If FRUCTOSE is Bad, what about Fruit?

If you compare the effects of a diet restricting fructose from both added sugars and fruits to one that restricts fructose only from added sugars, the diet that kept the fruit did better. People lost more weight even with the extra fruit than those whose diet restricted all fructose.

Negative health effects of fructose were limited to industrial fructose, meaning table sugar and high fructose corn syrup. Mounting evidence suggests that, in large enough amounts, added fructose in the form of table sugar and high fructose corn syrup may trigger processes that can lead to liver toxicity and other chronic diseases.

As for whole fruits, fiber and phytonutrients might explain the positive health benefits. Soluble fiber has a gelling effect in our intestines that slows the release of sugars. Additionally, it turns out there are fruit phytonutrients that inhibit the transportation of sugars through the intestinal wall into our bloodstream. The phytonutrients in apples and strawberries, for instance, can block some of the uptake of sugars by the cells lining our intestines, and berries can actually blunt the insulin spike from high glycemic foods.

It’s recommended at least one daily serving of berries (half cup fresh or frozen, or a quarter cup dried) and a minimum of three daily servings of other fruit (a medium-sized fruit, one cup cut-up fruit, or a quarter cup dried).

Why berries? Berries are the healthiest fruits — due in part to their pigments. Berries are second only to herbs and spices as the most antioxidant-packed food category. As a group, they average nearly 10 times more antioxidants than other fruits and vegetables and exceed 50 times more antioxidants than animal-based foods.

Try the free Daily Dozen app, a tool designed to help you build healthful habits. https://nutritionfacts.org/daily-dozen/

Watch the video “If Fructose Is Bad, What About Fruit?” on http://NutritionFacts.org

Originally from nutritionfacts.org