do fruits make you fat?

In botany, a fruit is the product of a flower. It is therefore an edible organ which succeeds the flower and houses seeds, a core or pips. But if we base ourselves on this definition, zucchini, tomatoes, eggplant or even pumpkins are fruits, whereas nutritionally speaking, they are vegetables.
In nutrition, fruits are plants that have a sweet taste and are traditionally eaten as a dessert.

Weight gain is the result of caloric intake exceeding expenditure. Translation, if we absorb more calories than we burn, the excess energy will gradually be stored by the body in the form of body fat.
It is therefore difficult to say that certain foods make you fat and others do not, since it’s the whole diet that counts. However, some foods are higher in calories and/or less satiating than others, and are more likely to cause weight gain.
This is absolutely not the case with fruits: moderately caloric, rich in fiber and water, they are real slimming allies. Their richness in vitamins, minerals and trace elements also makes them very healthy foods, which it would be a shame to deprive yourself of. THE national health nutrition program (PNNS) also encourages the consumption of at least five fruits and vegetables a day.
Fruits therefore have a place of choice in a weight loss diet, even if the quantity consumed must be adapted to the daily caloric needs of each person.

When you want to lose weight, you have to reduce your caloric intake without reducing the volume of your meals. The idea is therefore to focus on foods with the lowest caloric densitynamely those which, for the same volume, provide the least calories.

Fruits with the lowest caloric density are the most waterlogged:

• Strawberries: 38 calories per 100 g, i.e. about ten strawberries,
• Watermelon: 39 calories per 100 g,
• Grapefruit: 40 calories per 100 g,
• Orange: 45 calories per 100 g,
• Peach: 46 calories per 100 g,
• Raspberry: 49 calories per 100 g,

No fruit is to be totally banned, even as part of a diet. However, some fruits that are higher in sugar and therefore in calories, can be limited so as not to slow down weight loss.
The most energetic fruits are:

– Black grapes: 90 calories per 100 g,
– Banana: 90 calories per 100 g,
– White grapes: 79 calories per 100 g,
– Mango: 74 calories per 100 g,
– The fig: 70 calories per 100 g,

But although sweeter than the average fruit, these fruits can be eaten occasionally, in moderate amounts, even when dieting.

THE cherries as for them, are often accused of being too caloric: in reality they are moderately so, with 56 calories per 100geither much like apples,

Dried fruits are fruits that have undergone artificial dehydration. Their nutritional value is therefore more concentrated than that of fresh fruit.
Prunes, dried apricots, raisins, and other dried figs, thus contain 80-90% less water than their fresh equivalent and bring at least 4 or 5 times more calories. Their average caloric value is 270 calories per 100g.
These dried fruits are therefore sweet and energy foods, the consumption of which must be limited, especially when you are on a diet.
On the other hand, they are perfect foods to give quickly assimilable energy, during the practice of an endurance sport: hiking, cross-country running, day skiing or marathon.

Oleaginous fruits are fruits whose nutritional composition is different, since they are very rich in lipids, hence their name: “olea” which comes from “oleum”, oil in Latin. This food category includes: hazelnuts, almonds, walnuts, cashews, Brazil nuts and peanuts.
Their caloric value is very high since they provide on average 600 calories per 100 g. These foods, on the other hand, are full of nutritional quality, since they are rich in fibre, minerals and good cardioprotective fats, and have a very low glycemic index. Very satiating, they can be an interesting snack, even when dieting.
They should therefore be eaten plain, unsalted and unroasted, to benefit from all of their nutritional benefits.
Avocado and coconut are also part of oleaginous fruits, but they are less caloric than nuts and seeds: avocado contains 205 calories per 100 g and coconut 358 calories per 100g.

Even if it is freshly squeezed, or blended, and retains all of its nutritional benefits, a fruit in juice has a much higher glycemic index than a whole fruit : which means that it raises blood sugar very quickly and is likely to cause reactive hypoglycemia and food cravings.
In addition, chewing is essential in the satiety process: chewing an apple, for example, is considerably more satiating than drinking apple juice.

Contrary to what one can hear or read on the web, there is no contraindication to eating fruit in the eveningwhether for weight or for sleep.
The vitamin C content in fruits is not high enough to disturb sleep. On the calorie side, a fruit in the evening has no more consequences on the line than a fruit taken in the morning or during the day, since it is the total daily caloric value that is important.