Fruit puts me over my sugar...Bad?

Hbazzell
Hbazzell Posts: 899 Member
in Food and Nutrition
My husband and I were just talking about this and I wanted some opinions. If I eat more than one or two servings of fruit (and some veggies) I am over in the sugar catagory. I rarely, if ever, drink soda and I have cut down significantly on juice, which has reduced my sugar intake, but should I worry about fruit sugars? A few days a week I have a small treat (like yesterday I had an OZ of peppermint bark), so I can understand that putting me over, but after a fat-free plain greek yogurt and a banana I am over for the day. What should I do? Only worry about non fruit/veggie sugars? Only worry about processed? I am wondering if fruit sugars are the reason I am not losing weight while still being under my cal goal everyday. I am recovering from an ankle injury so I am starting to be able to exercise again and I am losingless weight than when I wasnt. (which was only 3 lbs).

Are there any nutrician people out there who know what I should do?

Ps. I am a vegetarian so vegetables and ffruits are important to my diet.

Thanks!

Replies

  • Sarauk2sf
    Sarauk2sf Posts: 28,072 Member
    Unless you have a medical condition where you need to restrict, it's fine.

    Sugar is just a subset of carbs. As long as you are tracking your calories and macros, you do not need to worry about it or even track it.
  • myofibril
    myofibril Posts: 4,500 Member
    Whilst fruit does contain fructose which is metabolised the same way as other sugars it is not something to worry about in comparison to say soda because:

    a) it is less calorie dense (making it less likely to put you over calorie budget)
    b) it is more nutrient dense
    c) it comes also packaged with other great stuff like fibre which slows the release
    d) fructose is the body's preferred source for topping up liver glycogen which helps with satiety (feeling full)

    Well done on cutting out the fruit juice though. Whole fruit is where it at. Obviously if you are eating lots of it per day it may cause trouble but in the context of a good, balanced diet it is definitely a positive.
  • Firefox7275
    Firefox7275 Posts: 2,040 Member
    Loads of threads on this, it's worth running a search. Worry about sugars that have been added or in refined products the most, worry about other sugars if you are trying a lower carb diet. Natural sugars in dairy are not counted in dietetics, they are classed as intrinsic. Fruit and veg are no more important to a vegetarian than anyone else, they don't substitute for meat or fish so not sure why you posted that.

    Most healthy eating guidelines are for far more vegetables than fruit which automatically moderates your sugar intake if you adhere to it - bananas are crazy on sugar you could have two servings of fruit PLUS seven of veg for the same carb content. Berries, red and black currants, grapefruit and rhubarb are all fairly low sugar. IMO juice is a waste of calories, you lose the fibre, concentrate the sugars and it only counts as one serving per day no matter how much you drink.
  • djdube525
    djdube525 Posts: 69 Member
    I was wondering the exact same thing.... The only way to stay below the daily allotment was to essentially eliminate fruit... Or at least have no more than 1 serving a day... Which just seemed wrong.

    Thanks for the replies... It's reassuring.
  • Sarauk2sf
    Sarauk2sf Posts: 28,072 Member
    I was wondering the exact same thing.... The only way to stay below the daily allotment was to essentially eliminate fruit... Or at least have no more than 1 serving a day... Which just seemed wrong.

    Thanks for the replies... It's reassuring.

    While you do not have to pay attention to it, even if you wanted to, the amount set by MFP is really based on added sugars and not that found in fruit, milk etc which makes it all the more confusing.
  • Hbazzell
    Hbazzell Posts: 899 Member
    Thanks for the replies everyone! That makes me feel better. Common sense told me fruits were fine in moderation but MFP had me questioning. I appreciate the responses :)

    Oh and FireFox- The only reason I added the vegetarian part was because a guy at work told me it is better to cut out carbs almost completely and eat only protein in the begining of weightloss....like an Atkins kick start, and i wanted to filter out responses like that. Thanks for responding with good info!!! :)
  • madibu
    madibu Posts: 10
    Thank you for posting this. I too was worried about the sugars going over the allotment but knew I needed fruits.

    Is their a recommended daily limit on the simple sugars from fruit etc.?
  • madibu
    madibu Posts: 10
    Bump
  • arcticfox04
    arcticfox04 Posts: 1,011 Member
    Fruit sugars are perfectly fine. Its just the processed ones you have to watch out for.


    Think of it like this. Whats better an Apple or an Apple Flavored low sugar chemical reaction ?
  • madibu
    madibu Posts: 10
    Thank you for your reply. I am assuming, using good sense, that I can eat what I want i.e. three apples, some strawberries and blueberries and I am good to go.

    I know fruit is needed, I just didn't like to see my sugar count so much over the recommended amount by my MFP goals.

    Again... Thank you.

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