Fruit and sugar
sepulchura
Posts: 95 Member
I just started using this website on 10/6/13 (despite having registered for it ages ago) and am enjoying it very much. I am doing "okay" on food, at any rate I've made very good improvements compared to 10/5/13 and before.
One thing puzzles me: I rapidly use up my "sugar allotment" and go over it. I thought I was "fairly good" about watching what I eat, but if my daily allowance of sugar is any indicator, now I grumble at a serving of carrots due to how much sugar they have. Plain non-fat yogurt is a "glut" of sugar and fruit seems to be just out of the question.
But this leads me to the mathematical conclusion that "fruit is bad" due to how much sugar a serving of fresh fruit contains, on average.
Here are my questions:
1) Does this program steer you away from eating fresh fruit?
2) If your answer to 1) is yes, thank you, no further questions. If your answer is no, can you tell me what I might be doing "wrong" in terms of menu planning?
3) Should I just not worry about it and have one fruit per day since the fruit sugars = carbs anyway? Meaning worry more about the total carbs and cals and less about the sugar total?
One thing puzzles me: I rapidly use up my "sugar allotment" and go over it. I thought I was "fairly good" about watching what I eat, but if my daily allowance of sugar is any indicator, now I grumble at a serving of carrots due to how much sugar they have. Plain non-fat yogurt is a "glut" of sugar and fruit seems to be just out of the question.
But this leads me to the mathematical conclusion that "fruit is bad" due to how much sugar a serving of fresh fruit contains, on average.
Here are my questions:
1) Does this program steer you away from eating fresh fruit?
2) If your answer to 1) is yes, thank you, no further questions. If your answer is no, can you tell me what I might be doing "wrong" in terms of menu planning?
3) Should I just not worry about it and have one fruit per day since the fruit sugars = carbs anyway? Meaning worry more about the total carbs and cals and less about the sugar total?
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Replies
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sugar is perhaps the least important metric in your food diary, assuming you aren't diabetic. I recommend focusing far more on total calories and protein. And remember that the MFP measurement for protein puts you "in the red" if you go over, but it's fine... and using the basic settings generally does not give you enough protein. MFP's recommendations aren't very good for anyone. Do some research and set your own.
MFP is not weight watchers or something like it. It's just a tool for tracking your intake. Set your own goals, macros, etc. for the best results.0 -
Personally I do not worry about "sugar" in whole foods like fruit. Whole, fresh fruit for me is unlimited quantity. What I do limit is white sugar, refined sugar of any kind, white flour, etc., the stuff you find in processed, pre-packaged food.
I agree with joshdan -- "MFP ... is a tool for tracking your intake. Set your goals, macros, etc., [that best suits you] for best results."0 -
I go over my sugar intake every single day, I'm sure. I haven't worried about it and it's worked for me!0
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sugar is perhaps the least important metric in your food diary, assuming you aren't diabetic. I recommend focusing far more on total calories and protein. And remember that the MFP measurement for protein puts you "in the red" if you go over, but it's fine... and using the basic settings generally does not give you enough protein. MFP's recommendations aren't very good for anyone. Do some research and set your own.
MFP is not weight watchers or something like it. It's just a tool for tracking your intake. Set your own goals, macros, etc. for the best results.
Thanks, that makes sense and was what I was hoping to hear on all counts!0 -
Personally I do not worry about "sugar" in whole foods like fruit. Whole, fresh fruit for me is unlimited quantity. What I do limit is white sugar, refined sugar of any kind, white flour, etc., the stuff you find in processed, pre-packaged food.
I agree with joshdan -- "MFP ... is a tool for tracking your intake. Set your goals, macros, etc., [that best suits you] for best results."
That makes total sense to me, yeah I avoid the refined sugar completely, now I can enjoy my apples and pears without fretting about it.0 -
I go over my sugar intake every single day, I'm sure. I haven't worried about it and it's worked for me!
40 pounds lost, most definitely it has worked for you! Thanks, I'll just keep doing what I thought I am supposed to, which is use it as a guide, not a mantra.0 -
The MFP tools don't steer you away from anything. You eat what you want when you want within a calorie deficit according to how much you want to lose each week (and long-term). What food you eat is up to you, and no foods are good or bad.
I eat plenty of fruits and vegetables but I eat little refined sugar. My body happens to react differently to refined sugar and natural sugar, though it's all really just sugar.0 -
Also sugar in its raw state and in its natural forms are not harmful. They are more slow release so do not cause the spikes. But hey you can eat as many carrots as you want - just make the distinction between natural and processed sources.
Also do not have any sweeteners whatsoever - they destroy your sense of sweetness0 -
Also sugar in its raw state and in its natural forms are not harmful. They are more slow release so do not cause the spikes. But hey you can eat as many carrots as you want - just make the distinction between natural and processed sources.
Also do not have any sweeteners whatsoever - they destroy your sense of sweetness
Excellent, yeah I only like raw forms of sugar and raw fresh carrots anyhow, I'm gonna ignore the sugar counter thing and just eat healthy and sensibly.0 -
Fruit will not make you fat OR unhealthy. It just is not possible in any way, shape or form. Look at long term fruitarians eating as much fruit as they want in a day. Extremely LEAN & HEALTHY! Look up Dr. Doug Graham, Freelee, Durianrider, Mimi Kirk, Annette Larkins, Kristina Fully Raw, Chris Randall... need I say more?0
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unless you eat a lot of other food *and* a lot of fruit. fruit calories are not magic.Fruit will not make you fat OR unhealthy. It just is not possible in any way, shape or form. Look at long term fruitarians eating as much fruit as they want in a day. Extremely LEAN & HEALTHY! Look up Dr. Doug Graham, Freelee, Durianrider, Mimi Kirk, Annette Larkins, Kristina Fully Raw, Chris Randall... need I say more?0 -
Fruit should be magic
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unless you eat a lot of other food *and* a lot of fruit. fruit calories are not magic.Fruit will not make you fat OR unhealthy. It just is not possible in any way, shape or form. Look at long term fruitarians eating as much fruit as they want in a day. Extremely LEAN & HEALTHY! Look up Dr. Doug Graham, Freelee, Durianrider, Mimi Kirk, Annette Larkins, Kristina Fully Raw, Chris Randall... need I say more?
Agree to the first part of that, but the next part not so much. Look up those people. I would be singing a different tune. Lol, they are magic IF USED PROPERLY0 -
I stopped tracking sugar for this reason. Some days, the only sugar I would eat came from dairy and fruit, but I would still go WAY over. Don't eat too much fruit, because that fructose can really pack on the pounds. Just use your best judgement by not eating too many foods with ADDED sugars.0
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Lot of great commentary, thanks to all. I started mfp August 6th, and went through a real eat-only-healthy-food kick. I started (at the advice of nutritionist) by doing a 3-day ketosis protein only phase. Very difficult for me. Then I delved into a balanced diet, balancing on a little bit of EVERY healthy food, including a lot of fruit. Seems I couldn't get enough of the stuff. I think you'll find it takes a lot of work, patience with yourself, and experimentation to arrive at a healthy balance of any kind, regardless of the ratios of macros you try. Sorry for the rambling, but here is the point: you are welcome to add me and look at my diary to see the change I've encountered in just 2 months. I've now settled on a 1500 cal target, 30% carb, 55% protein, 15% fat, 1500mg sodium, and 20g of sugar (shoot for 15 really). I also couldn't believe that a friggin cup of broccoli has 4g of sugar! I started this change today because I have been on my 1st plateau for a couple weeks. I think it's important to get your bf%, lbm%, and measurements done. I was starting to get dejected and was told my belly inches dropped (3), thighs grew, arms grew, etc. Mg current plan may not work long term, which is why I've decided to make small changes, re-evaluate, measure, research, and repeat. Hope this helps in some small way. Good luck!0
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I stopped tracking sugar for this reason. Some days, the only sugar I would eat came from dairy and fruit, but I would still go WAY over. Don't eat too much fruit, because that fructose can really pack on the pounds. Just use your best judgement by not eating too many foods with ADDED sugars.
Lol, I'm sorry. It's just comments like that make me giggle. Please see my above comment about the fruitarians. All those people living on thousands of calories of fruit per day are really "packing on the pounds" over years.0 -
Fruit rocks! It should be magic, yes
Please don't avoid fruit! But 80 calories is 80 calories, so don't ignore its calories, either.
Most people can ignore the carbs. They are wrapped up all nicely to not spike your blood sugar, except for a very few exceptions.0 -
Every morning I drink a very large cup of coffee with 2 tbls of sugar. Puts me 1 below my total allotted sugars for the day. I have been doing this longer than I can remember. I tried artificial sweeteners, tons of them, and they all had an after taste. Had this stopped me from losing weight, I would have adjusted it.
I live in the south. We start drinking coffee from sippy cups.0 -
wait, so you honestly believe that the stuff coming from fruit is somehow different?
unless you eat a lot of other food *and* a lot of fruit. fruit calories are not magic.Fruit will not make you fat OR unhealthy. It just is not possible in any way, shape or form. Look at long term fruitarians eating as much fruit as they want in a day. Extremely LEAN & HEALTHY! Look up Dr. Doug Graham, Freelee, Durianrider, Mimi Kirk, Annette Larkins, Kristina Fully Raw, Chris Randall... need I say more?
Agree to the first part of that, but the next part not so much. Look up those people. I would be singing a different tune. Lol, they are magic IF USED PROPERLY
FWIW, I did look up some of those people. Some are not fruitarians. And I couldn't find anything anywhere that says they eat "thousands of calories of fruit" every day.0 -
wait, so you honestly believe that the stuff coming from fruit is somehow different?
unless you eat a lot of other food *and* a lot of fruit. fruit calories are not magic.Fruit will not make you fat OR unhealthy. It just is not possible in any way, shape or form. Look at long term fruitarians eating as much fruit as they want in a day. Extremely LEAN & HEALTHY! Look up Dr. Doug Graham, Freelee, Durianrider, Mimi Kirk, Annette Larkins, Kristina Fully Raw, Chris Randall... need I say more?
Agree to the first part of that, but the next part not so much. Look up those people. I would be singing a different tune. Lol, they are magic IF USED PROPERLY
FWIW, I did look up some of those people. Some are not fruitarians. And I couldn't find anything anywhere that says they eat "thousands of calories of fruit" every day.
I believe it and I know it's true. I'm well on my way living up the high carb / sugar lifestyle!
Freelee and Durainrider on YouTube for example... FWIW, take a look http://www.inspirawtion.com/Freelee.html (her YouTube videos she uploads are well worth the watch) & (excuse the profanity lol)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0Le5qyD2fwk 0 -
If you want to be healthy make sure all the food you eat is unprocessed.
Eat fresh fruit and vegetables, fresh meat, fresh fish, fresh eggs and fresh milk.
Stay away from processed foods as much as you can.0 -
If you want to be healthy make sure all the food you eat is unprocessed.
Eat fresh fruit and vegetables, fresh meat, fresh fish, fresh eggs and fresh milk.
Stay away from processed foods as much as you can.
I will. As soon as I can afford a farm near the ocean. Just kidding!0 -
as long as I know my sugar comes from the natural sugars in fruit, I wont worry about it. I'm also prediabetic so I have set a limit and I avoid white bread, cakes as much as possible. It's the refined sugars that are evil!
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I watched that youtube video. In part of it the guy actually says that you can go get a PhD in Nutrition and never learn what he knows. The guy is a whack-job. He also says that he eats 2500 Calories per day, not an unlimited number. He's still completely nuts.I believe it and I know it's true. I'm well on my way living up the high carb / sugar lifestyle!
Freelee and Durainrider on YouTube for example... FWIW, take a look http://www.inspirawtion.com/Freelee.html (her YouTube videos she uploads are well worth the watch) & (excuse the profanity lol)http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0Le5qyD2fwk
Good luck with this... but if you *do* eat an excess of calories from fruit, you *will* gain weight. That's just scientific fact. When you gain that weight, let us know and we can help you lose it.0 -
I'll echo what others have said: don't obsess over the "sugar" goal. Feel free to ignore it completely and think about total carbs if you prefer.wait, so you honestly believe that the stuff coming from fruit is somehow different?
Well, it is easier to binge on sugar if you're adding it to things. Harder to go nuts with a few pieces of fruit and they have plenty of non-sugar related positive attributes too. I suppose you could say that makes fruit different but I understand what you meant.
Sugar is sugar though. My pet peeve is people who think fructose specifically is magic compared to other sugars and who generally also don't realize how much glucose and sucrose various fruits have. Apricots are a particular surprise (63% of their sugar is sucrose, 25% is glucose, and 10% is fructose).0 -
Fruit will not make you fat OR unhealthy. It just is not possible in any way, shape or form. Look at long term fruitarians eating as much fruit as they want in a day. Extremely LEAN & HEALTHY! Look up Dr. Doug Graham, Freelee, Durianrider, Mimi Kirk, Annette Larkins, Kristina Fully Raw, Chris Randall... need I say more?
not true. Eating too much of anything will make you overweight. because of the water and fiber in fruit, and the way the sugar is locked within the matrix of the whole fruit, thus creating less bouncing in blood sugar levels, it's not as easy to overeat fruit as, say, prime rib or pasta.
I don't think many MFPers watch their sugar intake. I don't. and besides, a simple carb from white bread is processed by your body the same as table sugar, so why pick on sugar? Enjoy your fruit, maintain a balanced diet and stay within your calorie allotment and you should do great.0 -
If you're planning to ignore the sugar grams anyway, you might want to replace that column in your diary with something else that you care about. If you click on settings from the Home or Food tab, you can change the nutrients you track (e.g., saturated fat, cholesterol, trans fat, sodium, potassium, etc.)0
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It seems my tendency is to replace the processed sugars (from table sugar, rice, noodles etc) with the sugar from fruit. I find myself going overboard on fresh fruit to satisfy my sweet tooth (and often suffering from an immediate headache). This is something like replacing refined sugar with artificial sweeteners and our bodies failing to get the message that we are cutting back on sugar. Hopefully, those of you who have been at this some time will assure me that my craving for sweet will lessen soon. I have been at a plateau for a couple of weeks and I think my fresh fruit feasting may be the culprit since I have cut out almost all the "evil" sugar. I'm actually eating 500 cal/day less than my goal and still at a plateau. I guess as always, the bottom line of the fruit and sugar discussion is balance, right?0
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I watched that youtube video. In part of it the guy actually says that you can go get a PhD in Nutrition and never learn what he knows. The guy is a whack-job. He also says that he eats 2500 Calories per day, not an unlimited number. He's still completely nuts.I believe it and I know it's true. I'm well on my way living up the high carb / sugar lifestyle!
Freelee and Durainrider on YouTube for example... FWIW, take a look http://www.inspirawtion.com/Freelee.html (her YouTube videos she uploads are well worth the watch) & (excuse the profanity lol)http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0Le5qyD2fwk
Good luck with this... but if you *do* eat an excess of calories from fruit, you *will* gain weight. That's just scientific fact. When you gain that weight, let us know and we can help you lose it.
I watched every single one of his videos - he eats an unlimited amount. He has 2,500cal smoothies for breakfast. Lol. Plain and simple. He comes across in a very non professional way but what he says is all truth.
A health PhD says Im gonna die from protein and calcium deficiency and that we NEED it. They still teach that - Lol, us vegans should be all dead. Fruitatinas should be all dead. Have you seen Mimi Kirk? Shes in her 70's.
Freelee (which is his girlfriend) ALSO follows the same diet. Have you seen her results from it?? It's remarkable and far more than what you see on the outside. Weight Loss and dieting should go beyond that.
You try and make this seem like it wont work and it's a bad idea without even trying or looking up the real results from doing this long term. Sorry not sorry, but that wont work. Just take a look at the long term fruitarians who do it right. Beautiful, slim, lean, HEALTHY. Simple as that. Forget what you "know" is right and explore other things. peace ✌0 -
Fruit will not make you fat OR unhealthy. It just is not possible in any way, shape or form. Look at long term fruitarians eating as much fruit as they want in a day. Extremely LEAN & HEALTHY! Look up Dr. Doug Graham, Freelee, Durianrider, Mimi Kirk, Annette Larkins, Kristina Fully Raw, Chris Randall... need I say more?
not true. Eating too much of anything will make you overweight. because of the water and fiber in fruit, and the way the sugar is locked within the matrix of the whole fruit, thus creating less bouncing in blood sugar levels, it's not as easy to overeat fruit as, say, prime rib or pasta.
I don't think many MFPers watch their sugar intake. I don't. and besides, a simple carb from white bread is processed by your body the same as table sugar, so why pick on sugar? Enjoy your fruit, maintain a balanced diet and stay within your calorie allotment and you should do great.
Uh. Fruit makes you fat? Lol. Okay, if you say so. Have you even looked at those people I mentioned above? They're SO OBESE OMG!!!0
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