Can Fruit Make You Fat?

Can fruit really make you fat?

This is a question I receive often so I am well prepared to answer.

Here are 6 reasons why fruit will not make you fat.

1. Research study: Amer J Clin Nut 85:1465-1477 2007

Subjects in this group who ate a low fat diet with more fruits and vegetables lost more fat then subjects on a low fat diet only.

Results show that eating extra fruits and vegetables caused subjects to be less hungry. They were also able to eat a greater volume of food because fruits and vegetables are not energy dense (meaning they don’t have a lot of calories per serving).

Eating more fresh fruits and vegetables will help you cut calories and stay full longer, so you’ll lose more belly fat then if you ate whole grains or animal products instead.

Conclusion: Fruit does not make you fat!

2. Research Study: Nutrition. 26: 727-734, 2010

This is more of an epidemiological study where the food diaries of 77 overweight dieters were studied. Results show that those dieters who ate the most fruit both weighed less overall and also lost more weight during their diet.

Results suggest that if we eat more fruit while on a diet we will lose more weight. Those people who eat the most fruit in general will tend to maintain the healthiest weights.

Conclusion: Fruit does not make you fat!

3. Book: Food Rules by Michael Pollen

Pollen lays out 60+ rules for healthy eating that he had gathered from his extensive research conducted from previous books.

“Eat food. not too much. Mostly plants.”

BTW, I taught this concept to the 3rd grade class I spent the day with a few weeks ago and it was simple enough for them to understand.

Conclusion: Fruit does not make you fat!

4. Book: The China Study by Dr. Campbell

I long book about why we need to turn out diet’s focus away from animal products and back to plant based foods such as fruits, veggies, and nuts, for the sake of our health and waistlines.

Conclusion: Fruit does not make you fat!

5. Book: Food Inc. by Eric Schlosser

I book that discusses why we should stay away from factory farmed meat and dairy products along with grains. Huge eye opener and highly recommended!

Conclusion: Fruit does not make you fat!

6. Book: Thrive by Brendan Brazier

One of the best books I read so far this year. Brazer is a professional endurance athlete who competes in triathlons while only consuming a vegan diet. The guy is super lean, healthy, and recovers so fast from tough workouts that he is able to train more then his competitors. That’s why he wins.

Conclusion: Fruit does not make you fat!

The bottom line is that there is enough evidence out there, scientifically proven evidence, that consuming fruit does only positive things for our bodies including keeping us lean, allowing us to feel fuller longer so we lose unwanted fat, protects us from heart disease, cancer, and diabetes.

Those are all really positive and convincing things in my opinion, so why are we avoiding fruit?

Besides, have you ever known anyone to get really fat because they ate too many bananas?

Posted under I To Health Care by itohealthcare on Tuesday 19 October 2010 at 8:17 am

Coronary Heart Disease Risk Factors

Some risk factors of coronary heart disease are far beyond the control of a person. For example, a person’s risk to develop coronary heart disease is increasing with age. Many hereditary factors may be a risk of the disease. The men were considered at increased risk of this heart disease, but recent studies show that this is not true. Approximately the same number of men and women develop heart disease. Women are tending to develop the disease in later life than men. This is because estrogen, a hormone that circulates in the body of sex can help protect women against atherosclerosis. Most women do not develop heart disease after menopause, when estrogen levels decrease significantly protective measures.

Other risk factors of this disease could be changed depends on the lifestyle of a person. These risk factors include smoking, physical inactivity, obesity, diabetes and hypertension. The most important factor modifiable risk factors are high cholesterol.

The amount of cholesterol in the blood of a person is determined by the heredity, but it is also depending on the amount of cholesterol and fat in our bodies. In parts of Africa and Asia, where people eat very little fat and cholesterol, the average total cholesterol level below 150 milligrams, heart attacks are very rare. United States, where the typical diet is including many food that is high in fat and cholesterol, and also coronary heart disease is one of the most dangerous diseases in the world.

Many scientists had learned that cholesterol is particularly bad when it is made by blood as low-density lipoprotein (LDL), often called “bad” cholesterol. In contrast, cholesterol in the form of high density lipoprotein actually decreases a person’s risk of a heart attack, and HDL cholesterol is often called “good cholesterol”.

Posted under I To Health Care by itohealthcare on Tuesday 12 October 2010 at 8:17 am