Ok I have to start this post with a bit of a warning. I might go on a little rant here. I will try and keep it under control, but I can only take so much. First off, nutrition is a very complicated topic. I wish I had all the answers, but no one does. No matter what Dr. Oz or any other diet "guru" out there may tell you. We are learning new things all the time. Fat used to be bad for you and carbs where the devil. Many people still believe this because of bad information that is passed around. Somethings I can tell you though are most likely true and that is what sparked this post. The past few weeks I have had the same comment/question come up from clients, friends, and pretty much every where I look. The idea that fruits make you fat. Just writing that sentence makes me quiver. I can tell you that anyone who tells you this does not understand nutrition, physiology, or common sense.
So the argument against fruit goes like this. Fructose cannot be converted to muscle glycogen (the sugar stored in muscle for energy) because it lacks the enzymes to do so. Fructose instead is converted to sugar in the liver called liver glycogen. The liver can only store so much glycogen until fructose will increase lipogenesis. This means that if you have too much fructose it will increase fat storing. So stop eating fruit right?
If we look closer we can see there are some misconceptions. While nothing I noted above is a lie it isn't telling you what really goes on when we eat fruit. First off, just look around you. How many people do you know that are overweight consume a diet high in whole fruit? Those that are overweight most likely are not consuming too much fruit, they are consuming too much of everything.
First off, the fructose we consume from fruit might not even make it too the liver. It may be used immediately for energy, if consumed after a workout for example. Next let's look at liver glycogen. The liver can store roughly 100g of liver glycogen. We can handle about 50g of fructose a day before sparking fat storage. On average you will get around 6-7g of fructose in a piece of fruit. Or up to 10-12g in the "high sugar" evil banana. So you could have 5 bananas in one day before having to worry about increasing fat storage.
Know that you can see from a physiological perspective ,fruit does not equal increased fat. Let's look at some of the other benefits of increasing your fruit intake. Sugar aside, look at all of the nutrients, antioxidants, and fiber you are missing when you don't eat fruit. Fruit helps us battle cancer, look younger, improve our heart health, and there are many more benefits. So unless you are going for that pirate - dying of scurvy look, keep eating fruit. Fruit is also very filling. Because of the high water and fiber content you probably can't overeat fruit. One apple is around 95 calories. Eat just one and you should be pretty satisfied. When was the last time you could say that about most other foods.
And finally if you still don't believe me and are scared to eat fruit, maybe science will convince you. Here are just a few studies that will prove my point.
1. Two studies from the University of Navarra in Spain put two groups of women on different diets. One group had 5% of their diet come from fructose, while the other had 15%. They both saw equal weight loss, but the high fructose group improve their cholesterol levels.
2. A study published in 2011 in Metabolism compared a high fructose diet (50-70g) to a low fructose diet (under 20g). In this study the high fructose group lost more weight in 6 weeks than the low fructose group.
3. A study in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition found that diets higher in fruit and vegetables decreased the risk of metabolic syndrome and inflammation which is linked to many disorders.
4. And finally another study in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition found that diets high in fruit increased Vitamin A & C levels, as well as, lycopene. They concluded that high fruit intake reduces early mortality.
So what we know from research and nutritionists is that fruit will help you lose weight, make you feel full, fight a variety of cancers, give your body the nutrients it needs to survive, and improve your heart health. Or you can believe people trying to make money off some new diet program, that fruit will make you gain weight.
Science is always changing as we learn more about how the body works, and I will be the first to admit if I am wrong here, but I just don't think it will happen. Emily and I consistently have consumed multiple servings of fruit (yes even bananas) everyday and can thank them for helping us stay healthy. There aren't necessary good and bad foods. Just eat certain foods in moderation and stick with mainly whole food choices.
End Rant.....
You Stay Healthy San Diego,
Mike Deibler MS, CSCS
San Diego Premier Training
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