Real talk, I used to be afraid to eat fruit. I believed that it was the equivalent of eating candy because it had sugar in it and that outweighed any other benefits it could possibly offer. The crazy part is that I did not just make this idea up, I learned it through various means in diet culture and dieting. This lie of fruit being bad for you is still being advertised and people are still afraid to eat it. I am here to say fruit is AMAZING! It is tasty, has tons of benefits and yes it has sugar. Do not listen to diet culture and fad diets that are only taking a portion of the truth and exploiting it to further advance their agenda and products.
Let’s get the sugar talk out of the way. The typical American diet does tend to exceed recommendations on consumption of refined and added sugars. Consistently having too much sugar in ones diet can lead to decreased sensitivity, type 2 diabetes among other things. Thus, dietary recommendations are to limit refined and added sugars. Yes, fruit has a natural-occurring sugar in it called fructose. It is a monosaccharide which basically means that it can be digested and absorbed quicker than other sugars. While sugar is often demonized, our body loves it and breaks down many of the foods we eat into sugars so that we can use and store them for energy. It is important to understand that eating fruit comes with fiber which aids in digestion and slow the release of sugar. While sugar is present in fruits, there are many benefits to consuming them.
Fruit is nutrient dense food. What is a nutrient dense food you ask? Basically, it means that a food has one or more nutrients that outweighs the calorie content. Fruits can be hydrating and filling with a low-calorie count. It really depends on what fruit we are looking at, but just to scratch the surface nutrients can include: vitamin C, vitamin A, antioxidants, potassium and phytochemicals just to name a few. Each of these vitamins play vital roles in optimizing our health. This means that eating fruits provide a wide array of benefits including heart health, immune boosting properties, decreased risks of certain disease and reduced risk of obesity. Eat a variety of different fruits to ensure you are getting a variety of nutrients. The nutrient found in fruit and the roles they play in health is why dietary guidelines suggest half your plate to be fruits and vegetables.
Should my fruit be organic? Organic does not equate to a healthier food. Organic is a label that is used to advertise a product is grown with pesticides from an approved list and meets certain guidelines which are perceived to be more environmentally friendly. Ultimately, it is most important to health that a variety of fruits and vegetables are included in the diet. If you can comfortably afford organic prices and are more partial with the idea, sure why not; but traditionally grown fruits and crops are great to. Fresh fruit from supermarkets are great but I also encourage trying to eat fruit from local farms and community gardens. Don’t forget about frozen fruits also!
Is juice ok? I will be honest with you; this is one of those “depends on who you are speaking with” deals. There is virtually no debate that it is better to consume whole fruit over fruit juices. Juice tastes good and that is ok, there are still benefits. My take on it is that you need to be watching the sugar content in juice. Many juice’s have added sugar and can be comparable to having a soda. These typically are called juice drinks or juice cocktails. In addition to most of them having heavy added sugar content, they also lack the fiber to avoid a rapid blood sugar spike. If purchasing juice, lean towards 100% fruit juice or 100% fruit juice concentrate, with pulp (if you can stand it). Also look to see if you can get a juice that is fortified with additional vitamins. If this is a more expensive option, please do not feel that fortified juices are the only option. In my house juice is not forbidden and we drink it on occasion.
What about kids and juice?: According to the academy of pediatrics (AAP) children under 1 years of age should not have juice.4 Children 1-3 years old can have up to 4 ounces per day under AAP guidelines. 4 Ages 4-6 can have between 4-6 oz per day. 4 Ages 7-18 should not exceed 8 oz per day. 4 I tend to dilute my toddler’s juice with water at a 1:1 ratio. She still gets the flavor, but it is not overly sweet, and she can have “2” glasses but 1 juice serving.
To put it simply, fruit is a wonderful food and should be enjoyed. Please don’t fear fruit and its’ sugar because it is being demonized by diet culture and various fad-diets. Fruit is associated with a very long list of health benefits and preventions of certain diseases.
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1. Dreher ML. Whole Fruits and Fruit Fiber Emerging Health Effects. Nutrients. 2018;10(12):1833. Published 2018 Nov 28. doi:10.3390/nu10121833
2. Slavin JL, Lloyd B. Health benefits of fruits and vegetables. Adv Nutr. 2012;3(4):506-516. Published 2012 Jul 1. doi:10.3945/an.112.002154
3. https://pediatrics.aappublications.org/content/139/6/e20170967#sec-11