The Relationship Between Fruit and Prediabetes
In the war against carbs, fruit has taken a hit. Unfortunately, this wonderful food group has been lumped into the same boat as added sugars, refined carbohydrates, and artificial sugars. But what’s the real deal with fruit and prediabetes?
I could go on and on about the benefits of fruits. They’re rich in antioxidants, they provide anti-inflammatory nutrients, they’ve been linked to a reduced risk of disease/cancer, and most importantly, they taste delicious! I don’t want to imagine a world where my fruit intake is limited. You don’t have to live that way either.
My #1 goal for Four Summers Life is to help as many people decrease their risk of Type 2 diabetes as possible. As a dietitian, using an approach that is evidence-based is non-negotiable. So, it pleases me that science continually indicates that an increase in whole fruit consumption has been shown to decrease one’s risk of Type 2 diabetes. This relationship has especially been seen in data that tracked the consumption of a range of fruits like grapes, apples, blueberries, bananas, and grapefruit. For example, one study showed up to a 33% reduced risk of Type 2 diabetes for every three servings per week of blueberries!
Fruits are not just sugar, so we shouldn’t oversimplify them. Fruits are also composed of fiber, water, vitamins, minerals, and phytochemicals. Collectively, these components of fruit have been shown to decrease your risk of diabetes, not increase it. Fruit has also been shown to be protective against other conditions such as heart disease, strokes, weight gain, cognitive decline, hypertension, high cholesterol, and much more.
What about fruit juice?
Fruit juice is a very different product than whole fruit. In fruit juice, many of those beneficial nutrients I mentioned above have been stripped away. Without the magic of fiber and all the nutrients that are bound to that fiber, fruit juice can lead to less optimal blood sugar levels almost instantly.
Though contrary to popular belief, fruits and high blood sugars do not technically have a causal relationship. It’s probably not the whole fruits that are causing a blood sugar spike, but rather the body’s insulin resistance. Insulin resistance is a condition where the body’s cells don’t respond normally to insulin. For those with this condition, glucose can’t enter the cells as easily as it should, so it builds up in the blood. Would you like to optimize your ability to metabolize and benefit from healthy carbs like fruit? The Four Summers program works to reduce your insulin resistance by increasing your plant intake, reducing your stress, and increasing your physical activity. Contact me now on the contact page to sign up!
I’ll meet you where you’re at to achieve your goals. For example, let’s say you’re currently experiencing blood sugar spikes when eating fruit. We will first work to optimize your insulin resistance. In the meantime, you may want to choose mostly low sugar fruits and pair them with healthy fats and proteins to prevent blood sugar spikes. Examples of low sugar fruits include any variety of berries (raspberries, blackberries, blueberries) and melons (honeydew melon, cantaloupe, watermelon). Here are some tips on plate planning.
References
Du H, Li L, Bennett D, Guo Y, Turnbull I, Yang L, et al. (2017) Fresh fruit consumption in relation to incident diabetes and diabetic vascular complications: A 7-y prospective study of 0.5 million Chinese adults. PLoS Med 14(4): e1002279.
Christensen, A.S., Viggers, L., Hasselström, K. et al. (2013) Effect of fruit restriction on glycemic control in patients with type 2 diabetes – a randomized trial. Nutr J 12, 29.
Alonso, A., De la Fuente, C., Martín-Arnau, A., De Irala, J., Alfredo Martínez, J., & Martínez-González, M. (2004). Fruit and vegetable consumption is inversely associated with blood pressure in a Mediterranean population with a high vegetable-fat intake: The Seguimiento Universidad de Navarra (SUN) Study. British Journal of Nutrition, 92(2), 311-319. doi:10.1079/BJN20041196
Borgi, L., Muraki, I., Satija, A., Willett, W. C., Rimm, E. B., & Forman, J. P. (2016). Fruit and Vegetable Consumption and the Incidence of Hypertension in Three Prospective Cohort Studies. Hypertension, 67(2), 288–293.
Zhao, Cai-Ning; Meng, Xiao; Li, Ya; Li, Sha; Liu, Qing; Tang, Guo-Yi; Li, Hua-Bin. 2017. "Fruits for Prevention and Treatment of Cardiovascular Diseases" Nutrients 9, no. 6: 598
Zheng J, Sharp S J, Imamura F, Chowdhury R, Gundersen T E, Steur M et al. (2020) Association of plasma biomarkers of fruit and vegetable intake with incident type 2 diabetes: EPIC-InterAct case-cohort study in eight European countries BMJ; 370 :m2194 doi:10.1136/bmj.m2194