Fruit sugars

I don't have a medical reason to limit sugar, so I don't pay any attention to it. Unless you've got a medical reason to limit it, IMO the only reason to worry about sugar is if it crowds out other things you need.

I recommend swapping it out for something else too. I track fiber instead, not because I want or need to, but because tracking the sugar was throwing me off mentally because I too, was always "over." In the end, it hasn't changed my progress. I try to get enough protein and meet my end of the day calorie goal. So far, so good. I'm losing at the rate expected.

cmriverside wrote: »

Just as an aside, too...oatmilk uses added sugar.

I think just about every brand available makes an unsweetened version. Oat milk itself inherently has some sugar (due to the oats), but so does dairy milk.

jeanettesolis46 wrote: »

I am on my third week and adding 3 servings of fruit to my daily diet. I am not eating any refined sugar. Today I made a smoothie, with banana, mango pineapple and blueberries 1/4 cup of oatmilk. It sent me over in my daily sugar intake. I'm confused 😕 how do I reach my daily diet of three fruit servings but stay in my sugar intake?

The recommendations for sugar that come from health organizations are largely for added sugars. Personally I don't really watch either added sugars or naturally occurring sugars. I don't eat much in the way of added sugars save for my nightly desert and...well, the calories coming from fruits and vegetables are largely coming from sugar.

That aside, your choice of fruit (except for the berries) are some of the highest sugar content fruit there is. Tropical fruits tend to be the highest in sugar...not that it would particularly bother me.

When sugar is part of a wholefood it is less likely to cause sugar spikes because the associated fibre generally slows the absorption of the sugars. Where sugar is added to a food it is not usually accompanied by the complimentary amount of fibre so it is more available to the body.

Actually, in that the meal as a whole is what matters, it would seem to make more sense to look at total net carbs as well as whether the meal also contains protein and fiber and to think in terms of limiting net carbs per meal some and combining with fiber and protein, not worrying specifically about sugar.

Also, from what I've heard from people with IR issues, fruit often causes much less of a reaction or none vs many starches.

But since this thread doesn't seem to have been started by someone trying to deal with IR issues, I think there's no need to worry about sugar from fruit, but eating an overall healthy diet with sufficient micros, protein, fiber, and healthy fats.

But the specific reaction is (1) often not simply based on GL, and (2) even if GL were what mattered, it would be the GL of the meal as a whole, not one individual food.

Sugar is sugar, but the reason to watch added sugar (according to many health organizations) is not because sugar itself is inherently evil, but because lots of added sugar tends to be correlated with either excess cals or inadequate nutrients in that many foods with lots of added sugar tend to be lower nutrient and higher cal (often due to fat as much as sugar). Obviously there are exceptions, and I'm not someone who is anti including moderate amounts of added sugar in one's diet, but fruit tends to come with fewer cals and more micros and some degree of fiber (although that varies a lot by fruit). I would not at all recommend that someone avoid fruit bc it has a higher GL than some dessert food or worry about limiting fruit bc sugar. I would limit fruit if one were eating it to the point that it was making it harder to fit in other things they need (like protein, healthy fats, or lots of vegetables) or eating so much one was going over cals. Also, if you are someone who has IR and it (based on testing) causes blood sugar to spike, I'd be careful to eat smaller portions combined with a source of protein and probably higher fiber and lower sugar fruits.

There are plant based milks that don't have added sugars. I know both Trader Joe's and Elmhurst makes oarmilk with just oats and water. You can also make your own.