We are at that time of year when our LOCAL fruit trees are having their SEASONAL crop.

Have you noticed that the fruit that falls off your trees in your backyard is rotten within 24-48 hours whereas the ‘Modern’ fruit you buy from the supermarket  is still fresh a week to 10 days afterwards?

There is nothing ‘natural’ about bananas in Tasmania or stone fruit in Northern Queensland at any time of the year. Most fruit juices have about the same amount of sugar in them as Coca Cola or Lemonade. Even those smoothies from juice bars are about the same but at least still have the fibre within them.

I have nothing against fruit and believe that there is plenty of goodness in fruit but to me, it should be up to ONE piece of LOCAL and SEASONAL fruit per day. Fruit when eaten whole has fibre in it which slows the absorption of fructose and is good for the bowel. There are other nutrients which are useful but that don’t have to come from fruit.

Fresh vegetables can provide virtually all of the same nutrients and fibre without the Fructose load.  We just prefer fruit to veggies because we like the sweetness more. Simple as that.

Fruit varieties are now being designed with more sugar and less fibre to improve transportability and shelf life. It’s all about increasing profit. Nothing against that either except if it comes at another cost.

Modern fruit production uses varying degrees of chemicals. Once harvested in commercial enterprises it is often coated with chemical to protect the outer skin, then placed in vacuum storage rooms rich in oxygen and then cooled down to a core temperature of about 0 degrees. This process obviously varies from fruit to fruit and location but a process occurs.  The fruit is then stored in cool rooms and distributed on as required.

My issue is not with eating whole fruit as much as it is with the quantity and frequency that we currently take in. It is juiced, concentrated, dried and added to a variety of foods and marketed as ‘natural sugar’. The concentrated sugar and lower fibre content with additional processing  mean to me that Modern fruit is different.

I regularly get asked about which’ fruit is best. This is a guide only and especially for those trying to lose weight – ONE piece of LOCAL and SEASONAL fruit per day.

If you are eating out of season then look at Avocado, Berries and Tomato. These are often lower in Fructose. Other whole fruits (not dried) are not bad and if you eat them with the skin (well washed) then you get the fibre as well.

There are about 3 teaspoons of sugar in each banana and orange, a couple in apples, peaches and nectarines, about 1 per strawberry. Just think about it.

Remember that it is nearly impossible to avoid Sugar and Fructose in our diet. The trick is to recognise where it is, what it is and minimise it over the long term.