Overdoing even a good thing can make you gain weight, experts say. Discover how to find the healthy zone.
Overdoing even a good thing can make you gain weight, experts say. Discover how to find the healthy zone.
We all know that fruit is good for us. So, many of us top yogurt with berries, snack on apples and pears throughout the workday, and drink fresh juice after working out. “The trouble is, packing in too much nature’s candy can backfire,” says Lauren Slayton, a US-based dietitian and owner of Foodtrainers, which conducts private nutrition sessions in New York City. She calls this “over-fruiting” and says a lot of healthy eaters are sabotaged by it.
Fresh calories are still calories Adding fruit to our diets doesn’t necessarily lead to weight loss, research suggests. That’s because we tend to tack those servings on top of whatever else we’re eating.
“A cookie seems like an indulgence, so you may compensate by eating less later on,” Lauren says. “But with fruit, chances are you won’t make the same adjustment.”
Some diets call fruit a freebie you don’t need to count in your daily tally, but it does have calories. For instance, a cup of grapes has about 100 calories, which is more than most medium cookies.
In fact, a recent study in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition found that dieters who increased their intake of produce didn’t lose a significant amount of weight. “The key is to replace energy-dense foods with fruit or vegetables,” says study author Kathryn Kaiser, an instructor at the US-based University of Alabama at Birmingham School of Public Health.
So rather than adding a side of berries to a pancake breakfast, you’re better off putting them on top of your short stack in place of syrup. This can shave a few hundred calories off your brunch.
Portion control also matters. While you might measure out peanut butter or nibble just a single square of chocolate, you’re less likely to monitor how much pineapple you’re eating – even though its natural sweetness makes it easy to polish off multiple portions in one sitting, says dietitian Sonya Angelone, also a spokeswoman for the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics.
Keep in mind that a serving is just half a cup of chopped fresh fruit (or one medium piece), a quarter cup of dried fruit, or a half cup of fruit juice. A small deli container of fruit salad can easily hold several portions, while some juice-bar drinks deliver nearly six servings – and more than 300 calories – in one oversized cup.
Most of those calories come from fructose, the main sugar in fruit. And while recent research linking fructose to weight gain and cravings applies more to the concentrated dose of sugar you get from drinks like soda sweetened with high-fructose corn syrup than the amount in an orange – which is bundled with nutrients and hits your system more slowly – when you overdo it on fruit, those sugar grams add up.
Fruit may not bust your hunger Conventional diet wisdom says that, thanks to its high fibre content, fruit should keep you satisfied for a long time. While that’s partially true – an apple (about 100 calories) is much more satisfying than 100 calories of processed crackers – fibre alone won’t keep your stomach from rumbling.
That apple has 4g of fibre but less than 1g each of protein and fat, which are also key to satiety. In comparison, a 100-calorie portion of almonds has 2g of fibre plus nearly 4g of filling protein and 8g of healthy, hunger-busting fat. That’s why it’s a good idea to pair fibre-rich fruit with other foods that have fat and protein, like nut butter and cheese, Lauren says.
So how much fruit should you eat? Most healthy eaters should cap their intake at no more than two pieces or cups of fresh fruit a day, Lauren says. Of course, that number varies from person to person. “If you’re trying to lose weight, stick with one piece or cup. But if you’re training for a marathon or are a regular at spinning, you can eat more,” she explains.
To make the most of your servings, Lauren suggests choosing fruit that’s lower in calories and sugar (see The Fruit Sugar Scale). Opt for whole fruit rather than juice or dried fruit, which both pack more calories and sugar per gram, and are easier to overeat.
Can’t give up your green juice? Pick one that’s made only with vegetables. Or blend a smoothie, which doesn’t filter out fibre and so keeps you fuller longer, Sonya suggests.
If you need help kicking your over-fruiting habit, try eating more vegetables, which tend to be lower in calories and sugar. That way, you’ll still get plenty of vitamins, minerals and antioxidants.
THE FRUIT SUGAR SCALE
Surprisingly, some of the sweetest-tasting fruits, like strawberries and watermelon, have the least sugar and fewest calories per serving.
● STRAWBERRIES (1 cup, whole) 46 calories 7g sugar 3g fibre
● WATERMELON (1 cup, diced) 46 calories 9g sugar 1g fibre
● ORANGE (1 navel) 69 calories 12g sugar 3g fibre
● BANANA (1 medium) 105 calories 14g sugar 3g fibre
● PINEAPPLE (1 cup, chunks) 82 calories 16g sugar 2g fibre
● PEAR (1 medium) 101 calories 17g sugar 6g fibre
● APPLE (1 medium) 95 calories 19g sugar 4g fibre
● GRAPES (1 cup) 104 calories 23g sugar 1g fibre
