technically, though I’m eating my foods in as whole a way as possible) and I don’t low-carb. I do eat fruits, but I don’t munch on them all day long.
Usually I eat fruit once or twice a day.
That’s just me. You’ll be different because, well, we’re different people. So far, though, my blood glucose levels are fine, and I am feeling pretty good. Time will tell.
Check With Your Doctor
I am not a medical professional. There are certain conditions that warrant little to no fructose consumption, whether glucose is naturally present or not.
Do you eat fruit? How much and what’s your favorite type? Let me know in a comment below.
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