The Fruit Sugar Debate

cheeksv

With things like this I kinda meet it in the middle. I love fruit and will never not eat it, it is good for you and it is delicious. I do however limit my intake to one cup of fruit a day/ to every other day depending on what types of fruit I have in the house. Right now its green grapes frozen so every other day I measure out a cup and that's it. After fruit the only other sugars I have come from everyday foods like my milk and some veggies actually and that is all. I do not even like stivia type sweeteners ( although I did buy something with it in it today by mistake ugh) because of the taste. I feel if I am cutting out all sweeteners, candy, soda, ice cream etc then I can have my fruit and eat it too

McKayMachina

@bprague:

I totally agree with the synthetic sweeteners thing. Did someone suggest using synthetic sweeteners in this thread and I just missed it?

Watching the video now, btw.

EDITED TO ADD: AH! I've seen this whole thing before! Such a great video. I've been looking for the link. Thank you! :drinker:

McKayMachina

With things like this I kinda meet it in the middle. I love fruit and will never not eat it, it is good for you and it is delicious. I do however limit my intake to one cup of fruit a day/ to every other day depending on what types of fruit I have in the house.

I feel if I am cutting out all sweeteners, candy, soda, ice cream etc then I can have my fruit and eat it too

Ditto

elbandito

I removed pie and fizzy drink / soda from my diet, and added fruit.

One lesser evil for a greater evil, and my fruit can also come with weevils, which rhymes and makes me happy (the rhyme, not the weevil).

HollieDoodles

I removed pie and fizzy drink / soda from my diet, and added fruit.

One lesser evil for a greater evil, and my fruit can also come with weevils, which rhymes and makes me happy (the rhyme, not the weevil).

LOL!!! I love that : )

unsuspectingfish

I recently read an article comparing the hunter/gatherer diets of nomadic tribes (and I apologize for not having that source readily available). It basically said that tribes like the eskimos, who ate mostly fatty meats, lived to be, on average, about 50-60. While this was longer than the average life span at the time they were first observed, they also suffered from dementia, heart disease, and other health issues toward the ends of their lives. Meanwhile, African tribes who eat a diet consisting of about 80% raw fruit live to be about 70-80 and are active and alert right up to their last days. I realize this is anecdotal evidence, but it's something that really stuck with me after I read it. When I started out with clean eating, I was only getting a couple servings of fruit a day, and I would have frequent low blood sugar moments during the day. I've added a few more servings, and my blood sugar almost never crashes, plus I am less hungry between meals. I'll avoid foods with added sugar as much as I can, but I'm not going to avoid fruit.

McKayMachina

@robogreifer: That's pretty cool info! Glad you found something that works for you, too. Low blood sugar feels awful!

Cheers.

@shane: lol what did I just read? :laugh:

girlinahat

It's interesting that you should conclude from the articles that because fruit contains fruit sugars (fructose) which are said to be bad for you, that, ergo, fruit is bad for you.

I read from the articles that things that have added fructose are bad for you and should be avoided. Primarily sweetened drinks etc

AnathemaRose

Just felt like throwing my little bit of knowledge on this topic.

Sugar is needed for a body to run and there are MANY types of sugars but they are all the same carbon compound. It's all in HOW this compound is arranged that makes the difference on how hard your body has to work to burn it. That is to say: That's learned in basic organic chemisty. Basically: Don't knock all sugars off, especially the natural sugars of fruits which our body is built to digest.

((Sorry, I couldn't help myself as this is a topic I've been invovled in far longer than mfp. Perhaps it's because Hypoglycemia runs in the family and so does Diabetes. So I've had to learn about sugar plus I did take Organic Chemistry. I completely recommend taking a course in it as it explains a lot about the ever controversial sugar.))

McKayMachina

It's interesting that you should conclude from the articles that because fruit contains fruit sugars (fructose) which are said to be bad for you, that, ergo, fruit is bad for you.

I read from the articles that things that have added fructose are bad for you and should be avoided. Primarily sweetened drinks etc

When did I say fruit is bad for you?

This is the thing that baffles me when this comes up. Someone says, "It's smart to watch your sugar intake, including fruits." And people interpret that as "FRUIT IS EVIL!"

I even said that I like fruit and planned to eat more before the day was through. I recognize the benefits of fruit. I never said otherwise. Maybe you didn't get a chance to actually read what I'd written?

Either way, I'm not saying fruit is bad for you. I thought I made that clear. If there's a section where I stated the opposite, please point it out for me.

Anyway, I ate like 5 dates today so my sugar is blown completely out of the water for today. :laugh: Will I do that everyday? No way. I normally watch my sugar intake, including that from fruits. Have I made my position clearer?

girlinahat

It's interesting that you should conclude from the articles that because fruit contains fruit sugars (fructose) which are said to be bad for you, that, ergo, fruit is bad for you.

I read from the articles that things that have added fructose are bad for you and should be avoided. Primarily sweetened drinks etc

When did I say fruit is bad for you?

This is the thing that baffles me when this comes up. Someone says, "It's smart to watch your sugar intake, including fruits." And people interpret that as "FRUIT IS EVIL!"

I even said that I like fruit and planned to eat more before the day was through. I recognize the benefits of fruit. I never said otherwise. Maybe you didn't get a chance to actually read what I'd written?

Either way, I'm not saying fruit is bad for you. I thought I made that clear. If there's a section where I stated the opposite, please point it out for me.

Anyway, I ate like 5 dates today so my sugar is blown completely out of the water for today. :laugh: Will I do that everyday? No way. I normally watch my sugar intake, including that from fruits. Have I made my position clearer?

I didn't mean that you said fruit is evil (sorry, it looks like I did), but that the conclusion you drew from the articles presented is that too much fruit is bad for you because fruit contains fructose. but that isn't necessarily the case as the way the body metabolizes fructose from fruit may be different from the way the body metabolizes fructose. In fact, the articles mainly talk about fructose itself, NOT about fruit.

All I am saying is that just because an item of food contains one particular substance, it doesn't follow that that item of food acts in the same way in the body as the substance it contains.

therefore - what I got from the article was 'too much fructose is not good for you'. The interchangeblity of the words fructose and fruit was not shown.

does that make sense? I was not berating you, simply the way in which people may interpret the information provided.

Fattack

Thanks for sharing McKay!

And to those of you saying you gained weight on twinkies and lost weight eating fruit... well all I have to say to that is... DUH. OP has clearly stated that fruit is not the enemy, but too much fructose is bad for you. And fruit has fructose. So... yeah. I personally limit my fruit intake and try to only intake higher GI fruits after exercise.

Rilke

You are batting away the fact that not all fructose is equal. Made in nature =/= created artificially.

You also mock those who disagree with you on the topic. Perhaps not in this thread, but in others.

Fruits come packed with fiber, vitamins, minerals, antioxidants, phytochemicals, and other things we don't even know exist yet to help our bodies digest the sugar present in them. They are whole in nature and should be eaten whole and in abundance when in season. I really think questioning fruit when there are so many truly unhealthy things to eat is nonsensical.

lloydrt

what to say.........well, fruit kicked started me last year, esp in the summer when strawberries and blue berries are abundant. Also cheap

Instead of grabbing a half gal of ice cream , twinkies or cake, I would wash fruit and put it in the fridge..........literally, when I opened the door to eat , it was there and looked healthy.......so I grabbed fruit

did that all last year, didnt really worry too much about the actual amt I was eating ,just knew that it was better to be eating fruit than sweets. When you re 359 it comes off fast in the beginning........also, strawberries and blue berries have tons and tons of nutritional benefits........

did this all last year, lost 100 lbs by Dec, and then plateaued after Christmas for 4 months...............then after keeping the same kind of work out routine and diet, lost another 30 lbs in 3 months, and am losing now............

and its because Im still eating fruit as opposed to deserts.....................I gotta face it, Im addicted to food, and if Im an addict, Im going to eat healthy over unhealthy..............My cals are about 1800 a day, more or less, and I still eat about 5 to 7 servings of fruits and NO sweets.............

its paid off for me........Again, sometimes, just ask some one whos been there and done that. Experience is beneficial. Im not an expert, just lost 145 lbs in 15 months and am taking no meds. Read my bio profile under my photo, it kinda shows you where Ive been...........

thanks for the article though................Lloyd

VeganGal84

I think it's a bit more of a complicated scientific topic than you are making it....adding more fruit to my diet helped me lose. And it's more than interesting to me that Weight Watchers made fruit a "0" zero point food and launched a whole program and campaign around it. If their extensive, expensive research found that people gained they would not have spent who knows how many million dollars on it. Do you know anyone who ended up fat by eating fruit... I sure didn't. I don't limit my fruit intake at all, it's a great source of fiber and antioxidants. And I find it helps me limit other sweet things that are refined and processed.

I agree with this 100%!

Plus the whole "fiber and antioxidants" thing that has been brought up repeatedly.

But I also believe that everyone has a different body and different goals for their body. Some people could be very healthy eating unlimited fruits, and others need to limit them. It depends on who you are!

Me, I don't limit fruits, except that I count their calories into my day, so I don't ever go overboard. I usually end up eating 3 or 4 servings of fruit a day, but sometimes I eat none at all. I don't think that I have any reason to limit my fruit intake.

Louiselesley

I will never believe that fruit should be limited. I have always been a huge fruit eater and it has never, ever been a problem for me. It actually helps me avoid other bad foods because my sweet tooth is filled in a healthy way. If I eat some pineapple, I won't crave the sweet cookie.

Acg67

Plus, I also linked to a Princeton study review and The NY Times. Maybe those hold more credence?

the Princeton study involved rats and it was if HFCS was more fattening then regular sucrose, ultimately you can draw 0 conclusions about their effects on humans as rat and human metabolic pathways are totally different and rats and de novo lipogenesis in rats occurs at about a 10x higher rate then in humans.

ultimately burn more cals then you take in and you will lose weight regardless of macronutrient composition

TK421NotAtPost

Do you have a dog in this fight or something?

You've posted about fruit sugar in the past and now you are trying to bring up fruit sugar issues by comparing it to the fructose in highly processed foods.

Ever stop to think that the concentration of fructose in HFCS and sweetened beverages is different than they are in fruits?

bunchesonothing

I wanted to post this to encourage some informed debate regarding "fruit sugar". Nearly as hot a topic around here as eating one's exercise calories, the fructose debate is, and will continue to be, ongoing. But I'm of a mind that fact is fact and if I can gain and, in this case, spread a little knowledge, that helps promote healthy, realistic weight loss, then it sounds like a good deal.

Some things to consider:

1. The sugar in fruit is called fructose. It helps keep you fat.

"A research team from the University of Washington (UW) recently published a study in Physiology & Behavior revealing that moderate consumption of fructose- and high fructose corn syrup-sweetened beverages leads to significant alterations of lipid metabolization in the liver. Conducted on rats, the study also noted marked increases in both cholesterol and triglyceride levels in rats that fed on fructose-sweetened beverages.

Fructose is a monosaccharide sugar that is found in various fruits. It is a simple sugar that is often promoted as being a healthy "fruit" sugar, however the reality is that fructose is just one component of the complex sugar composition that occurs naturally in fruit."

2. Stevia appears to be a safe, yummy alternative that won't negatively impact your body.

"Researchers also looked at natural stevia extract in their study and no demonstrable negative effects were observed. Stevia is a safe, natural extract that contains no sugar and is up to 300 times sweeter than sugar per volume. It has a glycemic index of zero and is safe for diabetics."

3. Obesity and sugar consumption are demonstrably linked.

"Evidence is mounting that sugar is THE MAJOR FACTOR causing obesity and chronic disease.

Is sugar a sweet old friend that is secretly plotting your demise?

There is a vast sea of research suggesting that it is. Science has now shown us, beyond any shadow of a doubt, that sugar in your food, in all its myriad of forms, is taking a devastating toll on your health.

The single largest source of calories for Americans comes from sugar—specifically high fructose corn syrup. Just take a look at the sugar consumption trends of the past 300 years:[1]

* In 1700, the average person consumed about 4 pounds of sugar per year.
* In 1800, the average person consumed about 18 pounds of sugar per year.
* In 1900, individual consumption had risen to 90 pounds of sugar per year.
* In 2009, more than 50 percent of all Americans consume one-half pound of sugar PER DAY—translating to a whopping 180 pounds of sugar per year!"

4. Different sugars and sweeteners affect your body in different ways.

"It is easy to become confused by the various sugars and sweeteners. So here is a basic overview:

* Dextrose, fructose and glucose are all monosaccharides, known as simple sugars. The primary difference between them is how your body metabolizes them. Glucose and dextrose are essentially the same sugar. However, food manufacturers usually use the term "dextrose" in their ingredient list.
* The simple sugars can combine to form more complex sugars, like the disaccharide sucrose (table sugar), which is half glucose and half fructose.
* High fructose corn syrup (HFCS) is 55 percent fructose and 45 percent glucose.
* Ethanol (drinking alcohol) is not a sugar, although beer and wine contain residual sugars and starches, in addition to alcohol.
* Sugar alcohols like xylitol, glycerol, sorbitol, maltitol, mannitol, and erythritol are neither sugars nor alcohols but are becoming increasingly popular as sweeteners. They are incompletely absorbed from your small intestine, for the most part, so they provide fewer calories than sugar but often cause problems with bloating, diarrhea and flatulence.
* Sucralose (Splenda) is NOT a sugar, despite its sugar-like name and deceptive marketing slogan, "made from sugar." It's a chlorinated artificial sweetener in line with aspartame and saccharin, with detrimental health effects to match.
* Agave syrup, falsely advertised as "natural," is typically HIGHLY processed and is usually 80 percent fructose. The end product does not even remotely resemble the original agave plant.
* Honey is about 53 percent fructose[2], but is completely natural in its raw form and has many health benefits when used in moderation, including as many antioxidants as spinach.
* Stevia is a highly sweet herb derived from the leaf of the South American stevia plant, which is completely safe (in its natural form). Lo han (or luohanguo) is another natural sweetener, but derived from a fruit."

5. Too much fructose, regardless of its source (be it twinkies or fresh apples) IS a bad thing.

"It isn't that fructose itself is bad—it is the MASSIVE DOSES you're exposed to that make it dangerous.

There are two overall reasons fructose is so damaging:

1. Your body metabolizes fructose in a much different way than glucose. The entire burden of metabolizing fructose falls on your liver.
2. People are consuming fructose in enormous quantities, which has made the negative effects much more profound."

6. Eating fructose is far worse than eating fat. Humans have been eating fat for millennia. Obesity is brand new.

I'll direct you straight to two sources for this info so you can read up on your own:

http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2010/04/20/sugar-dangers.aspx (Skip to "Eating Fructose is Far Worse than Eating Fat" section.)

http://www.myfitnesspal.com/blog/McKayMachina/view/you-re-not-fat-because-of-fat-106837

Source for points 1 and 2: http://www.naturalnews.com/027722_metabolic_syndrome_fructose.html
Source for points 3, 4 and 5: http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2010/04/20/sugar-dangers.aspx
Source for point 6: http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2010/04/20/sugar-dangers.aspx
Secondary source for point 6: http://www.myfitnesspal.com/blog/McKayMachina/view/you-re-not-fat-because-of-fat-106837

Additional Reading:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fructose
http://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/05/04/how-sugar-affects-the-body-in-motion/
http://www.princeton.edu/main/news/archive/S26/91/22K07/



So there is a good selection of information to get you started.

Am I promoting a 100% fruit-free diet? No way! I just ate two medjool dates (OMG, they taste like candy!) and will probably have a banana later. Am I saying limit your fruit intake? Yup.

Discuss.

:drinker:

Okay, I'm just gonna put this out there:

Do you KNOW how fructose and glucose are metabolized? Do you know the actual fructose content of every type of fruit? Do you understand what happens to oligofructosaccharides in the intestine?

If not, don't post random Wiki articles and garbage from Dr. Mercola.

Amen sister!

lffroberts

Save