sugars in fruit

Question
QUESTION: Hi,
I have recently been trying to eat a healthier diet and thought by eating plenty of fruit it would help me lose some weight. However, i have heard that too much sugar is bad for health and was wondering if naturally occuring sugars in fruit are bad too? Apples have a lot of sugar in them so should i not eat them?

Thanks

ANSWER: Thank you for contacting allexperts.com  I hope that I can assist you with your question.

Although fruit is a much better diet choice than processed foods it is still not a good idea to eat a disproportionate amount of fruit in the diet.  Fruit, in general, is a good, healthy food, which contain many vitamins, minerals, fiber and other healthy components.  However, it does contain naturally-occurring sugars which should not be eaten in ABUNDANCE.  It is best to balance fruit in the diet with vegetables (preferably raw and organic), nuts, healthy fats such as coconut oil or olive oil, and plant-based proteins.  Ideally, fruit should be limited to, at the most, three or four servings per day and should also be fresh and preferably organic.

Apples are a good source of many nutrients.  Certainly, if you like apples, you should eat them. Also, if you are trying to lose weight, you should try eating more vegetables, especially green, leafy vegetables and of course increasing your activity level.  Since our modern diet is very depleted in nutrients I highly recommend considering a multi-vitamin supplement. If you decide to supplement your diet, please choose a good, high-quality, natural vitamin such as those you can purchase at a health food store.  You should expect to pay no less than $25 for a 30 day supply.

For more information please check out my blog at http://everydayhealthandwellness.blogspot.com  Please feel free to contact me any time.

Tasha

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: Thanks for your information, it was helpful. I was wondering if you could also tell me how many carbohydrates to eat on a 1200-1300 calorie diet? I think i may be eating too many and was wondering what happens if you eat too many carbs on a low calorie diet?

Thanks again.  

Answer
With regard to carbohydrates, it is generally recommended that the average diet consist of approximately 55 percent carbs.  However, you have to take into consideration that there are two kind of carbohydrates.  Simple and complex.  Simple carbohydrates being anything that is refined and processed such as sugar, white flour, white rice, etc.  Complex carbohydrates are unrefined and whole foods such as grains, whole grain bread, brown rice, etc.  

When considering your diet, it would be very advisable to stick with the complex carbohydrates rather than the simple ones because simple carbohydrates are IMMEDIATELY converted into sugar by the metabolic processes of the body.  This sugar hits the blood stream and immediately raises the glycogen levels.  If the body is not engaged in strenuous activity at the time, the excess carb/sugar levels are converted into fat and stored quickly.  Not to mention the fact that a blast of carb/sugar like this is VERY hard on the pancreas because it must make a LOT of insulin very quickly.

Complex carbohydrates are metabolized much more slowly.  The body takes longer to break them down and utilize them in the body.  Therefore, they do not spike the glycogen and are not as quickly or readily stored as fat.

My personal opinion is that you can have as much as 75 percent of your diet as carbohydrates and it will not do you any harm so long as those carbs are from fresh vegetables and whole, unprocessed grains.  Where people start getting into trouble is when their carbohydrate consumption is too high on the simple carb end and not enough on the complex carb end.

In my opinion you cannot eat too many fresh, whole, raw, preferably organic vegetables.  I encourage you to adopt a healthy eating program and you will discover that the weight will naturally come off as you begin eating less processed foods.

Best of luck to you. Please feel free to write any time.

Tasha

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