Is one of the biggest health food misconceptions the obsession with smoothies and bowls of fruit?

[Anonymous]

My dad wears a continuous glucose monitor, so it's really enlightening as to what does and does not lead to glucose spikes.

Fruit is not an issue -- he does not have to limit fruit.

Fruit juice is an automatic spike -- he only has juice if his level is dangerously low.

Pizza always leads to a crazy spike. It's way worse that other bread products for some reason. (He can have a sandwich with no problem -- even pasta is not nearly as bad as pizza.) Really irritating because pizza is just such an easy dinner when everyone is tired.

There are lots of desserts that actually aren't much of a problem too. Small bowl of vanilla ice cream or a simple flavor is basically fine. Not the crap loaded with candy or fudge. Cakes that are more European in nature are also basically fine in moderation -- American birthday cakes with the crazy frosting are terrible though. (If you've ever made home-made buttercream, it's a really appalling amount of powdered sugar that goes into the frosting!)

Whisky is fine. Wine is basically okay in moderation. Pretty much any decent beer is really bad.

There's also some things like sauces (BBQ sauce) that really can be dangerous too.

But fruit is fine!!!
* Note that if you're a obsessive person that's eating like 10 servings of fruit a day via an all-smoothie diet, then that's probably not fine.

[Anonymous]

I have a huge bowl of mixed berries as part of my breakfast every morning. Probably 2-2.5 cups worth. I consider any amount of fruit heathy but I don’t drink smoothies- just eat a ton of whole fruit. No weight or blood sugar issues

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:https://www.newhealthadvisor.org/does-blending-fruit-remove-fiber.html#:~:text=No%2C%20it%20does%20not.%20If%20you%20use%20a,for%20your%20body%20to%20absorb%20nutrients%20from%20it.
Does Blending Fruit Remove Fiber?
No, it does not. If you use a high-speed blender, it might break down fiber but you still get the same amount of fiber that you would otherwise get from the whole fruit. A blended smoothie is actually better in that it makes it easier for your body to absorb nutrients from it. This speeds up digestion and provides a number of health benefits.
Blending fruits only changes their appearance and texture and does nothing to change their nutritional value. Most people blend fruit to make it more drinkable or spoonable. You should avoid storing your blended smoothies for long because longer storage time may cause nutrient degradation. In fact, the vitamin-C content of pineapple, kiwi, strawberry, mango, cantaloupe, and watermelon may come down by 5% to 25% when stored for six days at 41F.

Why would speeding up digestion be a good thing, especially if you are trying to lose weight? You want to slow down digestion and stay fuller longer.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Look at it this way. On Weight Watchers, fruit, pieces of fruit is unlimited in quantity. You can eat as much hand fruit as you want, bananas included. Eating whole fruit fills you and provides fiber.

But you can’t take the fruit and make smoothies with it. Why? You destroy the fiber, you destroy the filling serving of food in your stomach, and you eat many more servings with a huge sugar rush.

Let's all take diet advice from someone who needs Weight Watchers.

Another Weight Watchers member. I lost 87 pounds with Weight Watchers 28 years ago, and have kept it off. The hard part is not losing weight, it's keeping it off. I'll never stop doing Weight Watchers, and I'm a normal weight. Have you ever been to a WW meeting? Most of the people there are normal weight -- because it works.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I make a smoothie with a bunch of spinach, a banana, and a bunch of frozen mango. And water. I feel like it’s pretty healthy.

Pulverizing/blending fruit rids it of fiber and you consume many more servings and calories when you get fruit in via smoothies. That’s why they can be unhealthy. It’s like drinking a quart of mango juice.

Only if you strain it. If. It’s just blended up in a blender and you drink it without straightness it, you get the fiber.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My dad wears a continuous glucose monitor, so it's really enlightening as to what does and does not lead to glucose spikes.

Fruit is not an issue -- he does not have to limit fruit.

Fruit juice is an automatic spike -- he only has juice if his level is dangerously low.

Pizza always leads to a crazy spike. It's way worse that other bread products for some reason. (He can have a sandwich with no problem -- even pasta is not nearly as bad as pizza.) Really irritating because pizza is just such an easy dinner when everyone is tired.

There are lots of desserts that actually aren't much of a problem too. Small bowl of vanilla ice cream or a simple flavor is basically fine. Not the crap loaded with candy or fudge. Cakes that are more European in nature are also basically fine in moderation -- American birthday cakes with the crazy frosting are terrible though. (If you've ever made home-made buttercream, it's a really appalling amount of powdered sugar that goes into the frosting!)

Whisky is fine. Wine is basically okay in moderation. Pretty much any decent beer is really bad.

There's also some things like sauces (BBQ sauce) that really can be dangerous too.

But fruit is fine!!!
* Note that if you're a obsessive person that's eating like 10 servings of fruit a day via an all-smoothie diet, then that's probably not fine.

How about smoothie? Or fruit vs smoothie?

[Anonymous]

Obviously a lot of triggered smoothie addicts in this thread who can’t acknowledge they’re addicted to sugar.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Obviously a lot of triggered smoothie addicts in this thread who can’t acknowledge they’re addicted to sugar.

I never drink smoothies, but I know junk science when I hear it. Sorry your assertion that fresh fruit is the same as a candy bar didn’t go over as well as you’d hoped.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:This thread is so baffling - there are really people out there thinking fruit is bad and equating it to candy bars??? OP stop giving your poor daughter whatever eating disorder you have.

I can't believe people are so uneducated about basic nutrition.
Most people add a healthy protein and fat to their smoothie, along with fruit and plenty of leafy greens....so that will not spike your blood sugar.

It’s even worse than having bizarre ideas about nutrition... they seem to lack a basic understanding of the laws if physics! (I peel an orange - don’t even segment it, mind you - and throw it into the vitamix with some ice, then drink it. The orange pre-Vitamix had fiber, but bow apparently the fiber is gone... please tell me, where did it go? Into the ether?)

Have any of these anti-smoothie dum dums ever pureed fruit (or carrots! or sweet potatoes!) for their babies? If so, did they realize at the time that what they were doing was the equivalent of giving their babies a candy bar or a bowl of straight sugar? 🙄

It’s not just that they’re completely wrong that is so irritating and mind-boggling, but that they are so SPECTACULARLY CONFIDENT!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This thread is so baffling - there are really people out there thinking fruit is bad and equating it to candy bars??? OP stop giving your poor daughter whatever eating disorder you have.

I can't believe people are so uneducated about basic nutrition.
Most people add a healthy protein and fat to their smoothie, along with fruit and plenty of leafy greens....so that will not spike your blood sugar.

It’s even worse than having bizarre ideas about nutrition... they seem to lack a basic understanding of the laws if physics! (I peel an orange - don’t even segment it, mind you - and throw it into the vitamix with some ice, then drink it. The orange pre-Vitamix had fiber, but bow apparently the fiber is gone... please tell me, where did it go? Into the ether?)

Have any of these anti-smoothie dum dums ever pureed fruit (or carrots! or sweet potatoes!) for their babies? If so, did they realize at the time that what they were doing was the equivalent of giving their babies a candy bar or a bowl of straight sugar? 🙄

It’s not just that they’re completely wrong that is so irritating and mind-boggling, but that they are so SPECTACULARLY CONFIDENT!

Lol—yes, exactly.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This thread is so baffling - there are really people out there thinking fruit is bad and equating it to candy bars??? OP stop giving your poor daughter whatever eating disorder you have.

I can't believe people are so uneducated about basic nutrition.
Most people add a healthy protein and fat to their smoothie, along with fruit and plenty of leafy greens....so that will not spike your blood sugar.

It’s even worse than having bizarre ideas about nutrition... they seem to lack a basic understanding of the laws if physics! (I peel an orange - don’t even segment it, mind you - and throw it into the vitamix with some ice, then drink it. The orange pre-Vitamix had fiber, but bow apparently the fiber is gone... please tell me, where did it go? Into the ether?)

Have any of these anti-smoothie dum dums ever pureed fruit (or carrots! or sweet potatoes!) for their babies? If so, did they realize at the time that what they were doing was the equivalent of giving their babies a candy bar or a bowl of straight sugar? 🙄

It’s not just that they’re completely wrong that is so irritating and mind-boggling, but that they are so SPECTACULARLY CONFIDENT!

Lol—yes, exactly.

I don't think it's straight sugar/equivalent of a candy bar, but I wouldn't use purees and blended fruit smoothies for weight loss purposes or kid myself that I can replace a lot of meals with smoothies and maintain health and weight loss. They are not weight loss inducing foods. Get it? That's what I'm trying to say. See the difference? You're the one talking candy bars and straight sugar. Never said anything of the kind.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This thread is so baffling - there are really people out there thinking fruit is bad and equating it to candy bars??? OP stop giving your poor daughter whatever eating disorder you have.

I can't believe people are so uneducated about basic nutrition.
Most people add a healthy protein and fat to their smoothie, along with fruit and plenty of leafy greens....so that will not spike your blood sugar.

It’s even worse than having bizarre ideas about nutrition... they seem to lack a basic understanding of the laws if physics! (I peel an orange - don’t even segment it, mind you - and throw it into the vitamix with some ice, then drink it. The orange pre-Vitamix had fiber, but bow apparently the fiber is gone... please tell me, where did it go? Into the ether?)

Have any of these anti-smoothie dum dums ever pureed fruit (or carrots! or sweet potatoes!) for their babies? If so, did they realize at the time that what they were doing was the equivalent of giving their babies a candy bar or a bowl of straight sugar? 🙄

It’s not just that they’re completely wrong that is so irritating and mind-boggling, but that they are so SPECTACULARLY CONFIDENT!

Lol—yes, exactly.

I don't think it's straight sugar/equivalent of a candy bar, but I wouldn't use purees and blended fruit smoothies for weight loss purposes or kid myself that I can replace a lot of meals with smoothies and maintain health and weight loss. They are not weight loss inducing foods. Get it? That's what I'm trying to say. See the difference? You're the one talking candy bars and straight sugar. Never said anything of the kind.

I am not convinced even YOU know what you’re trying to say.

[Anonymous]

Anyone who ever controlled their diet understands that fruits contain a LOT of sugar. Apples, grapes, oranges. No one needs to eat a quart of fruit.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Obviously a lot of triggered smoothie addicts in this thread who can’t acknowledge they’re addicted to sugar.

I never drink smoothies, but I know junk science when I hear it. Sorry your assertion that fresh fruit is the same as a candy bar didn’t go over as well as you’d hoped.

You are ignorant and do not understand GI.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Anyone who ever controlled their diet understands that fruits contain a LOT of sugar. Apples, grapes, oranges. No one needs to eat a quart of fruit.

No you don't understand. Pigging out on sugary fruit, juice and smoothies is healthy because it's better than candy, Häagen-Dazs and Burger King. Plus it looks so pretty! How can it be unhealthy if it gets a lot of likes by idiots on my social media.