Summertime great for fruit, smarter choices are in abundance

Fruit is nature's candy, so we are told. And summer time is the best time to eat fruit. So what can go wrong?

For those who are freaking out over fruit from a diet perspective, you can still eat fruit, but you might need to think about what fruit and how much fruit.

The new ChooseMyPlate.gov focuses on giving fruits a portion of the plate, but still less space than vegetables. And the pyramid lumped fruit in with vegetables, so sometimes you couldn't tell where fruit ended and vegetables began.

There has been concern lately about whether we are getting too much fruit in our diet, and/or choosing less ideal fruits. Of course, in human nature, others aren't getting enough fruit in their diet. Some with diabetes issues have limits on how much fruit they can eat.

And serving size can depend on the size of the fruit within that fruit. A serving is fruit includes a medium-sized fruit. Our eyes don't see portion control now. And 4 oz. of juice is a serving of fruit in an environment where we pour huge glasses of orange juice thinking that is one serving.

Some quick rules to ponder:

-- a serving size of fruit can sneak up on you
-- you can eat more low sugar fruit (think berries and lemons/limes)
-- fruit still better for fiber than juice
-- dried fruit is highly concentrated in sugars, and often comes with extra sugar

So have some fruit, not too much, pick wisely as to what and how, and relax. Summer is great for fresh fruit. Have fun with fruit.

Comments

[Plumb Supp]

Its very important to have a balanced diet and part of this diet is eating healthy foods such as fruits. Thanks for posting.

[Affor Ins]

We would never be able to survive without a certain amount of fat in our diet. The widespread fear of eating too much fat has, in many cases, triggered eating disorders such as anorexia as well as others. The fact remains that a certain amount of fat is required if you want your body to stay in top health.