So, it must be so safe to eat fruit, I mean, it’s full of vitamins, minerals and fiber, right? Well, yes, but we have to watch the quantity.
Fruit contains a natural sugar known as fructose. Unlike glucose (a simple sugar found in food we consume) which can be distributed for use by any cell in your body (like organs, muscles etc), fructose is a special sugar only processed in the liver.
When sugar is sent to the liver, that is used to make fat. Since fructose can ONLY be processed in the liver, this increases your risk of it turning to fat which then increases the risk of fatty liver disease and insulin resistance (meaning–it makes your diabetes WORSE!!)
Of course eating fruit is healthier than eating candy or sweets, but the quantity we eat really makes a difference.
Some sweeter fruits like those of the tropical variety (mangoes, pineapples, bananas, watermelon) have more sugar. These are more likely to spike your blood sugars.
For this reason, I recommend eating no more than a small piece of fruit or 1 cup of fruit per day. Eat the sweeter fruits on occasion and try to stick to fruits that naturally contain less sugar (grapefruit or berries).
It is best to pair it with a protein like nuts, a piece of meat, cheese, or nut butter. Also, I advise people to eat fruits before 3pm which may help keep their morning fasting blood sugars stable the following day.
Let me know what you think!