Eating too much high GI fruit is not good for weight loss

Many people who want to lose weight think that they should eat less meat and more fruits and vegetables. However, experts remind that although fruits feel lighter to eat, they are not without calories. To control weight, you must first control the number of servings you eat. In addition, you can also measure it based on the glycemic index (GI value). Fruits with high GI values ​​will stimulate the secretion of insulin in the body, making it easier for the body to synthesize fat. Therefore, don't only eat high GI fruits, which can help you lose weight more effectively.

Although fruits feel lighter when eaten, they are not without calories. To control your weight, you must first control the number of servings you eat. In addition, don't only eat high-GI fruits, which can help you lose weight more effectively. (Photography by Huang Zhiwen)

"GI value" is the abbreviation of Glycemic Index. Liu Zhenfang, chairman of the Obesity Research Society of the Republic of China and professor of the Department of Health and Nutrition at Taipei Medical University, said that currently the international community uses the ratio of the increase in blood sugar caused by food to the glucose consumed, with glucose (GI=100) as the reference indicator for the GI value of food. Foods above 70 are high GI foods, between 70 and 55 are medium GI foods, and below 55 are low GI foods.

In particular, carbohydrates with higher sugar content have a more significant impact on blood sugar, and starches and fruits belong to this category. Professor Liu Zhenfang pointed out that foods with high GI values ​​will cause blood sugar to rise rapidly and stimulate insulin secretion, which will then make it easy for the body to synthesize fat. Eating too much will indeed make you fat.

Professor Liu Zhenfang's research team once measured the GI values ​​of various fruits and found that the higher the fiber content of the fruit, the lower the GI value; seasonal fruits have higher GI values; as for the sweetness of the taste, it is not necessarily proportional to the GI value. The fruits with lower GI values ​​measured in the study include: cherry tomatoes, pears, Fuji apples, papayas, Thai guavas, bananas, oranges, pineapples, tangerines, and golden kiwis; those with relatively higher GI values ​​include grapes, watermelons, pomelo, longans, and mangoes.

However, Professor Liu Zhenfang emphasized that the GI value is a relative value, so the first priority for weight loss is still to control the amount of intake. For example, one serving of fruit is about 80% full of a cherry tomato in a bowl, about the size of a fist-sized orange, or half a large banana.

Grapes are a fruit with a relatively high GI value. For those who want to lose weight, the recommended amount of fruit is about 2 to 3 servings per day. If you eat grapes for one serving, try not to choose mangoes, watermelons, and other fruits that also have a high GI value for the other two servings. (Photography by Huang Zhiwen)

If you want to control your weight more actively, you can choose fruits with relatively low GI values ​​to eat with your diet. For example, it is recommended that people who are losing weight eat about 2 to 3 servings of fruit per day. If one serving is grapes, try not to choose mangoes, watermelons and other fruits that also have a high GI value for the other two servings.

In addition, those who are losing weight are not recommended to drink fruit juice. Professor Liu Zhenfang pointed out that there are four disadvantages: less fiber intake than eating fresh fruit, it is more difficult to control the intake amount, other sugars are easily added to enhance the taste, and without chewing, the feeling of fullness and satisfaction cannot be achieved.

Therefore, drinking fruit juice not only has lower nutritional value than eating fresh fruit directly, but it may also affect the efficiency of weight loss.