Fruit with the lowest sugar content

strawberries

We all know that fruit is an essential part of all healthy diets. Fruit contains fibre, vitamins, minerals and anti-oxidants all of which are important for many physiological functions. What you also need to be aware of is that fruit contains sugar. The sugar found in whole fruit is natural (not artificially added) however it is sugar none the less and contributes to overall energy intake just like any other sugar found in any other food (natural or artificial). Avoiding fruit altogether because of its sugar content is not the answer but selecting your daily fruit serves wisely can help to lower total daily sugar intake, lose or control body weight and reduce the risk of chronic disease.



Dietary sugar contributes to total daily energy intake. If daily energy intake exceeds daily energy expenditure a net energy gain will result. Net energy gains are stored as fat. It makes sense from this very simple energy balance perspective that minimising daily sugar intake should be a priority for all weight loss and weight control diets. High sugar diets are related to an increase incidence of obesity, diabetes, cardiovascular disease and caner. Of course, sugar can come from a lot of different foods other than fruit, most of which are a lot less healthy and don't provide anywhere near the nutritional benefit that fruit does. Minimising dietary sugar requires that the sugar in fruit is not ignored completely regardless of the nutrition benefits that fruit has to offer.

Two simple strategies can be used to control the amount of sugar consumed from fruit while still receiving the good nutrition that fruit provides. These strategies include.

1. Consuming two servings of fruit per day. 1 single serving of fruit is equal to:
• 1 medium piece (100-150g)
• 1 cup diced / chopped
• 1/2 cup stewed or canned
• 1/2 cup fruit juice (100ml)
2. Consuming low sugar fruit varieties. Low sugar varieties are those with less than 10g of sugar per 100g

melons

Within every food group there are options that are preferred for regular intake and others that should make a less frequent appearance on the menu. In the fruit food group, lower sugar varieties are preferred. An easy and effective way to identify lower sugar foods is to look for those that have less than 10g of sugar per 100g. Fresh, raw fruit with approximately 10g or less of sugar per 100g include:

apricot blackberry blackcurrant blueberries cranberry grapefruit gooseberry guava

honeydew kiwi fruit lemon lime orange papaya passion fruit peach

plums raspberry rhubarb rock melon strawberry watermelon

Fresh, raw fruit is preferred over other serving options. Fruit juice, drink and dried fruit are higher in sugar then fresh, raw fruit of equal amount. The sugar is packaged more densely in fruit juice, drink and dried fruit and as a result they are not preferred as regular fruit servings. Like all things nutrition, moderation is the goal. Aim to consume the majority of your two fruit servings each day from fresh, raw lower sugar fruit varieties and consume other fruit options less frequently.