Fruits are considered one of the healthiest foods by many people, with some consuming several times more fruit than their staple foods. But did you know that there are rules to eating fruit? Otherwise, not only will you fail to achieve health benefits, but you may also bring on various diseases.
1. Avoid eating fruit immediately after a meal
Eating fruit right after a meal will not aid digestion; instead, it can cause bloating and constipation. Therefore, it is best to eat fruit 2 hours after a meal or 1 hour before a meal.
2. Avoid eating fruit without rinsing your mouth
Some fruits contain various fermentable sugars that are highly corrosive to teeth. If you don't rinse your mouth after eating, fruit residue in the mouth can easily lead to cavities.
3. Avoid eating too much fruit
Excessive fruit consumption can lead to copper deficiency in the body, which in turn increases cholesterol in the blood and can cause coronary heart disease. Therefore, it is not advisable to eat too much fruit in a short period.
Mixed Fruit Salad
4. Avoid eating unhygienic fruit
Eating fruit that is starting to rot, or consuming fruits like strawberries, mulberries, and sliced watermelon that are not protected from dust and flies and have not been thoroughly washed and disinfected, can easily lead to digestive infectious diseases such as dysentery, typhoid, and acute gastroenteritis.
5. Avoid disinfecting fruit with alcohol
Although alcohol can kill bacteria on the surface of fruit, it can alter the fruit's color, aroma, and taste. The reaction between alcohol and the acids in fruit can also reduce the fruit's nutritional value.
6. Avoid eating raw fruit with the peel on
Some people believe that the peel contains more vitamins than the flesh, so they eat fruit with the peel on. However, when fruits suffer from pests and diseases, pesticides are often used to kill them. These pesticides can penetrate and remain in the waxy layer of the peel, meaning the pesticide residue in the peel is much higher than in the flesh.
7. Avoid using a kitchen knife to peel fruit
Kitchen knives often come into contact with meat, fish, and vegetables, which can carry parasites or parasite eggs to the fruit, causing parasitic infections in people. Moreover, the rust on the knife and the tannic acid in apples can react chemically, worsening the apple's color, aroma, and taste.
8. Most fruits are "cooling" in nature and are better eaten in the afternoon
Some people are accustomed to eating fruit right after waking up. In fact, most fruits are "cooling" foods, and consuming them on an empty stomach can irritate the digestive system. It is best to eat fruit in the afternoon around 3 or 4 PM, which is beneficial for the absorption and utilization of nutrients.
9. Imported fruits are not necessarily safer than local ones
Many consumers believe that "imported fruits" are safer. In reality, China's fruit quality and safety mechanisms are relatively sound. Imported fruits travel long distances, which often requires more preservatives and fungicides for preservation and storage, making them potentially more dangerous than local fruits.
10. Don't blindly pursue the appearance of fruit
Many people believe that brightly colored, perfectly shaped, and large-sized fruits are the best, but this can lead them into the trap of unscrupulous merchants who use illegal methods to fake the appearance of fruit.
Fruit Pizza
11. High-calorie fruit cannot replace vegetables
Fruits and vegetables are both essential and cannot replace each other. Although they are both plants, their compositions are quite different. Some minerals found in vegetables are not present in fruits. If you only eat fruit, you may lack nutrients like folic acid. Moreover, fruits contain calories, and eating too much can lead to obesity, which is especially bad for diabetics. Additionally, eating too few vegetables can lead to a lack of fiber, which may cause constipation. Fruits, on the other hand, are mainly eaten raw and have high water content.
12. Synthetic vitamin C cannot replace fruit
The natural vitamin C found in fruits and vegetables has an undeniable advantage over synthetic vitamin C: in many fruits and vegetables, vitamin C exists in a combined state with another substance, vitamin P. In the body, vitamin P helps vitamin C to be effective. Synthetic vitamin C, however, is a pure pharmaceutical preparation and is far less effective than natural vitamin C. Furthermore, taking vitamin C tablets often involves large doses, and long-term use can lead to the formation of large amounts of oxalic acid in the body, which is a material basis for kidney stones. The vitamin C in fruits and vegetables, however, does not cause excessively high levels of oxalic acid in the urine.
13. Obese people should avoid eating large amounts of fruit
If you only eat fruit, be careful of developing diseases common in overweight people, such as high blood sugar or high blood lipids. This is because fruits are rich in sugars. If you eat too many sugary foods and get little exercise, you can develop high blood sugar or high blood lipids. This is something that obese people, those with diabetes, hyperlipidemia, or fatty liver, as well as people trying to lose weight by only eating fruit, and pregnant women should pay special attention to.
14. Fruit should not be juiced
Nowadays, more and more households are buying juicers, thinking that drinking fresh fruit juice is both delicious and convenient. However, nutrition experts remind that, except for people with dental problems, fruit is best not to be juiced; eating it directly is more nutritious.
This is because drinking fruit juice reduces the intake of fiber, which is abundant in fruit. This fiber has health benefits such as preventing and reducing diabetes and cardiovascular diseases, and it can effectively stimulate intestinal motility and promote bowel movements. Additionally, eating whole fruit easily creates a feeling of fullness, while drinking juice can lead to unknowingly consuming too many calories and sugars, increasing the risk of disease.
15. Buy pre-cut fruit sparingly
Fruits are a major source of vitamin C, which is easily oxidized in the air. High temperatures and sunlight can cause it to be lost. For pre-peeled and cut fresh fruit, the nutritional content may be reduced. The UK Consumers' Association conducted a study on the vitamin C content of pre-packaged, cut vegetables and fruits sold in supermarkets and found that in 13 samples, 4 had half the vitamin C content listed in reference books.
16. Improperly handled pre-cut fruit is easily contaminated by bacteria
The surface of fruit can easily be contaminated by pollutants, chemicals, animal waste, or bacteria like Salmonella. If fresh fruit has not been disinfected, its surface may carry Salmonella. When a knife is used to cut unwashed fresh fruit, bacteria from the contaminated peel can be transferred to the edible part. If cut fruit is left at room temperature for too long, bacteria can multiply.
17. Frozen fruit can produce toxic substances
Nutrition experts warn that when fruit freezes, it is more likely to produce nitrites. Consuming excessive nitrites can cause symptoms such as headaches, dizziness, nausea, and vomiting. It is crucial for consumers to learn how to identify if fruit has been frozen. Oranges and tangerines, for example, become bitter after freezing because the oils from the peel seep into the flesh. The surface of frozen fruit generally turns black.
Fruit, Purple Sweet Potato, and Yogurt
18. Unripe bananas can worsen constipation
Bananas are rich in dietary fiber, a large portion of which is not digested or absorbed but can increase the volume of stool and promote intestinal peristalsis. At the same time, bananas have a sugar content of over 15% and contain a large amount of water-soluble plant fiber, which can cause the secretion of hypertonic gastrointestinal fluids, thus drawing water to the solid part of the stool and making it softer and easier to pass. However, these effects are only present in fully ripe bananas. Unripe bananas may have the opposite effect. They contain more tannic acid, which is less soluble and has an astringent effect on the digestive tract, inhibiting gastrointestinal fluid secretion and motility. Consuming too many can cause or worsen constipation.
19. Be aware of allergies when eating mangoes
Mangoes contain large amounts of fruit acids, amino acids, and proteins, many of which contain irritating substances. When these come into contact with human skin, they can cause allergic reactions, and in severe cases, redness and swelling. However, not everyone who eats mangoes will have an allergic reaction, and reactions vary from person to person. Some people will react on the same day, while others may not show symptoms for two or three days.
20. Eating too many oranges can turn your skin yellow
Oranges contain carotene. If you consume large amounts of citrus fruits (eating more than 1 to 2 jin per day) or carrots, the liver cannot metabolize the carotene into vitamin A in a timely manner. This causes a sharp increase in carotene levels in the blood, leading to the deposition of yellow pigment in the skin and tissues, which results in carotenemia and causes the skin to turn yellow.
Fruit purple potato yogurt
Pork onions
Red-tree souffle ball