When watching sugar, how bad is an extra priece of fruit?

michedarnd

So, I've been trying to eat healthily, and part of that is keeping my sugar, sodium, and fat intake down. I have found keeping the sugar down to be an IMMENSE struggle, however. I don't do a lot of white flour or white rice, any more (occasional treats), but my worst demon has been cutting down my fruit intake! I have typically eaten 2 servings of fruit per day. Now, I can rarely manage that without doing 450 or more calories of exercise in a day to make room for it (assuming I am varying my diet) or simply going over my sugar count (probably happens about half of the time). So, since I am seldom adding sugar to my food, eating desserts, or adding it to my drinks, how much of a problem is it for me to go slightly (not spectacularly) over my SUGAR intake (not my CALORIE intake) by having an extra green apple that day?

neanderthin

It's about calories, not 2 pieces of fruit a day....enjoy your fruit.

patilee

Unless you are diabetic, fruit is healthy and has all kinds of great micro nutrients.

Chris_bee05

I'm really careful about fruit personally. I know it's not "bad" for you, but some fruit is VERY high in sugar like apples and bananas. One apple is like 19g of sugar. Same for bananas. That's A LOT in my opinion. That's like half of a full sized candy bar. YIKES! And unfortunately sugar is sugar and your body doesn't differenciate between fruit sugars and processed sugars. Some fruits are lower in sugar, like a lot of berries and some melon, but mostly I try to avoid too much fruit. Like anything it's fine in moderation, but mostly I just see fruit as a ton of sugar....

neanderthin

And the reason why people think fruit is a bad thing......olive oil is very high in fat, actually it's all fat, and fat is bad, right?

Chris_bee05

I'm not exactly sure what your "question" is or what is meant by this, but sometimes it's not a matter of what's "good vs bad", but it's a matter of what's okay and what's BETTER for you. Margarine vs Olive Oil....Olive oil is better. White pasta vs whole grain....whole grain is better. Fruit vs Candy Bar....fruit is better, BUT that's doesn't make it good for you per se. Yes fruit has a lot of stuff that's "good for you" and, no, not all sugar is bad, but in the case of the opening post, sugar is sugar, and yes, some fruit has a lot of sugar.

neanderthin

I guess I was really resonding to your comment " but mostly I just see fruit as a ton of sugar.... " You also said even though fruit has natural sugars in it doesn't make it good for us per se...which is basically saying fruit is bad....that is the reason I posted what I did......obviously you and many others find it difficult to imagine fruit to be a healthy addition....diissecting nutrition and pointing a finger at a potential single nutritional problem based on the overconsumption of processed carbs that contain a lot of refined sugar seems to have made fruit a bad choice, which for me makes no sense whatsoever imo.

michedarnd

Neanderthin -- as I understand it, two of the largest contributors to heart disease are an OVERABUNDANCE of fat and an OVERABUNDANCE of sugar. I eat fruit daily. But, I've been struggling to keep my total counts of both things in the green. I believe that her point is that, struggle or not, it is a valid goal to keep it green, and that going over on sugar, even with fruit, is still going over on sugar -- with all of the attendant health issues that go with it.

neanderthin

USDA and others are referring to added sugar, not natural sugar to be kept at a minimum and I believe the USDA limits it to 40g's a day.

Chris_bee05

I guess I was really resonding to your comment " but mostly I just see fruit as a ton of sugar.... " You also said even though fruit has natural sugars in it doesn't make it good for us per se...which is basically saying fruit is bad....that is the reason I posted what I did......obviously you and many others find it difficult to imagine fruit to be a healthy addition....diissecting nutrition and pointing a finger at a potential single nutritional problem based on the overconsumption of processed carbs that contain a lot of refined sugar seems to have made fruit a bad choice, which for me makes no sense whatsoever imo.

No matter how you look at it, sugar is still sugar, and 20g of sugar in an apple vs 20g of sugar in a candy bar is still 20g of sugar.

I'm not saying fruit is "bad", but like anything, it should be eaten in moderation. Fruit is not a "bad" choice if you're looking at your pantry and see an apple and a Twix bar, then obviously fruit is the better choice.

Chris_bee05

USDA and others are referring to added sugar, not natural sugar to be kept at a minimum and I believe the USDA limits it to 40g's a day.

Unfortunately our bodies do not recognize a difference between natural sugar and processed sugar. Again, this goes back to the issue of what's "okay" for you and what's BETTER for you. Of course natural sugar is BETTER (healthwise) than processed sugar, but it's still sugar either way.

MikeSEA

I guess I was really resonding to your comment " but mostly I just see fruit as a ton of sugar.... " You also said even though fruit has natural sugars in it doesn't make it good for us per se...which is basically saying fruit is bad....that is the reason I posted what I did......obviously you and many others find it difficult to imagine fruit to be a healthy addition....diissecting nutrition and pointing a finger at a potential single nutritional problem based on the overconsumption of processed carbs that contain a lot of refined sugar seems to have made fruit a bad choice, which for me makes no sense whatsoever imo.

No matter how you look at it, sugar is still sugar, and 20g of sugar in an apple vs 20g of sugar in a candy bar is still 20g of sugar.

I'm not saying fruit is "bad", but like anything, it should be eaten in moderation. Fruit is not a "bad" choice if you're looking at your pantry and see an apple and a Twix bar, then obviously fruit is the better choice.

I promise you that your body does process 20g worth of sugar from a snicker's bar differently--faster-- than it does 20g worth of sugar from plums (random example fruit).

That said, unless someone already has a problem with sugar, an extra apple is going to turn them into a diabetic.

dls06

I don't think anyone ever died from a piece of fruit. Unless they choked on it. :laugh:
It's all about portion control and serving size too.

neanderthin

What was mother nature thinking when she put sugar in fruit and vegetables.............doesn't she know that it metabolises the same as refinded sugar, what was.....she .....thinking.

rockerbabyy

i dont count my fruit sugars. my dietician told me to only worry about added sugars.
hell, the pear i had today was 21g alone.

michedarnd

i dont count my fruit sugars. my dietician told me to only worry about added sugars.
hell, the pear i had today was 21g alone.

THANK YOU. That was what I wanted to hear. Not that I won't ask a doctor, myself, in most cases, but I was wondering what the dieticians/doctors might have told people.

(Wow. Just noticed the typo in the title. Oh, well)

fastmethod

i'm not sure fruit is that bad, or necessarily the sugar in fruit is the same as a candy bar. I mean yes an apple has 19g of sugar- but remember that's not sugar as in table sugar (sucrose) its 3 different ones glucose, fructose and sucrose. in terms of calorie control- ie if your watching calories that's about 200cal for an average size apple. but if your on a GI type set up then an apple isn't going to raise insulin etc as much as a candy bar not by a long shot. plus it has about 8g of fibre too, which is going to make you feel more full. i guess it depends why your watching sugar.

Chris_bee05

Yes, but as far as what OP is asking, it's still sugar. If someone is seriously watching sugar then they'll want to watch ALL sugars. That's all I'm saying.

Chris_bee05

What was mother nature thinking when she put sugar in fruit and vegetables.............doesn't she know that it metabolises the same as refinded sugar, what was.....she .....thinking.

What is your problem? No need to get all sarcastic and rude....

HMonsterX

What was mother nature thinking when she put sugar in fruit and vegetables.............doesn't she know that it metabolises the same as refinded sugar, what was.....she .....thinking.

What is your problem? No need to get all sarcastic and rude....

You considered that rude? Wow...

*refined, btw

MikeSEA

Yes, but as far as what OP is asking, it's still sugar. If someone is seriously watching sugar then they'll want to watch ALL sugars. That's all I'm saying.

Right, but I guess I would question why the OP cares. It was actually stated they have a concern over overabundance leads to specific medical problems. That kind of statement troubles me. First because I sense an inappropriate generalization rooted in questionable research (but who knows at this point). Second, unless a doctor's been consulted and given specific instructions, there's no need to be concerned about your sugar....unless of course you know you have a family history of sugar-related illness. But none of that has been made clear.

So, again, there's no real point to watching the sugar, to the extent that we're talking about, if you're under your deficit and don't have a direct reason to be concerned about sugar for yourself.

Chris_bee05

Right, but I guess I would question why the OP cares. It was actually stated they have a concern over overabundance leads to specific medical problems. That kind of statement troubles me. First because I sense an inappropriate generalization rooted in questionable research (but who knows at this point). Second, unless a doctor's been consulted and given specific instructions, there's no need to be concerned about your sugar....unless of course you know you have a family history of sugar-related illness. But none of that has been made clear.

So, again, there's no real point to watching the sugar, to the extent that we're talking about, if you're under your deficit and don't have a direct reason to be concerned about sugar for yourself.

I see your point and you're right, we don't really know why OP is watching sugars. I know for me, personally, I can tell a huge difference in my weight loss (or lack thereof) when I consume too much sugar, so I'm very careful, and for me that includes fruit. I still eat fruit for sure, but I eat in moderation.

LoveMyFour

If you're only having sugar from fruit I'd say you're fine to go over. I go over sugar every day but it's not from fruit...lol.

Chris_bee05

What is your problem? No need to get all sarcastic and rude....

You considered that rude? Wow...

*refined, btw

I thought it was sarcastic when there was really no need to be sarcastic, which made it rude....in my opinion.

And yes, I know how to spell refined. That part wasn't written by me.

tigersword

What was mother nature thinking when she put sugar in fruit and vegetables.............doesn't she know that it metabolises the same as refinded sugar, what was.....she .....thinking.

I'm not even sure what this is supposed to be trying to say...

Yes, from a metabolic standpoint, the glucose, fructose, and sucrose is metabolized by the body in the EXACT same way as glucose, fructose, and sucrose that's been refined and added to foods.

HMonsterX

What is your problem? No need to get all sarcastic and rude....

You considered that rude? Wow...

*refined, btw

I thought it was sarcastic when there was really no need to be sarcastic, which made it rude....in my opinion.

And yes, I know how to spell refined. That part wasn't written by me.

That refined part wasn't aimed at you btw

But really, if you found a post as mild as that rude...well, brace yourself for the rest of the forums

Kdonovan512

Boy I can relate to your question since I love fruit! As I’ve gotten older I’ve really had to cut down my consumption of fruit due to the high content of fructose in some fruits (unfortunately most of my favorite ones!). My parents would have never in their wildest dreams imagined that as an adult I would gain an appreciation for vegetables. I have learned to limit my fruit intake to no more than 1 serving a day and go hog-crazy on a variety of vegetables. If I recall correctly men can only metabolize about the equivalent of 1 serving of fruit, less for women…after that, the rest is it’s pretty much stored as fat.

I was reading the rest of the posts and I will attempt to not repeat the advice others have shared with you but will make some suggestions that I hope will be of help to you:

Insulin management - Try consuming a portion of protein with every portion of carbohydrates and avoid consuming carbohydrates by themselves. Protein appears to blunt the insulin spike from consuming carbohydrates which then has a nasty tendencies to shuttle nutrients into your fat cells. I have found this little trick to also help me avoid the 11am and 3pm work crashes many folks experience from having a breakfast and/or lunch that is....yes, too high in carbs.

Insulin sensitivity is highest in the morning and decreases throughout the day. I would consume my fruit in the morning or early afternoon and really avoid it at night.

Hope this helps!

“I don't think anyone ever died from a piece of fruit. Unless they choked on it.” That was too funny DLS06!

tigersword

Protein does not blunt insulin spikes, it actually causes them, just like carbs. Eating in general causes an insulin spike, regardless of what you eat. Mixing carbs and proteins has an effect on digestion timing and the thermogenic effect of the food, which can help you stay full longer.

Also, insulin is responsible for moving nutrients and energy to wear it is needed. It doesn't just shuttle things off to fat depots, it also transfers energy to muscles.

I really don't understand where this irrational fear about insulin came from.

Chris_bee05

That refined part wasn't aimed at you btw

But really, if you found a post as mild as that rude...well, brace yourself for the rest of the forums

I didn't say I was offended by it. I just said it was rude and uncalled for.

I appreciate the warning, but I'm no novice when it comes to message boards and I'm fully aware of the "drama" that may exist

michedarnd

Aye yaye yaye!!! I was asking for various experiences and opinions. So...

1) I am already insulin-resistant, which means that the sugar matters
2) The concern about OVER-abundance in sugar and fat being part of what leads to heart disease is BASED on research -- I do NOT know how MUCH or what KINDs of these things are the problem, so, since I don't go to my doctor every time I have a question, I was asking people what their doctors/dietitians/personal-trainers/etc. might have had to say -- in order to gain a general idea of what other factors affect the answer to this question and what specific things I can go research further.
3) I am concerned about it slowing down my weight-loss, and I wanted to know whether other people had encountered this effect. In general, a high carbohydrate count makes my weight-loss slower, and I'm ALREADY fairly slow and prone to plateaus. Right now, I am primarily doing a zone-style diet, and this needs to be a lifestyle change in order to both lose and KEEP it off, so, for general purposes, I'd like to know, over time, whether it plateaus for the weight-loss, or has other effects for the weight-maintenance. Cutting my fruit down so far is the ONE thing I would find difficult to maintain, long-term.

Does that focus the question a bit better?

michedarnd

And... more specifically...

In my diet, I seek to stay under the carbohydrate count most of the time. This is the nature of the kind of diet that I am on. The original point of the question was whether going over on sugar while remaining under the carbohydrates is a problem. MFP specifically calculates your sugar as a percentage of your carbohydrates, I believe. Does anybody know *WHY* that is?