Is sugar from fruits bad for you?

shutterbabe

So I try to eat a couple apples a day and some other fruit at times, but I notice that I'm usually over (sometimes way over) my sugar allowance for the day and the majority of it is from the fruit. I understand that sugar ultimately turns into fat so I'm wondering if fruit sugar is bad for you and/or will make you fat. And if its not, what makes fruit sugar ok?

nsblue

no it's not bad... like everything... in moderation.

i eat fruit... have all along... had diabetes where i was on 170 units of insulin a day.... lost alot of weight... now am not on any insulin... n ate fruit all the while doing it... no.... fruit is NOT bad.

JayByrd107

Sugar does not "ultimately turn to fat". Excess calories turn to fat. Fructose (fruit sugar) is okay because it has fiber and nutrients with it meaning it's better than processed, refined simple sugar (sucrose).

ChristieStearns

Many low-carbers are afraid of fruit... I eat high protein but I don't believe carbs are bad, I believe there are "worthless" carbs... fruits are not worthless! Humans have been eating fruit forever.... it's natural... can't be bad in my opinion! I'd say if you went over your sugar daily due to candy, that would be an issue. But as my weight watchers leader used to say... "None of us are here because we overate on fruits and vegetables".... focus on other things you can improve an don't worry about fruit

cschmidt45

What he said, lol. No I agree. All in moderation. Take care of your calories, and your calories will take care of you.

kbw414

no it's not bad... like everything... in moderation.

i eat fruit... have all along... had diabetes where i was on 170 units of insulin a day.... lost alot of weight... now am not on any insulin... n ate fruit all the while doing it... no.... fruit is NOT bad.

Thanks for sharing your story! I don't know why so many people are afraid of whole, natural foods like fruits. It is very inspirational to me that you were able to get off your insulin. Your ticker is amazing! Congratulations!!

solarpower4

Sugar does not "ultimately turn to fat". Excess calories turn to fat. Fructose (fruit sugar) is okay because it has fiber and nutrients with it meaning it's better than processed, refined simple sugar (sucrose).

^^ EXACTLY. Unprocessed foods have fiber and nutrients and minerals and phytochemicals and things we aren't even yet aware of that make fruit a much better choice than processed anything. Unless you are diabetic (some fruits cause issues) or have a fructose allergy/intolerance (rare, but it does exist).

day_dreamr24

Pretty much what everyone else has said: "Everything in moderation!"

I was challenged to only eat 15g of processed sugar a day (really hard on some days :grumble: ), with the exception that I can eat unlimited fruit and vegetables...but I still like to keep my fruit levels low, generally 1-2 pieces of fruit a day and unlimited veggies

Becky_Boodle

In my opinion...
if most of my sugar intake comes frome fruits and veggies
then I don't care if I'm over

Lleldiranne

When you eat the whole fruit, there are also chemicals that tell your body what to do with the sugar, so it has less impact on you blood sugar (and less crashes and such later). This is from an article in Parents magazine, from a nutritionist (sorry, don't have more reference than that).

The other nutrients in fruit (fiber, vitamins, phytochemicals, etc) are good for you, enough to definitely justify the intake of sugar. It would be better to cut out sweets or refined starches.

Go for the whole fruit, not just juice. Better balance of nutrients and will fill you up for longer!

mcosme25

It is my opinion that all sugar is sugar just in different forms. Glucose is glucose. Fruit should be taken in moderation. Here are a few list that may help. If you have a craving for something sweet, fruit is by far what you should reach for over anything proccesed. Another impotant factor is to stick to your allowed calories and work out to utilize those carbs. When you dont utilize the carbs, they are stored as fat- Bottom line. Hope this helps and good luck!!

Fruits Lowest in Sugar

◦Small Amounts of Lemon or Lime
◦Rhubarb
◦Raspberries
◦Blackberries
◦Cranberries

Fruits Low to Medium in Sugar

◦Strawberries
◦Casaba Melon
◦Papaya
◦Watermelon
◦Peaches
◦Nectarines
◦Blueberries
◦Cantaloupes
◦Honeydew Melons
◦Apples
◦Guavas – Pineapple Guavas (Feijoa) and Strawberry Guavas
◦Apricots
◦Grapefruit

Fruits Fairly High in Sugar

◦Plums
◦Oranges
◦Kiwifruit
◦Pears
◦Pineapple
Fruits Very High in Sugar

◦Tangerines
◦Cherries
◦Grapes
◦Pomegranates
◦Mangoes
◦Figs
◦Bananas
◦Dried Fruit, such as
◦Dates
◦Raisins
◦Dried Apricots
◦Prunes

suziecue66

Many low-carbers are afraid of fruit... I eat high protein but I don't believe carbs are bad, I believe there are "worthless" carbs... fruits are not worthless! Humans have been eating fruit forever.... it's natural... can't be bad in my opinion! I'd say if you went over your sugar daily due to candy, that would be an issue. But as my weight watchers leader used to say... "None of us are here because we overate on fruits and vegetables".... focus on other things you can improve an don't worry about fruit

If you are a low carber you are just interested in your carb count so some fruits will be out. I think fruits are fine - its high fructose corn syrup that is no good in excess.

shutterbabe

I'm not afraid of fruit; I love them. I'm just wondering about the sugar in fruit and going way over my allotted sugar amount because of them. I want to know whether its bad or not to be -50 in sugar for the day because of fruit, you'no?

Thank you for the responses, I appreciate the help!

Redheadllena

In my opinion...
if most of my sugar intake comes frome fruits and veggies
then I don't care if I'm over

^That's my rule too! I am curious what you guys think about honey- sometimes I have it in my tea or with yogurt and it's very high in sugar. Is this "as bad" as something like candy/processed sugar/other desserts?

domsmoms

I've been wondering about this too, so good to hear most think fruit sugar is ok. I always go over in sugar and it's almost always from fruit. I LOVE fruit.

Queen2day

Information I received and go by indicates that natural sugar is fine to have and should not cause issues. The type of sugar that does cause issues is refined sugar. I was also told by my doctor that anytime I felt hungry, the best thing I could grab was a piece of fruit. Honey is also a natural sugar and not a refined sugar.

I believe and try [although not always successful] to eat foods in their natural form and not so much processed foods. I cook quite a bit and I do cook from scratch. As such, I utilize the recipe option here so that I can list out the actual items in their pure state that I include in my own recipes to get an accurate calorie count. This has also helped me to see which recipes I enjoy that may not be the best options for my long term goals as some of them have surprised me as to how less healthy they really are.

Ange0NZ

I've been wondering about this too, so good to hear most think fruit sugar is ok. I always go over in sugar and it's almost always from fruit. I LOVE fruit.

Yep, me too! I like to make my own fruit and veggie juices (combined) so fructose is always high for me.

Information I received and go by indicates that natural sugar is fine to have and should not cause issues. The type of sugar that does cause issues is refined sugar. I was also told by my doctor that anytime I felt hungry, the best thing I could grab was a piece of fruit. Honey is also a natural sugar and not a refined sugar.

I have read quite a few articles that say the same too. Fructose (sugar found in fruit and vegetables) is fine. It is sucrose (refined, processed, added sugar) that is not.

CharRicho

"None of us are here because we overate on fruits and vegetables"

Haha I like this, very true!

rocket_ace

Many low-carbers are afraid of fruit... I eat high protein but I don't believe carbs are bad, I believe there are "worthless" carbs... fruits are not worthless! Humans have been eating fruit forever.... it's natural... can't be bad in my opinion! I'd say if you went over your sugar daily due to candy, that would be an issue. But as my weight watchers leader used to say... "None of us are here because we overate on fruits and vegetables".... focus on other things you can improve an don't worry about fruit

this is VERY WELL SAID. I'm going to remember forever your quote "I believe there are "worthless" carbs... fruits are not worthless!"

kenzietate

I just wanted to pop in and tell you what my doctor told me. For the majority of the population eating fruits is never bad. The only time you would need to worry about limiting it is in some cases of insulin resistance. I have that and I have to limit my fruit intake. The sugar in fruit still triggers my insulin to produce and then I can't "receive" the insulin/sugar so fat binds to that to protect my body from the insulin causing weight gain. But unless you have insulin resistance then you should feel free to eat as much fruit as you would like and don't worry about that sugar!

emboslice94

I personally find that it depends on the person! Some people I know have maybe two servings of fruit a day, and that's it, they prefer to eat a higher veggie diet because it works better for their body and their goals. I personally, find that it depends when and what I'm doing, I always eat a high GI fruit right before I go to work or on break at work because it'll keep me going and I'm doing a lot of things that'll make sure that the large amount of sugar isn't stored (I work in retail doing a lot while on my feet for 8 hour stretches), but in my regular school routine, I stick to low GI fruits like berries, and the only time I eat the high GI fruits are right after work outs, I personally find that I feel better this way and so far I'm happy with the results.
So basically, it's not necessarily bad, but you have to figure out what types of fruits and what amounts of fruits will work for you and your goals.

debbihibbs

Wow.Way to go on your weight loss!

freckledrats

My favorite answer to this question:

Try to think of just one person that got fat eating bananas.

Go ahead. Try!

RoamingDuck

Let me just say, I eat fruits and veggies constantly, and my glucose/cholesterol/blood pressure are all pristine! Just my personal experience.

ecc312

Sugar from fruit is not bad, it's the processed granular stuff you need to worry about. The sugar in fruit occurs naturally, and is accompanied by lots of other nutrients and fiber that add to the nutritional value. Granular sugar is bad because all it is is carbs (sucrose), and doesn't have anything else to offer. It has no fiber, vitamins, or water in it, and all it does is spike your blood sugar and taste good.

SkinnyBubbaGaar

My favorite answer to this question:

Try to think of just one person that got fat eating bananas.

Go ahead. Try!

freckledrats

hahahahhahahaha oh god

I'm dying...

susannamarie

The MFP sugar recommendations are, for some reason, set to the recommended guidelines for *added* sugar.

Unless you have a medical reason to keep it low, don't worry.

BarackMeLikeAHurricane

Sugar is just a carb. As long as you're eating enough fats and protein, your carbs/sugar aren't particularly important unless you have a medical issue that requires carbs/sugar to be monitored.

However, it should be noted that fructose and sucrose can only be stored as liver glycogen and not muscle glycogen. The liver can hold 100-120g glycogen so anything more than that will be converted to triglycerides. As long as you still have a calorie deficit this will even out. Just try to make most of your carbs glucose and not sucrose or fructose. Fructose in particular has been shown to decrease exercise performance, increased likelihood of gastrointestinal distress, and increase perception of exertion.

Here are some studies:
http://www.setantacollege.com/wp-content/uploads/Journal_db/the effects of glucose....pdf

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/3592616


As long as you're under your calorie goal, you'll lose weight. Some people find that sugar (even from fruit) causes them to have more sugar/carb cravings so keep that in mind.

For information on setting your macro target, read this: http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/911011-calculating-calorie-macronutrient-needs?page=1#posts-13821336

KatieHPhoto

My favorite answer to this question:

Try to think of just one person that got fat eating bananas.

Go ahead. Try!

THIS!

BeachIron

The simple, correct and only answer to this question is NO.

Even the American Heart Association's sugar limit only addresses "added" sugars such as table sugar, HFCS and honey.

Then there are the facts that sugar is simply a carb and it's a calorie surplus that makes people obese thereby leading to diabetes (and not the mere consumption of sugar), so the entire effort against sugar seems a bit quixotic.