Is Fructose Really That Bad?

[cvictorg]

Ask Chris: Is Fructose Really That Bad?

Fructose-sweetened beverages like soft drinks and juice cause metabolic problems when calories are in excess, and studies have shown that people are not likely to compensate for the additional calories they get from such beverages.

This is why soft drinks and other beverages sweetened with fructose aren’t a good idea. That said, an occasional glass of fruit juice within the context of an isocaloric diet is unlikely to cause problems – unless you have a pre-existing blood sugar issue.

I don’t think there’s any basis for avoiding whole fruit simply because it contains fructose. As I’ve shown in this article, there’s nothing uniquely fattening or toxic about fructose when it isn’t consumed in excess. And since whole fruit contains fiber and other nutrients, it’s difficult to eat a lot of fruit without simultaneously reducing intake of other foods.

Fruit has been part of the human diet for longer than we’ve been, er, human. We’re well-adapted to eating it, and capable of processing the fructose it contains. (Unless you are FODMAP intolerant – but that’s a different issue entirely.)