To eat only fruit for lunch?

[auroraboringalice]

Trying to shift the last couple of stone and thinking about Christmas. Don't eat enough fruit 'n' veg. Thought about swapping out my usual lunch for fruit only to keep calories and fat down and get my bowel moving (TMI, sorry!).

I keep reading hysteria over sugar content in fruit though? Old gimmer here - fruit used to be seen as a harmless healthy snack.

Should I worry about this? I am cutting right back on chocolate and biscuits and other rubbishy forms of sugar, so surely some fructose is okay?

All that Fructose is crack for your liver. You may as well be eating Mars as far as your liver is concerned. Just because fruit may have a lower calorie count didn't mean it's good for you in large amounts it's high in Fuctose and Carbs. Both of which are great for insulin spikes and will leave you hungry far sooner than moderate protein, green leafy veg and enough healthy fats that you are satisfied, but not stuffed full until your next meal.

Google the many research papers on fructose and fatty liver.

Eating a Mars Bar that should read.

bowdownbefore That's really interesting. I lost 5 stone doing slimming world and ate shit loads of fruit.
I went to the GP with pain in my side/abdomen & after tests was diagnosed with fatty liver

Ohhh yum, I second having Greek yoghurt and berries with nuts! And apple slices with nut butter!!!

Dr Lustig doesn't say coke is the same as fruit. He says coke is the same (better even!) than fruit juice, especially the store bought (rather than the freshly squeezed) stuff. Fruit juice is horrifyingly high in sugar and the stuff in cartons have very little nutrients due to being heat treated. In his lecture on youtube he does say fruit is OK as the sugar comes wrapped in fibre, which slows down its absorption, and is chock full of nutrients. Plus even a small glass of orange juice is, like, six or more oranges, then you could eat a full meal, but you couldn't eat six oranges then eat a meal! Fruit Juice = Evil!

Thanks, StarShimmer that explains it. I don't drink fruit juice or smoothies.

I also wonder about stuff like nut butters. They are refined and highly-concentrated foods. Should we be eating that much fat? It would be hard to consume the fat we eat easily in nature.

I am not really coming down on one side or the other, it's more a discussion about so much conflicting advice around!

But don't reject a food just because it contains fructose, says Dr. Bruce Bistrian, a professor at Harvard Medical School. "Fructose is naturally found in fruits. Fruits are not harmful and are even beneficial in almost any amount," he explains

www.health.harvard.edu/staying-healthy/rethinking-fructose-in-your-diet

Interestingly, I ate my fruit at 2pm and did not have dinner until 7pm. Nothing else in between. I wasn't even particularly hungry for dinner, but husband was so I heated up a small meal. To be fair, I do have a desk job and wasn't exactly exerting myself in the afternoon!

You'd be better looking at something with protein like hummus and veg sticks. Protein will fill you up more.

I hate to be a clique and so on the fence, but seen as we don't really know for 100% sure exactly how we are supposed to be eating. Isn't the best way surely an everything in moderation approach?

For the calories of several pieces of fruit you could have soup, omelette, chicken/fish salad, veg sticks with hummus then a bit of fruit and yoghurt for dessert.

I know op has said she doesn't want to prep food.

Really though people have been debating for years about what we should/shouldn't eat and probably will forever more.

Surely well balanced meals are the way to go? No need to cut out food groups but don't eat too much of anything. Aim for at least 3 vegetables a day and 2 portions of fruit. Eat different ones each day for a good balance. Have a bit of protein with your meals, Aim for natural foods.

A bit of pasta, chips, chocolate isn't going to hurt as long as you're not gorging on the every day.

Cliche

A friend of mine used to eat only fruit for lunch every day, eventually the fruit acids damaged the enamel on her teeth and her dentist advised her to stop.

Iliveinazoo

I reckon you're right in that that is the best way to go!

Eating apples can help cleanse and clean teeth, and fight bad breath

Kiwis have fiber content, and are packed with calcium, which is a dental super mineral!

Another fibrous berry, strawberries are great for teeth and gums

chicagokidsdds.com/blog/top-3-fruits-for-teeth/

I once did a diet about five years ago. A family member who was overweight had been given the diet plan by a doctor to lose a stone in a week as he needed to shift weight urgently before he was safe for an op. He lost the weight and I copied the plan off him to try for more shallow reasons. What the diet essentially was, was a very small breakfast (maybe 1 boiled egg) and s boring dinner (if I recall correctly pretty much grilled meat (chicken or beef) with veg. The only good part was unlimited fruit. I eat for the sake of it - I like to have something to pick at - and so knowing that I could have fruit whenever I wanted it took the stress off the diet for me. It also meant that I could eat loads of fruit literally any time I felt hungry. Yeah I'd rather have had a slice of pizza but it was doable, although joyless. I lost loads of weight doing it for a couple of weeks (didn't stay off for long though and I don't imagine it's too great in the long run)

Does fructose really target and settle round your middle?

Of course it doesn't.

I also wonder about stuff like nut butters. They are refined and highly-concentrated foods. Should we be eating that much fat? It would be hard to consume the fat we eat easily in nature.

If you buy the pure nut butters, then an ounce of nut butter is just an ounce of pulverised nuts. A small handful, which is a perfectly natural portion. We actually do need fats in our diet and the fats in nuts are good for you and come packaged up with protein, vitamins and minerals, including magnesium.

And nuts are filling. You're less likely to want to snack again after 200kcal worth of nuts than 200kcal worth of cake, or even apples.

I do have the meridian cashew butter, and the almond one too but I buy Skippy brand peanut butter as it's my daughter's favourite.

So many incorrect comments about fruit and sugar. It’s not bad for you. It won’t ‘stick’ to
Your belly. It won’t affect your liver. It’s perfectly fine except make sure your not overly hungry and therefore snack later.

I sometimes have two apples and a handful of almonds, or some salad leaves, carrot and homemade houmous.

You could make a batch of your own salsa OP, in advance. Piece of piss, and not spicy if you don't put any spices in it.

I have put an average day's food into a nutrient app.

If I have two apples, a banana and two clems for lunch, this is what it my whole day comes out as:-

30g of fat - 25%
57g of protein - 21%
147g of carbs - 54%

According to this article

www.independent.co.uk/life-style/health-and-families/low-carb-diet-health-concerns-nutrition-carbs-vegetarian-vegan-a8495641.html

The NHS recommends that individuals eat at least 260g of carbohydrates a day

So even with all the fruit, I am still not eating too many carbs

Bamping tells The Independent “This means that over half of your daily calorie intake should come from starchy foods, fruit and vegetables"

^^ I am certainly meeting this.

This has been so interesting, as I've never really looked at my diet in such detail and I am getting to grips with all the latest thinking on what constitutes a good diet. Which as a pp mentioned, people will probably be discussing for-just-about-ever.

My daughter is trying to shift a few pounds before a big holiday in January. She’s on her feet and active all day but only eats 5 dried apricots, an apple or a small mug of salted popcorn. She’s losing weight well.
It’s not what you eat at one particular meal but what your total weekly intake is that matters. Lots of hidden carbohydrates in vegetables but they’re more complex and better than refined white stodge.

I'm not surprised your daughter's losing weight quickly CherryPavlova if that's all she eating - I'm assuming you mean for lunch. I couldn't get through the rest of the day on that.

Going to try this fruit lunch (provided it fills me up sufficiently, which it certainly has for the last few days). I get weight at the docs in a few weeks. If I don't change anything else about my diet for now, it will be interesting to see what my weight is!