Sugar from fruit

wendycoyle123

I keep going over my sugar allowance but it's from fruit (10 grapes, I banana, 1 apple a day). Should I be concerned or is sugar from fruit ok ? thankss x

amusedmonkey

if you're diabetic and your chosen fruits raise your blood sugar, yes, you should keep an eye on that or try to eat your fruits as part of a meal that contains protein and fat. If you're not diabetic, you have nothing to worry about at all, unless eating fruits makes you hungry and you end up going over your calories too often.

Lillymoo01

Unless you have a medical condition which limits fruit and you stay within your calorie allowance you can eat your fruit and enjoy every single mouthful. It will not impede on your weight loss or health in any way.

missysippy930

If you have no existing medical conditions that would prevent it, you may eat, or drink, ANYTHING, and lose weight, as long as you eat less calories than your body burns.

sijomial

Is there any reason you actually want or need to track sugar?

As a subset of carbs it was pointless for me to track so I swapped it out for tracking fibre instead.
.

NovusDies

If you are just starting and have no medical reason to watch sugar you should ignore everything but calories.

When you have settled comfortably into your calorie goal you will want to make sure you hit or exceed a proper protein and fat goal most days.

When you have made any changes necessary to eat the proper amount of protein and fat you may want to make sure you are getting the enough fiber.

If you have no medical reason or a symptom of deficiency (like getting cramps when you need potassium) you never have to worry about carbs, sugar, or anything else.

This all assumes you do not have hunger issue in which case you may need to experiment with macros and fiber a little sooner.

7sorok

Your body metabolizes fruit sugar differently than added sugar, so, do not be concerned about fruit sugar unless you have insulin resistance. There is a lot of info on this matter on the web including the one on MFP's blog from September 5: "Ask the RD: How Much Fruit Is Too Much?" I hope this helps

NovusDies

7sorok wrote: »

Your body metabolizes fruit sugar differently than added sugar, so, do not be concerned about fruit sugar unless you have insulin resistance. There is a lot of info on this matter on the web including the one on MFP's blog from September 5: "Ask the RD: How Much Fruit Is Too Much?" I hope this helps

How does the body metabolize it differently?

Assuming it did why does it matter if your body metabolizes it differently if you have no insulin issue?

lemurcat2

7sorok wrote: »

Your body metabolizes fruit sugar differently than added sugar, so, do not be concerned about fruit sugar unless you have insulin resistance.

I agree that sugar from fruit (or any intrinsic sugar) is nothing to worry about unless it is crowding out protein or healthy fats, the fruit is leading to excess cals, or there is some specific health reason (it raises blood sugar in a problematic way for a particular person with uncontrolled T2D, for one possible example).

However, your reason is wrong--"fruit sugar" is in reality a mix of different sugars, mainly fructose, glucose, and sucrose (and sucrose is just glucose + fructose, 50/50). The particular mix differs from fruit to fruit. "Added sugar" is normally sucrose (table sugar), which as noted is glucose + fructose. Some foods might have HFCS (they usually taste worse to me, but YMMV), and that is just sugar from corn and again glucose + fructose (55% fructose in that one).

Fructose and glucose are processed somewhat differently, glucose is the one that tends to make blood sugar rise, so is more problematic for diabetics (but no more so than many starches in many cases), and fructose is processed by the liver, so if one consumes ridiculous amounts (which is unlikely when one is getting it mainly from fruit, vs pounding crazy amounts of soda) it might be something to watch for liver health.

The more significant difference has nothing to do with the sugar at all, but what it comes with -- fruit has lots of micronutrients, lots of water, and in many cases a good bit of fiber, so that makes it often (not for all) more filling and less caloric for the amount normally eaten and it gives you good things WITH the sugar.

On the other hand, foods with added sugar SOMETIMES can threaten to crowd out more nutritious foods or make it harder, especially if someone is not tracking cals, to stick to a good calorie level. This is because MANY foods with added sugar have lots of fat too, and high cals, or many fewer micros, and they may be foods that are hard to avoid overeating which is more problematic given how calorie dense they are.

So it's reasonable to say "limit added sugar," and it's reasonable to say "don't worry about fruit if overall diet, cals, and protein are in check," but it is not accurate to claim that there's some difference between "fruit sugar" and "added sugar" as if they weren't both basically the same fructose + glucose, and as if table sugar inherently had some bad effect in any dosage that fruit sugar did not (table sugar actually often is fruit sugar in that it can come from sugarbeets).

Also, it's not uncommon for people to use a bit of sugar in a food that has micros, fiber, etc., so that isn't meaningfully different from fruit (i.e., adding some sugar to oatmeal or to some rhubarbs, or the many other ways people might use sugar in cooking).

The issue with added sugar is more dosage and how many calories consumed with it, not that it on its own is different and scary.

earlnabby

wendycoyle123 wrote: »

I keep going over my sugar allowance but it's from fruit (10 grapes, I banana, 1 apple a day). Should I be concerned or is sugar from fruit ok ? thankss x

Are you diabetic? If so, have you been told to watch sugar rather than the more common total carbs?

If neither of those pertain to your situation, you will be better off getting rid of the sugar tracking in your diary and just track carbs (since sugar is just another carb source). Switch it for something else more important to track. Most will switch it for fiber since it is important to get enough fiber.

goodasgoldilox165

It isn't great for your teeth to have fruit too many times in a day.

RemoteWilderness

Sugar is sugar.

OAS5

I eat 3 bananas a day, I do not count them or don't care about the sugar from them. Natural sugar and I don't care about it. That's just my take on that.

lemurcat2

Cavallaro65 wrote: »

I eat 3 bananas a day, I do not count them or don't care about the sugar from them. Natural sugar and I don't care about it. That's just my take on that.

You don't count them toward your calories?

lgfrie

hmm I'm a banana fan too but I definitely count the 1-2 a day that I eat. 3 a day is around 360 calories so if you're not counting that, you're ignoring a pretty large part of your daily caloric intake.

mbaker566

it is ok. unless you have a medical reason to track your sugar, you typically don't need to worry

NovusDies

Cavallaro65 wrote: »

I eat 3 bananas a day, I do not count them or don't care about the sugar from them. Natural sugar and I don't care about it. That's just my take on that.

If you do not count them how do you know you eat 3?

glassyo

lemurcat2 wrote: »

Cavallaro65 wrote: »

I eat 3 bananas a day, I do not count them or don't care about the sugar from them. Natural sugar and I don't care about it. That's just my take on that.

You don't count them toward your calories?

Biiiiiiig mistake. That's around 300 calories right there.

mbaker566

glassyo wrote: »

lemurcat2 wrote: »

Cavallaro65 wrote: »

I eat 3 bananas a day, I do not count them or don't care about the sugar from them. Natural sugar and I don't care about it. That's just my take on that.

You don't count them toward your calories?

Biiiiiiig mistake. That's around 300 calories right there.

at least

melinalosada

Hi! I need help. Iam Melina from Argentina. Two days ago I started a lowcarb and today feel whit low energy.
Its normaly? Thanks

Carlos_421

7sorok wrote: »

Your body metabolizes fruit sugar differently than added sugar, so, do not be concerned about fruit sugar unless you have insulin resistance. There is a lot of info on this matter on the web including the one on MFP's blog from September 5: "Ask the RD: How Much Fruit Is Too Much?" I hope this helps

This is completely false.
Fruit sugar is glucose, fructose and sucrose (which is 50/50 glucose and fructose).
Added sugar is typically sucrose (which, again, is 50/50 glucose and fructose) or high fructose corn syrup which is 55% fructose and 45% glucose.

Whether it comes from fruit, is inherent in the food or is added, sugar is sugar. It's the same chemical compounds.
Your body doesn't care where the glucose and fructose come from.