When to Eat Fruit

Fruit is nutritious; it provides the human body with necessary vitamins and minerals and should be a part of any healthy diet. Most of us know this, but what we don't know is that many of us are eating it at the wrong time. Did you know that when you eat your fruit will help to determine how much benefit you get out of eating the fruit?

The best time to eat fruit is as a snack when it will not be competing with other foods or with a meal. This makes it a perfect snack food. For example, eat breakfast and then a couple of hours later eat a banana. When you eat fruit following a meal you are not fully utilizing all of its nutrients.

Fruit contains simple sugars that don't require digestion so fruit doesn't stay in the stomach for a long time. Other types of food require a much longer time to digest so they sit in the stomach for much longer periods of time. This means that fruits don't mix well with other foods. When you eat a meal and then eat fruit the fruit is blocked by the other food and can't exit the body as quickly. As the fruit is waiting to exit it begins to ferment and the other foods are turning to acid which causes the fruit to mix with the other foods and acids which can produce gas and other digestive problems. This can cause bloating, burping and other not so pleasant side effects which are then typically blamed on the specific fruit eaten. This would not happen had the fruit been eaten on an empty stomach.

This is why you should make a point of eating your fruits at snack times on an empty stomach instead of with your meals. Even eating your fruit before a meal is better than eating it after the meal. Eating raw fruit is the best way to receive all the nutrients possible. Fruit that has been cooked or heated will not be a good source of nutrients because cooking it destroys all of its vitamins. It might still taste good but it won't be nearly as good for you.

You should be eating between 2-5 fruits a day. When you eat the right number of servings at the appropriate times daily the fruit will help to detoxify your system, supply you with energy, and will help in weight loss and other life activities.

Source: EzineArticles

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