• What is fructose?
• Why is fructose important?
• What you need to know
  • Additionally
• Conclusions and recommendations
• Benefits and side effects of fructose
  • • Fructose
    • Glucose
    • Sucrose
    • High fructose corn syrup
    • Benefit
    • Side effects
  • Conclusion
  • Fructose in foods
    • Examples of well-tolerated fruits and vegetables are:
    • Berries
    • Dried fruits
    • Honey and fruits
    • Vegetables and mushrooms
    • Helpful information

What is fructose?

Fructose is a monosaccharide, the simplest form of carbohydrate. How can understand from the name, mono (one) saccharide (sugar) contains only one sugar group, so it does not break down further.

Each subtype of carbohydrates has a different effect on the body. depending on the structure and source (i.e. what kind of food is it from arriving). Chemical structure affects how quickly and / or easily a carbohydrate molecule is digested / absorbed. From source depends on whether other nutrients substances.

For example, corn syrup and fruits contain fructose, but their effect on the body varies. Corn Syrup – this is the simplest system for delivering carbohydrates to the body – it has more nothing, while fruits contain other substances such like fiber, these are dietary fibers that affect digestion and assimilation of fructose. Plus, the amount of fructose in the average apple much less than, say, in an ordinary soda can.

Fructose has a unique texture, taste, digestibility and level. digestibility, which is different from glucose, which sugar becomes the majority of the carbohydrates we consume when they get to the circulatory system.

Fructose, unlike glucose:

• Absorbed by the intestine using other mechanisms than glucose
• Absorbed more slowly
• Does not cause significant release of insulin
• Gets into cells by other means of delivery than glucose
• When it enters the liver, it provides the production of glycerin, fat enhancer and its base
• Some people are unable to fully digest fructose when weight loss in a dosage over 5 0 grams (Note: this is very large quantity. This is found in 4 -5 apples. Although half a liter Corn syrup is about 45 grams of fructose.)
• Intake of both glucose and fructose speeds up absorption last one. This is one of the reasons why many sports drinks. contain a mixture of sugars.

Why is fructose important?

500 years ago, before the era of mass production of sugar, in the diet human fructose was at a minimum. She acted only in the composition ordinary food. Fruits, vegetables, grains, nuts / seeds and proteins contain limited amount of fructose and provided moderate quantity. When the food industry isolated fructose from sources like corn, and when it began to be added to a variety of processed foods, our fructose intake has increased.

In particular, it increased between nineteen 7 0 and twenty 00. Though many people associate fructose with fruits, most of it enters organisms from sources unrelated to them. Poll, conducted in the 19 90s, showed that a person consumes an average of ~ 80 grams of added sugar (which is ~ 3 twenty calories or fifteen % energy consumption); approximately half of this amount is fructose.

We get fructose not only from fruits, but also from sucrose (tableted sugar). Sucrose is a diasaccharide (two sugars), consisting of glucose + fructose. It is contained in processed foods including sweets, soft drinks, and practically any packaged “edible food substance”.

What you need to know

Our liver is the main center of fructose metabolism. AT liver, it is processed into glucose derivatives and stored in form of hepatic glycogen. The liver can process and stock up on glycogen a limited amount of fructose. The rest will be stored as fat, so large a single dose of fructose is likely to settle on your sides. it more pronounced in people with high blood lipids, insulin resistance or type 2 diabetes.

High fructose intake (unlike other dietary carbohydrates) can lead to the fact that leptin will not be produced in normal quantities.

Leptin – a hormone involved in long-term regulation energy balance. His level rises when we get enough calories / energy, and lowers if not, that way he lets us know when to start and finish eating.

Decreased leptin production associated with chronic high fructose intake may have a detrimental effect on regulation food intake, as well as the percentage of body fat. Other in words, with an excess of fructose, your brain will not send you “I have enough” signals, and you will continue to eat, although already got more than enough calories.

Since fructose lingers in the liver, it does not cause strong glycemic response. And if it can be good at eating whole fruits, if you eat added fructose-based sweeteners, reverse effect. Although on the glycemic scale of fructose is quite low and may help restore hepatic glycogen during physical activity, excessive consumption of it can lead to the formation of fat in liver, as well as an upset of energy balance and system regulating body fat. As a result, the consumption of large fructose-based sweeteners may result in obesity in the abdominal region, low levels of beneficial and high bad cholesterol in the blood, high triglycerides and loss of appetite control.

Clinical studies show that people in whose diet a lot of fruits (and vegetables), as a rule, are more slender, it is easier for them maintain a healthy weight and overall well-being than those who are not there.

Additionally

Worried about fruits? Relax. The experts concluded: “Consumption of fructose from naturally untreated sources food is low enough and hardly able to have negative metabolic effects. ”

Consuming fruits (and vegetables) can help prevent chronic diseases and even cancer.

Dr. Vioke, author of a study in which he is more than 10 years old tracked how fruit consumption affects adults, claims that you should not be afraid to gain excess weight from fruits: “There is no data that would indicate any significant set weight by eating large amounts of fruit. ”

If you are worried about your health and optimal physique, feel free to eat an orange, but better think twice before drink a bottle of orange juice, or, worse, a jar orange soda.

Conclusions and recommendations

When it comes to fructose, its source is important. Quite it is unlikely that by consuming fresh unprocessed fruits you earn energy imbalance and gain weight. However if fructose-rich in your diet regularly appears juices, sweeteners and energy-intensive foods, most likely you will come to to these problems. Our bodies have a long and lasting relationship with fruit, but this does not apply to fructose and sweeteners.

Eating fresh fruits in abundance will provide you with healthy substances and will help control the flow of energy. twenty 00 calories it is almost 3.5 kilograms of fruit. Usually a person does not eat more ~ ​​2.5 a kilogram of food per day.

Avoid foods / drinks with added sweeteners based on fructose, replacing sugar with it is generally a very bad idea. .

Ask yourself if my fruit abuse leads to digestive problems such as chronic diseases or weight gain?

Benefits and side effects of fructose

Do not really trust what is written on the label about sugar content in soda. Childhood Obesity Research Center states that there is a frightening difference between what is being said on the packaging and how it really is. Essentially in corn syrup with a high fructose content is 18% more than that what they write in the composition.

But let’s figure it out.

Fructose, glucose, and sucrose are types of simple sugars that naturally present in products. In fact, many people believe fructose is not a cause for concern because it is present in fruits. Consume fructose with fruit in acceptable, since with it you get more fiber, vitamins and minerals such as iron and calcium. They are helping process fructose in the body.

But if you isolate fructose and add it to food that does not contain fiber and vitamins, then we get to unhealthy territory. The body has to deal with too much the amount of fructose, without fiber, which allows you to soften it the effect.

You really can’t tell the difference between these three types of simple sugar. it tastes, but your body considers them to be completely different things. AT As a result, it treats each type very differently. it the discovery was made only a few years ago, in connection with which there are still misconceptions about the difference in the impact of various types of sugar.

Fructose

The whole path that fructose takes in the body different from glucose and sucrose. The only body cells that can cope with fructose, these are liver cells. Fructose produces much more fat than glucose, and scientists believe that the body perceives it more as fat than as a carbohydrate. In the cells liver it also turns into uric acid and free radicals. And this is bad (uric acid enhances inflammation, and free radicals cause cancer and other diseases).

Glucose

Your body loves glucose, its alternative name is blood sugar. The body uses glucose to produce energy and secretes insulin in response to an increase in blood sugar. Body processes the carbohydrates you consume into glucose, from which it turns out energy. But what if you don’t need energy right now? It is stored in muscle or liver cells for later.

Sucrose

Drain fructose and glucose together, what happens? Correctly, sucrose. This is another name for table sugar, which naturally present in fruits and vegetables. Body breaks it down into two components: fructose and glucose. When you eat sugar the body takes glucose and uses it to generate energy or stores in muscles or liver (see above). And if you are not quite already Exercise insanely hard, fructose goes straight to fat synthesis.

High fructose corn syrup

Since it is hotly debated by people associated with healthy food, I decided to include it in the list. Like sucrose, syrup – this is glucose + fructose, but it contains slightly more fructose (55%), than glucose (45%). In this sense, syrup is no more dangerous than “real” sugar, or sucrose. There is even a study on this subject.

Benefit

A few kind words about fructose.

Fructose proponents claim that since it’s natural, meaning useful. They also point to the fact that fructose is much sweeter than table sugar so in order to sweeten anything, it needs much less. As a result, for the same the level of sweet calories in the body receives less.

They also argue that the national obesity epidemic does not so associated with fructose as obesity is the result actions of many factors, and not just one. They lead several studies supporting this idea. We consume too much fructose. Much more than it would be necessary for just to make something sweet: we need it it was SUPER sweet and we will eat it in incredible quantities.

Side effects

If you are overweight, fructose is best avoided. Your the body is able to perfectly process all three types of sugar. But when you overload the system, then things get out of control.

In short: fructose turns into fat. Glucose – no.

And this process affects not only the liver. Scientists are exploring what large doses of fructose do with your brain.

Yale conducted a study where they observed that happened to 20 average adults who were given rich glucose or fructose drinks. Before and after admission, they passed MRI

Participants drinking sucrose drinks experienced a decrease activity of the center of hunger in the brain. Their brain signaled about “satiety.” Those who drank drinks with fructose, this is not was happening.

In short: Fructose affects the brain differently than sucrose and it can lead to overeating.

No kidding, the liver turns fructose into fat. When the liver cells break down fructose (if you remember, I mentioned above: this the only type of cells that can handle it), they synthesize fat stored in fat cells.

When you consume too much fructose, for the liver it becomes a toxin. This leads to insulin resistance and steatosis of the liver.

In short: For the liver, fructose is similar to alcohol: very toxic, if you consume too much.

Conclusion

Most people are better off avoiding fructose, especially if they are overweight. Since your body perceives fructose like fat, processes it in the liver and synthesizes new fat, trouble happens. Obesity is only part of the problem. Harvard School public health published an excellent article where presented the results of an in-depth analysis of the danger of steatosis.

Fructose in foods

Fructose-rich foods include many sweetened drinks and snacks, fruits, especially in concentrated form of juices or in dried fruits, and honey (see table below). Chains of fructose molecules, fructooligosaccharides or fructans in high concentrations present in some vegetables and grains, which often causes an allergic reaction in people with fructose intolerance.

Fructose or fructans contain many foods, and despite a general decrease in the amount of fructose in the diet, it is important to monitor quality diet to keep you in control.

To achieve this, seek help from an experienced a nutritionist who is competent in matters of fructose intolerance. It is also often useful to drink vitamins.

In case of hereditary fructose intolerance may it is necessary to exclude sucrose (which, when broken down, gives fructose and glucose).

A sweetener such as tagatose is processed into fructose and is present in drinks (non-alcoholic, instant, teas, fruit or vegetable juices), breakfast cereals, cereal bars, confectionery and chewing gum, sweets and fillings, jams, marmalades and diet foods. Levulose and invert sugar on the labels means the presence of fructose.

Fructose is more easily tolerated in the presence of glucose. It means, that for foods containing as much glucose as fructose, the body is more likely to respond normally (in the table, F / G value, which should be less than 1).

In some foods, regardless of glucose, also naturally there is a lot of fructose, i.e. more than 3 grams per serving, or more than 0.5 grams of fructans per serving.

These are two criteria that are considered most useful when selection of candidate products for removal from the diet.

According to these criteria, the following products are most likely will be poorly tolerated and should be excluded from the diet or consumed in limited quantities:

• Fruits and fruit juices: apple, cherry, grapes, guava, lychee, mango, melon, watermelon, orange, papaya, pear, persimmon, pineapple, quince, carambola.
• Most dried fruits, including currants, dates, figs, raisins, even if it’s a fitness bar.
• Processed fruits: barbecue / grill sauce, chutney, canned fruits (often make in peach juice) plum sauce, sweet and sour sauce, tomato paste.
• Berries in large quantities: blueberries, raspberries.
• Very high sucrose sweets, foods and drinks (table sugar) and fructose corn syrup.
• Honey, maple syrup.
• Large quantities of vegetables (containing fructans or inulin: artichoke, asparagus, beans, broccoli, cabbage, chicory, leaves dandelion, garlic, leek, onion, peanuts, tomato, zucchini.
• Sweet wines: e.g. dessert wines, butcher, port wine, sherry.
• Wheat and rye products (with fructan content): flour, pasta, bread, wheat bran, whole cereal breakfasts.
• Wholemeal foods in large quantities.
• Since people with fructose intolerance react poorly to sorbitol (code E420) and xylitol (E967), it is better to check whether the following foods are undesirable symptoms: diet / light drinks and drinks for diabetics, chewing gum and diet sweets / candies without sugar, stone fruits (e.g. apricots, cherries, quinces, prunes and peaches), pears, dried fruits (eg, apple, apricot, pigs, figs, nectarine, peach, plum, raisins). Beer in large quantities can also cause problems.

Examples of well-tolerated fruits and vegetables are:

Eggplant, banana, Brussels sprouts, carrots, clementine / mandarin, corn, cucumber, fennel, grapefruit, lemon, potato, pumpkin, radish, red currant, rhubarb, pickled cabbage, spinach and sweet potatoes / pits.

In case of multiple intolerances of carbohydrates / sugar, may FODMAP intolerance (fermentable oligo-, di-, monosaccharides and polyols), which requires an overall reduction in content FODMAP for at least a trial period of 4-6 weeks and with diet monitoring. For a large group of patients, however, this is not necessary, as individual intolerances are more common.

The following information contains details regarding the reduction. the amount of fructose in the diet. However, to maintain a healthy and A balanced diet is recommended to consult a nutritionist.

The table below shows the fructose and glucose content, as well as their ratio in the most common products. The numbers are rounded, therefore, discrepancies between the values ​​of fructose and glucose and their ratio. Keep in mind that when comparing tables different sources, certain variations are possible. It’s connected with differences in measurement methods, actual sugar content in different types of fruits, as well as ripening and growth conditions. Therefore, these tables should always be considered as rough recommendations.

Berries

First step: look at the ratio of fructose and glucose (value F / G), it should be less than 1 (i.e., the fructose in the product is less, than glucose).

Second step: the absolute fructose content in the product should not exceed 3 grams per serving. Small portions allowed border products, but better not on an empty stomach.

Content per 100 g of product (in grams):

Berries	Fructose (F)	Glucose (G)	F / G ratio
Blackberry Fresh	3	3	1.1
Blackberry jam	20	22	0.9
Blueberries	2	2	1.4
Blueberries, fresh	3	2	1.4
Blueberries, jam	20	22	0.9
Cranberries	21	21	1
Fresh cranberries	3	3	1
Cranberries, jam	20	22	0.9
Black currant, fresh	3	3	1
Currant red, fresh	2	2	1.2
Gooseberry, fresh	3	3	1.1
Raspberries	7	6	1
Raspberry jam	14	17	0.8
Raspberries, fresh	2	2	1.2
Strawberry jam	19	22	0.9
Fresh strawberries	2	2	1.1

Dried fruits

Content per 100 g of product (in grams):

Dried fruits	Fructose (F)	Glucose (G)	F / G ratio
The apples	29th	10	2.9
Dates	25	25	1.0
Figs	24	26	0.9
Plums	9	sixteen	0.6
Raisins	32	31	1.0

Honey and fruits

Content per 100 g of product (in grams):

Honey, fruits	Fructose (F)	Glucose (G)	F / G ratio
Bananas	3	4	1
Sour cherry	4	5	0.8
Sweet cherry	6	7	0.9
Cherry, jam	22	28	0.8
Grapefruit fresh	2	2	0.9
Grapefruit juice, fresh	2	2	1
Honey	39	34	1.1
Kiwi	5	4	1.1
Lychee	3	5	0.6
Fresh tangerines	1	2	0.8
Tangerines juice	3	2	2
Fresh mango	3	1	3.1
Melon	1	1	2.1
Watermelon	4	2	2
Orange	3	2	1.1
Fresh orange juice	3	3	1.2
Orange marmalade	15	17	0.9
Pineapple can	5	5	1
Fresh pineapple	2	2	1.2
Pineapple juice	3	3	1
Fresh plum	2	3	0.6
Pink petals	7	7	1
Cannon	8	7	1.1
Apple fresh	6	2	2.8
Apple juice	6	2	2.7
Applesauce	8	4	1.8
Apple, jam	27	26	1
Peach, fresh	1	1	1
Peach can	4	4	1
Grapes, fresh	7	7	1
Grape juice	8	8	1

Vegetables and mushrooms

Content per 100 g of product (in grams):

Vegetables, mushrooms	Fructose (F)	Glucose (G)	F / G ratio
Artichoke	2	1	2.3
Tomato juice	2	1	1.1
Fresh tomato	1	1	1.3
Turnip	2	2	0.8
Lemon	1	1	1
Lemon juice	1	1	1
Pumpkin	1	2	0.9
Green Beans	1	1	1.4
Carrot	1	1	0.9
Cabbage	1	2-0.6	0.8-1.5
Leek	1	1	1.3
Whole rye bread	1	1	1.5
Fennel	1	1	0.8
Broccoli	1	1	1.1
Eggplant	1	1	1
Zucchini	1	1	1.1
Cucumbers	1	1	1
Asparagus	1	0.8	1.2
Okra	1	1	1.1
Potatoes	0.2	0.2	0.7
Sweet potato	0.7	0.7	0.8
Papaya	0.3	1	0.3
Salad	0.2	0.4	0.6
Spinach	0.1	0.1	0.9
Mushrooms	0.1-0.3	0.1-0.3	0.7-0.9

Helpful information

Sweeteners: aspartame, acesulfame K, saccharin, cyclamate, stevia and thaumatin do not cause problems for people with intolerance fructose, including hereditary.

Sorbitol decreases and glucose increases tolerance fructose.

Glucose (e.g. glucose / dextrose-containing drugs, drinks, syrups) can be consumed with products containing fructose to increase tolerance.

Fructose-containing foods are best tolerated by small ones. in portions throughout the day and not on an empty stomach.

About 30% of people with fructose intolerance also suffer from lactose intolerance. They are likely to be sensitive to the entire FODMAP group.