Are You Eating Too Much Sugar From Fruit?

Now that sugar will be even more detailed on packaged food labels, what about foods that don’t carry a label?

Sugar is a topic that has been the center of a lot of attention lately; most recently for it’s updated appearance on the nutrition facts panel – added sugars will be called out separately from total sugars. Health research also has sugar front and center, whether it’s one of the main culprits of food addiction, the spark for inflammation in the body, cancer, obesity, etc., sugar is a hot topic and it’s not necessarily all so sweet. 

So, now that sugar will be even more detailed on packaged food labels, what about foods that don’t carry a label? What about fruit? Do you make fruit salad or smoothies with a couple of pieces of fruit and wonder how much sugar you’re consuming? Here is your guide to sugar in fruit so you can be a more informed eater. 

3 ounce servings of each:
Grapes: 13.8 grams
Mango: 12.7 grams
Cherries: 10.9 grams
Banana: 10.4 grams (1 large banana has 17 grams)
Apple: 8.8 grams (1 large apple has 23 grams)
Pineapple: 8.4 grams
Pear: 8.4 grams
Plum: 8.4 grams
Orange: 8 grams (1 large Navel orange 23 grams)
Apricot: 7.8 grams
Peach: 7 grams (1 large has 15 grams)
Cantaloupe: 6.7 grams (1 cup has 13 grams)
Watermelon: 5.3 grams (1 large slice has18 grams)
Strawberries: 4 grams
Raspberries: 3.7 grams 

The average American consumes over 130 pounds of sugar a year. Kids consume about 300 calories from added sugars daily, and that’s way over the American Heart Association’s recommended intake of roughly 6 and 9 teaspoons for women and men respectively, or approximately 25 and 37 grams per day. For reference one 12-ounce can of regular soda contains eight teaspoons of sugar, and one teaspoon of sugar is equivalent to 4 grams.  

Eating fruit is a great way to get valuable vitamins and minerals, but you can also consume too much as the sugar content can really add up. Use the above list to inform your portion sizes and smoothie recipes!