Fruit sugar + serving sizes
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littlenightmare566
Posts: 12 Member
Hi,
I found myself eating a lot of fruits (2 apples of around 300gr) every day. Is it too much ? It goes above my daily sugar limit so it makes me feel bad about myself. Should I eat less fruit ?
I found myself eating a lot of fruits (2 apples of around 300gr) every day. Is it too much ? It goes above my daily sugar limit so it makes me feel bad about myself. Should I eat less fruit ?
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Replies
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Clearly, if you are diabetic or insulin resistant, you may need to manage carbohydrates carefully, including sugars.
For someone without those health conditions, mainstream nutritional advice is to limit added sugars, with less concern about inherent sugars in fruits, veggies, no-sugar-added dairy foods, etc..
However, if you care about nutrition, getting enough protein and fats is important (because they're essential nutrients, in the sense that our bodies can't manufacture them out of anything else). If a person eats so much fruit that they can't fit an adequate minimum of protein and fats into a sensible number of calories, that would be less than ideal.
I've exceeded my MFP default sugar goal pretty much every day for the 8+ years I've been logging, a year of loss, and 7+ years of maintenance. I ate almost no added sugar while losing. (That's not self-deprivation, it's in line with my taste preferences.) I eat relatively little added sugar in maintenance, though more than during loss. The sugars I eat are primarily from fruits, veggies, and plain, unsweetened dairy foods.
I lost weight fine (50+ pounds in just under a year), and can maintain my weight fine, eating that way. (I do make it a point to get enough protein, healthy fats, and other nutrients.) Since reaching a healthy weight, my blood test results are all good, and my blood pressure is normal. If it matters - since sometimes people think youths can get away with dietary faux pas that elders can't - I'm 67.
If you're hitting close to your calorie goal and getting good nutrition in other ways, apples should be fine. (It can be useful to vary the fruits and veggies you eat, though, to get well-rounded micronutrients.)3 -
To help answer your question, I have a question in return - How did you set your sugar limit? Did you use whatever MFP gave you? Do you have a health condition, like diabetes, that has an advised sugar intake level?
Without knowing the answer to the question above, my response would be the following:
The level of sugar intake appropriate for you can be higher that "average" and still be healthy if the majority of your sugar intake brings along other things your body needs, and/or supports a lifestyle that is maintainable for you. Two apples a day sounds like it probably meets both criteria. You're getting fiber and vitamins and minerals along with the sugar in those apples, and it sounds like you enjoy your two apples a day and are probably more likely to stick to a healthier calorie range with them vs without them.
My personal take on sugar (totally accepting of other views, but have not found one that works better for me) is that it is part of my balanced diet. I am not a fan of sugar substitutes, so I am more likely to reduce my portion of the "real sugar" version than to go with a sugar substitute version. I focus more on increasing protein and fiber in my diet than I focus on reducing sugar. Raspberries are my favorite fruit of the moment and I will happily eat 6 oz of them with 1/2c greek yogurt and 1 tbsp honey. That's 30g of sugar, but it's also 11g of fiber and 18g of protein. And I only average 44 g of sugar a day, even with that "sweet treat" on a very regular basis. I will look forward to that treat and savor it while other members of my family are eating "treats" that have less fiber/protein/micro-nutrients. I will occasionally have the "less healthy" sugary item, but find that I'm satisfied with the portion that fits in my overall calorie goal. I can see myself doing this for the rest of my life. So that's what I feel makes this an acceptable sugar level for me.
If you have other health issues, or advice from a doctor on what sugar level is considered healthy for you, try reducing down to 1 apple a day, or look for sugar sources in other foods that you wouldn't mind giving up. Otherwise, I'd advise you to change your sugar target to a value that allows you to enjoy your two apples and not any of the values you see in MFP define how you feel about yourself. Even if the numbers are not where you want them to be, remember that this is about progress, not perfection. The fact that you are here and taking steps to improve your health should make you feel great about yourself.3 -
littlenightmare566 wrote: »Hi,
I found myself eating a lot of fruits (2 apples of around 300gr) every day. Is it too much ? It goes above my daily sugar limit so it makes me feel bad about myself. Should I eat less fruit ?
Most recommendations are to limit added sugar, not fruits. And I think a lot of people would say 2 apples is not really a lot of fruit. Unless you have a specific reason to track/limit sugar, I wouldn't worry about it, personally.2 -
To help answer your question, I have a question in return - How did you set your sugar limit? Did you use whatever MFP gave you? Do you have a health condition, like diabetes, that has an advised sugar intake level?
If you have other health issues, or advice from a doctor on what sugar level is considered healthy for you, try reducing down to 1 apple a day, or look for sugar sources in other foods that you wouldn't mind giving up. Otherwise, I'd advise you to change your sugar target to a value that allows you to enjoy your two apples and not any of the values you see in MFP define how you feel about yourself. Even if the numbers are not where you want them to be, remember that this is about progress, not perfection. The fact that you are here and taking steps to improve your health should make you feel great about yourself.
No I don't have any specific conditions, I did use what MFP gave me. It's just that I found 600gr of apples a day was a lot, after seeing other posts on fruit sugar and how you should still be "careful" about fruit sugar and/or portions, so I was wondering if 2 apples of 300gr each was too much. Thanks for your answer!! means a lot
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thanks to all of you for your answers!
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littlenightmare566 wrote: »To help answer your question, I have a question in return - How did you set your sugar limit? Did you use whatever MFP gave you? Do you have a health condition, like diabetes, that has an advised sugar intake level?
If you have other health issues, or advice from a doctor on what sugar level is considered healthy for you, try reducing down to 1 apple a day, or look for sugar sources in other foods that you wouldn't mind giving up. Otherwise, I'd advise you to change your sugar target to a value that allows you to enjoy your two apples and not any of the values you see in MFP define how you feel about yourself. Even if the numbers are not where you want them to be, remember that this is about progress, not perfection. The fact that you are here and taking steps to improve your health should make you feel great about yourself.
No I don't have any specific conditions, I did use what MFP gave me. It's just that I found 600gr of apples a day was a lot, after seeing other posts on fruit sugar and how you should still be "careful" about fruit sugar and/or portions, so I was wondering if 2 apples of 300gr each was too much. Thanks for your answer!! means a lot
Regardless of the weight 2 apples are going to have about 200 calories with around 30g's of sugar and maybe 8g's of fiber for both. Whether that's too much is up to you. For me, it's too much considering I pretty much don't eat fruit because of the sugar content and because I'm low carb and doesn't have any fat and virtually no protein, it's a pretty useless food for me. I do eat berries.0 -
I am for sure not an expert but something freeing a dietitian once told me is "you don't HAVE to track fruits and veggies". I don't have health concerns that limit the sugar I can in take, but just the realization that fruit and veggies are good for you and this is MY health journey I can do what I want. So I stopped tracking fruits and veggies. I may be raked over the coals for saying that but *shrugs*4
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I am for sure not an expert but something freeing a dietitian once told me is "you don't HAVE to track fruits and veggies". I don't have health concerns that limit the sugar I can in take, but just the realization that fruit and veggies are good for you and this is MY health journey I can do what I want. So I stopped tracking fruits and veggies. I may be raked over the coals for saying that but *shrugs*
I'm not arguing with you when I say this, because everyone's best tactics are going to be different. I'm just commenting to agree with your main point (we can do what we want!) but also to say there are multiple choices people can make, depending on their needs and preferences.
I track fruits and veggies because I want to get at least 800g of them on most days, certainly no less than 400g. Most days, that's several hundred calories of them, so tracking them also helps me on the calorie-counting front, and makes my micronutrient/fiber totals more realistic.
(Yes, I do tend to be more structured than average about tracking nutrients . . . but I don't claim others need to do likewise. It's just a personal preference. :flowerforyou: )1 -
When you weigh your apples, are you weighing the whole apple, or only the part you eat?0
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Corina1143 wrote: »When you weigh your apples, are you weighing the whole apple, or only the part you eat?
The part I eat.0 -
I am for sure not an expert but something freeing a dietitian once told me is "you don't HAVE to track fruits and veggies". I don't have health concerns that limit the sugar I can in take, but just the realization that fruit and veggies are good for you and this is MY health journey I can do what I want. So I stopped tracking fruits and veggies. I may be raked over the coals for saying that but *shrugs*
Yep, I'm with you. I do track fruits/veggies just because I like feeling in control of my whole diet that way, but I eat as many fruits and veggies as I want. When I say that, I mean actual whole, no or minimally processed fruits and veggies.
Out of all the different data and research and opinions and everything that comes out regarding nutrition and overall health, I will never believe that eating whole, minimally processed fruits and vegetables is bad for me (unless I were to have a medical condition that was affected by them).0 -
Corina1143 wrote: »When you weigh your apples, are you weighing the whole apple, or only the part you eat?
The part I eat.
Lol. Meant to ask original poster. Sorry for the mixup.1 -
Corina1143 wrote: »Corina1143 wrote: »When you weigh your apples, are you weighing the whole apple, or only the part you eat?
The part I eat.
Lol. Meant to ask original poster. Sorry for the mixup.
I'm answering then haha. I weigh the whole apple, but I eat the whole apple soo
It was a specific variety of apples (can't remember the name!) but the store where I shop doesn't sell them anymore, so now they weigh about 200gr0
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