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MyFitnessPal Community

How do you fruit ?

pmm3437

US RDA is a min of 2 servings a day. Most of the lower net carb fruits are relatively more expensive then high carb fruits or low carb vegetables.

I've almost resigned myself to spending a significant portion of my food budget on avocado, berries, lemons and limes ( not sure i could eat rhubarb ), to meet this 2 a day recommendation.

Are you guys substituting more vegetables, and eating less fruit ? There seems to be evidence that this is nutritionally possible, but I've not had any first hand experience with it.

Are there other very low net carb options I'm not aware of ?

Replies

KnitOrMiss

There is absolutely NO NUTRITIONAL VALUE found in fruits that cannot be found in vegetables.

The main thing to consider is that a number of US RDA requirements are based on eating the SAD - Standard American Diet. A significant number of the recommendations are based on the unhealthy way people choose to eat within that system. There are a similar number of things that are not needed when you aren't consuming wheat, grains, sugar, and starches on a a regular basis.

There is no RDA for a low carb, nutrient dense fat and protein based diet. You'll just have to experiment to see what the best options are for you individually.

Some folks do best adding in as many non-starchy veggies as possible while others do best dropping nearly all veg. It is really very individual.... For things like broccoli (and other non-starchy veg), subtracting insoluble fiber from the counts can be a tool to help quantify how much you can eat. That being said, most folks who subtract fiber from veggies CANNOT subtract fiber from everything else (some can, some can't), and most can't use net carbs from sweeteners and such....

But generally, my opinion has always been, if I go over my carbs because I ate extra broccoli, I think my body will be okay...

Sunny_Bunny_

You don’t actually need fruit but don’t forget that a lot of things are fruits that most people think are vegetables.
Cucumber and olives come to mind...

Also don’t forget the RDA is not based on actual science as much as it is the fallacy that fat will kill us food subsidies.
I mean, they also tell you to eat like 8 servings of grains a day too... why? Humans never ate grains for until like the last couple thousand years which isn’t even a blip in the timeline of human evolution.
You can’t walk out to a Wheat field and just eat Wheat. You have to process it. Humans didn’t evolve and grow out large brains on grains. As a matter fact it appears we are only suffering chronic diseases at current epidemic levels during the time some people thought they knew better than instinct and created the RDA.
This is just as true of fruit really. It was only eaten seasonally and what was locally available. So it couldn’t be counted on the way animal food could.

kpk54

I eat fruit occasionally within my chosen carb intake of ~50 total. I don't eat a lot of it. Never have. I eat it when it strikes my fancy and there is rarely (if ever) a "problem" with it resulting more carbs than I prefer. A kiwi or clementine (as example) have only about 9 or 10 total carbs. That easily fits in my carb amount.

I'm not real keen on the RDAs. 1) I don't eat like the average American and 2) I am not convinced the RDAs are based on unbiased/uninfluenced science. JMO.

KarblessKreature

Avacados!

KnitOrMiss

For me, these two articles were very educational:

https://dietdoctor.com/low-carb/fruits

And:

https://dietdoctor.com/heres-what-fruits-and-vegetables-looked-like-before-we-domesticated-them

pmm3437

I had done a bunch of internet research, before posting this question. I had seen that 1st article. Some of that research is what lead me to believe it was nutritionally possible to replace fruits with vegetable alternatives, for the purposes of core vitamin consumption. None of what I was able to find shed any light on trace elements.

This article ( https://scienceofmom.com/2011/12/22/fruits-vs-veggies-are-they-nutritionally-equivalent/ ) was really good, but there are no reference annotations, and it was the only one of its kind I could find ( no corroboration ). It also is focused on dietary needs of young children, and was unsure if extrapolating for an adult diet/requirements was wise without supporting input. That's why I was seeking personal experiences making the substitutions.

The problem I have with avocados, black berries, and the like, is not with consuming them. I could very easily eat avocado every day. The problem for me is the impact on my food budget to do so. Big difference between paying $1/lb for red delicious or $1.15/lb for navel oranges, and $4/lb for frozen blackberries, or $6-7/lb for avocado.

Anyhow ... sounds like you guys have been surviving without strict adherence to this guideline, so I think I'll probably shift to more like a 1:5 ratio instead of the traditionally recommended 2:3 of fruits:veg.

Thanks for the feedback.

Sunny_Bunny_

pmm3437 wrote: »

I had done a bunch of internet research, before posting this question. I had seen that 1st article. Some of that research is what lead me to believe it was nutritionally possible to replace fruits with vegetable alternatives, for the purposes of core vitamin consumption. None of what I was able to find shed any light on trace elements.

This article ( https://scienceofmom.com/2011/12/22/fruits-vs-veggies-are-they-nutritionally-equivalent/ ) was really good, but there are no reference annotations, and it was the only one of its kind I could find ( no corroboration ). It also is focused on dietary needs of young children, and was unsure if extrapolating for an adult diet/requirements was wise without supporting input. That's why I was seeking personal experiences making the substitutions.

The problem I have with avocados, black berries, and the like, is not with consuming them. I could very easily eat avocado every day. The problem for me is the impact on my food budget to do so. Big difference between paying $1/lb for red delicious or $1.15/lb for navel oranges, and $4/lb for frozen blackberries, or $6-7/lb for avocado.

Anyhow ... sounds like you guys have been surviving without strict adherence to this guideline, so I think I'll probably shift to more like a 1:5 ratio instead of the traditionally recommended 2:3 of fruits:veg.

Thanks for the feedback.

So, I realize this is not going to sit well with you but it’s entirely possible to not only survive without fruit and vegetables but to actually thrive.
There are those that eat what is called a carnivore diet. I am one of them. I do not eat plants. At all. If I do, I get physically ill and it cuts through my gut like I was food poisoned.
I’m not trying to suggest that carnivore is better than anything else. Just wanted to make you aware that there are people that never eat plants that are in perfect health. Usually, for the first time in their lives.

kimberwolf71

Frozen fruit, especially berries, may be more economical where you are and still carry nutritional value if that is what you are seeking.

KarblessKreature

Avocados are the only fruit I eat. My other veggie is spinach. Occasionally I’ll have broccoli, asparagus, some power green. But day in day out it’s those two. I eat close to the same things everyday. I’m the type who doesn’t get bored with the same food constantly. And $6-7 lb! Dam that is expensive I get for around $2-3 a lb of cado flesh.

__Roxy__

I do eat berries and avocados. Yes it is expensive, but I find it cheaper than buying chips, pizza, beer, takeout and all the carby snacks that I chowed down on pre-keto