Added sugar vs. natural sugar?

angelinacifelli

Hey guys. So one of my goals of using my fitness pal is to cut down my sugar intake. However, I'm struggling because I eat a lot of fruits and veggies which have a lot of natural sugar. I'm prettt busy so when I'm hungry and want to grab a snack it's usually between a granola bar or a piece of fruit. I also don't eat any dairy but I always tend to go over at sugar intake by a lot. Does anyone have any suggestion on what types of snacks I can eat that is still healthy but less sugar?! Thanks!

cwolfman13

Eat your fruit and veg...fruit and veg are hardly the problem. If one is eating primarily whole foods, they'd be hard pressed to over-consume sugar to the point of it being unhealthy unless they were eating a lot of honey.

There really isn't an institutionalized recommendation for naturally occurring sugars...only added sugars.

Personally, I emphasize veg over fruit and eat a couple servings of fruit per day and way more veg. Also, don't let eating fruit come at the expense of getting adequate protein and fat.

malibu927

Unless you have a medical reason to watch your sugar intake, I wouldn't worry about it. Many people will work on limiting their added sugar intake like you are, but don't care as much if they go over with natural sugars.

Sloth2016

Still waiting for Madison Avenue to introduce "now with Naturally Added Sugar!"

rybo

cwolfman13 wrote: »

Eat your fruit and veg...fruit and veg are hardly the problem. If one is eating primarily whole foods, they'd be hard pressed to over-consume sugar to the point of it being unhealthy unless they were eating a lot of honey.

There really isn't an institutionalized recommendation for naturally occurring sugars...only added sugars.

Personally, I emphasize veg over fruit and eat a couple servings of fruit per day and way more veg. Also, don't let eating fruit come at the expense of getting adequate protein and fat.

Because yes, all of this

sijomial

That would be really sad to cut down your fruit and veggies for some arbitrary sugar recommendation aimed at a fat population.

IMHO unless you have a medical imperative to track sugar I wouldn't bother - it's just a subset of carbs.

lemurcat12

cwolfman13 wrote: »

Eat your fruit and veg...fruit and veg are hardly the problem. If one is eating primarily whole foods, they'd be hard pressed to over-consume sugar to the point of it being unhealthy unless they were eating a lot of honey.

There really isn't an institutionalized recommendation for naturally occurring sugars...only added sugars.

Personally, I emphasize veg over fruit and eat a couple servings of fruit per day and way more veg. Also, don't let eating fruit come at the expense of getting adequate protein and fat.

Perfect answer.

Silentpadna

sijomial wrote: »

IMHO unless you have a medical imperative to track sugar I wouldn't bother - it's just a subset of carbs.

This^^^^
Especially the bolded part.

kshama2001

I just cut down on baked goods and increased fruit and vegetables. I don't worry about natural sugar. My issue with added sugar is that it comes packaged with calories from the fat and sugar, and has little satiety.

jessicaaxo25

I only use stevia as a sweetner and avoid all fruit (too much natural sugar and carbs for me)

Packerjohn

jessicaaxo25 wrote: »

I only use stevia as a sweetner and avoid all fruit (too much natural sugar and carbs for me)

Just a little secret, unless one has some medical condition, fruit is not something to be avoided.

cwolfman13

I can't believe we're seriously to the point in our society where people are afraid of eating fruit...sugar fear mongering has gone way too far...

Packerjohn wrote: »

jessicaaxo25 wrote: »

I only use stevia as a sweetner and avoid all fruit (too much natural sugar and carbs for me)

Just a little secret, unless one has some medical condition, fruit is not something to be avoided.

Lillymoo01

Does everyone get the same blogs come up on their newsfeed? If so there is a great one today talking about this every issue. You can't look at a single component of food and judge whether it is good or bad. Look at the whole package. There is too much nutritional goodness in fruit to discount it in your diet because of sugar content. To label it is bad and avoid it simply because of its sugar content is foolish, unless of course you have a medical contition which limits sugar intake.
Keep eating your fruit in moderation and you will be fine.

Hornsby

cwolfman13 wrote: »

I can't believe we're seriously to the point in our society where people are afraid of eating fruit...sugar fear mongering has gone way too far...

Packerjohn wrote: »

jessicaaxo25 wrote: »

I only use stevia as a sweetner and avoid all fruit (too much natural sugar and carbs for me)

Just a little secret, unless one has some medical condition, fruit is not something to be avoided.

So true and so sad.

candylilacs

I am borderline diabetic (a1c = 6.4) and can eat fruit and vegetables until the cows come home. My doctor would be overjoyed.

Now, potato chips and pasta.....

Christine_72

The vast majority of my sugar comes from fruit and dairy, which also comes packed with many nutrients, so i don't let it bother me.