Undoubtedly, you’ve heard about the phrase: “An apple a day keeps the doctor away”. Okay, that’s not entirely true but it isn’t entirely false, either. Fruit, in general, not just apples, is very healthy and extremely beneficial for our metabolism. That said, fruit should be an essential part of everyone’s diet plan. The main reason is that fruit contains high levels of fibers, nutrients, minerals, and vitamins our bodies need to function properly. Other than that – they taste great. With that in mind, here are a few reasons why you need to eat fruit.
Your body needs energy
Fruit is a healthy source of sugar, which is the primary source of energy for our bodies. That said, fruit contains both glucose and fructose, as well as the combination of both called sucrose. However, sugars in fruit are not packed as densely as they are in processed foods, which means your body can process these sugars properly and without huge spikes in blood sugar levels which occurs when digesting candy. This is vital for people with type 2 diabetes as they can consume fruit in moderation without any risks. Of course, the healthiest fruits contain less sugar than not-as-healthy fruits but the amount of sugar in fruit, in general, isn’t as nearly as high as the amount of sugar found in processed foods.
Your body needs antioxidants
Antioxidants are molecules that are commonly found in fruit, vegetables, and other plant-based foods. These molecules fight off the free radicals our bodies produce, which can do a lot of harm if they are left unchecked. Of course, our bodies have their own ways of dealing with free radicals but it doesn’t hurt to help them out every now and then.
When it comes to free radicals, they are linked to a number of diseases including heart disease, diabetes, and even cancer. But that being said, they are also beneficial to our bodies. For instance, our immune cells use free radicals to fight off diseases. Therefore, maintaining a healthy balance of free radicals is required in which fruit can help out immensely. For instance, vitamins C and E are powerful antioxidants and are commonly found in fruit.
Your body needs nutrients
Fruit is rich with various nutrients and we normally can’t find such nutrients in non-plant-based foods, such as meat, eggs, or dairy. For example, fruit is low on sodium, fat, and calories and it doesn’t contain cholesterol at all. Also, fruit has plenty of potassium, dietary fiber, vitamin C, and folic acid, which are all nutrients that are commonly under-consumed. All the nutrients found in fruit can help boost our immune system, prevent diseases, such as cancer, help form red blood cells, and provide many more benefits.
Your body needs fiber
Our digestive system contains around 500 different species of bacteria also known as the “gut flora”. This isn’t a bad thing as our bodies have a mutually beneficial relationship with these bacteria. We feed them and provide them with a place to live, while they do stuff our bodies can’t do on their own. That said, those bacteria need to be fed, which is where the fiber comes in. The majority of proteins, carbs and fats get absorbed before they get to the large intestine, whereas our bodies can’t digest fiber so it provides a great source of food for the bacteria in the large intestine. By feeding our friendly bacteria they produce healthy nutrients in return, thus helping our bodies maintain a happy digestive system and ward off diseases. The only side effect of this is that the process can sometimes make you a bit gassy which is a byproduct of bacteria fermenting fibers.
Fruit is a healthy food group that should be consumed on a daily basis. Aside from providing us with extremely important nutrients and health benefits, fruit also tastes amazing and you can use it to make smoothies. Do you really need a better reason to eat fruit than smoothies?