THE SANE VIEW
Many popular eating regimes – including paleo, low-carb, carnivore and ‘pegan’ diets (a hybrid of vegan and paleo) – take a dim view of fruit, suggesting only the least sugary kinds should be consumed, in limited amounts. Why? The theory is that fruit is too high in carbohydrates (in the form of sugar) and calories, especially for those trying to lose weight.
Tim Ferriss, US lifehacker, selfhelp guru and author of best-selling rapid weight-loss book The 4-Hour Body (Vermilion £16.99), simply advises: “Don’t eat fruit.” Anti-sugar campaigner Sarah Wilson, author of several bestselling cookbooks (and who, like Ferriss, is not medically qualified), claims: “Our bodies are designed to metabolise the amount of fructose contained in 1-2 small pieces of fruit a day (ie about the recommended amount of sugar we should be eating).” So, is fruit a friend or foe?
THE SCIENCE BIT