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Ask the Expert
April 26, 2003
Question:
It seems like fruit has so many valuable nutrients and antioxidants that I would question banning any sort of fruit from the diet because of the sugar aspect. Do you really recommend eliminating fruit from your diet?
Answer:
Fruits could be virtually eliminated from the diet and we could still be quite healthy. However, fruits are clearly a better choice than what many people are eating.
Eating small amounts of whole fruits will not provide tremendous amounts of the natural sugar fructose, and therefore should not be a problem for most people, unless you:
- Are overweight
- Have high blood cholesterol
- Have high blood pressure
- Have diabetes
The main concern with fruit is that the carbohydrate will further increase insulin levels. This is partially compensated for by the fiber in the whole fruit, which helps delay the absorption of sugar.
Avoid more than three servings of fruit per day (less if you have not cut back your sugar intake in other areas). Berries, blueberries, raspberries and cranberries in particular, are the best fruits as they have the highest fiber, lowest sugar and most phytonutrients.
I recommend avoiding bananas because of their concentrated sugar levels. There is 300 percent more potassium in dark green vegetables such as kale than there is in bananas. It is also helpful to avoid dried fruits, especially raisins.
Consuming fruit before bed is best as it helps increase the amount of tryptophan crossing the blood-brain barrier, which will increase serotonin levels and improve any depressive tendencies. But be careful of quantities here, limit the amounts and continue to avoid the fruit if you have any of the problems above.
Fruit juices should be avoided--they contain a large amount of fructose. Each glass of juice, even those with no sugar added, has more sugar than a glass of soda. Although the sugar it contains is fructose, it will still negatively affect your immune system.
