Fattening Fruits

Unfortunately, my fellow fruit lovers, it IS possible to eat too much fruit! There is a misconception out there that eating fresh fruit in limitless amounts is healthful and wouldn’t get you fat. If this were true I would be eating those fresh sweet fruits of different colours all day!!! So many different fruits to choose from and I have to limit myself to 1 or 2 a day?! Fruit indeed is my biggest weakness when it comes to following my ideal diet. Don't get me wrong, I am not labelling fruit as a "bad" food as they are great nutrient sources, being high in antioxidants, vitamins and fibre. However they are also sneaky hidden sources of sugar which the body converts into fat when it is consumed in excessive amounts.

Too much sugar, regardless of where it comes from has negative health effects.

Fruit vs Coke (to illustrate the amount of sugar in fruit).
I was actually inspired to write this blog after a discussion I had with my friends about where fruit stands in terms of weight loss. I was asked, "coke must have more sugar than a piece of fruit right?" You may be thinking - oh well thats a silly question and indeed yes he was correct in saying that, since a can of coke has 40 grams of sugar and an average apple or banana has about 15grams. But if you’re comparing a can of coke and a serving of freshly squeezed fruit juice (which contains about 3 pieces of fruit) you’re looking at similar amounts of sugar. Please do not stop reading here - in no way am I saying that coke can't be that bad if you can compare it to fresh fruit juice. What I am saying though is that fruit is a hidden form of sugar which can ruin fat loss efforts as it is seen as a fatless and low calorie food. In saying that I would most definitely choose nutrient dense fresh fruit juice containing their natural forms of sugar over a toxic dense, nil nutritional value can of coke containing their processed sugars. Side note: coke zero is not the answer due to its toxic chemical content which can ruin weight loss and health efforts also.

Fruit vs Vegetable
Vegetables on the other hand, I wouldn't feel bad eating platefuls of them as long as there is variety. However the message "5 plus a day" (eat 5 or more vegetables or fruit a day) get people thinking I could eat 5 or more pieces of fruit a day and never-mind the vegetables. Although these two carbohydrate sources fall in that same "fruit and vegetables" group, they do have significant nutritional differences and health effects. For one, vegetables don’t have high amounts of hidden sugars like fruits do. Secondly vegetables are better for satisfying hunger – fruits just don’t cut it when it comes to filling you up (explains why I use to eat fruit after fruit after fruit….). Vegetables also have a diverse range of minerals and vitamin Bs which fruits lack and generally have higher amounts of a number nutrients that fruit contain.

Originally, this post title was going to be called "Fruit Is My Enemy." But since fruit does have its benefits and I still enjoy eating them, it wouldn't make sense. Don’t be put off eating fruits as they do help you reach an optimum diet and they are great substitutes for your processed sweets and snacks. But remember - just because something has nutritional value or can be labelled as "healthy", doesn't mean you should eat it excessively. Everything in moderation, always :)