Is Fruit Good or Bad for Your Health? The Sweet Truth
Is Fruit Good or Bad for Your Health? The Sweet Truth
This is probably the world’s most common health recommendation.
Everyone knows that fruits are healthy — they are real, whole foods.
Most of them are also very convenient. Some people call them “nature’s fast food” because they are so easy to carry and prepare.
However, fruits are relatively high in sugar compared to other whole foods.
For this reason, you might wonder whether they are truly healthy after all. This article sheds some light on the subject.
Excessive Sugar Is Bad, But Its Effects Depend on the Context
A lot of evidence has shown that excessive intake of added sugar is harmful (1Trusted Source, 2Trusted Source, 3Trusted Source).
This includes table sugar (sucrose) and high-fructose corn syrup, both of which are about half glucose, half fructose.
One reason that excessive added sugar intake is harmful is the negative metabolic effects of fructose when consumed in large amounts.
Many people now believe that because added sugars are bad, the same must apply to fruits, which also contain fructose.
However, this is a misconception. Fructose is only harmful in large amounts, and it’s difficult to get excessive amounts of fructose from fruit.