The SHOCKING Truth About Fruit

We all want to live a healthier and more vibrant life, and there is a lot of agreement about many of the things we should do to achieve that.
But there is a LOT of confusion as well.
Take for instance Fruit.
There is actually a raging controversy about fruit in the optimum health field.
Many people are saying that fruit is BAD for us.
It is claimed that fruit is

Too sweet
Too hybridised
Contributes to Diabetes
Leads to High Blood Sugar

And worst of all...

Feeds Cancer.

So, that would stop you right in the middle of eating a banana, wouldn’t it!

And in fact, it is not just one or two people saying this. For instance, the Hippocrates Institute, where I did my training says exactly all of the above, and advocates limiting your fruit consumption to 15% of your calories per day. That means about one piece of fruit per day.

So, is fruit really so bad, and if it is, what then should we eat?

Well, let’s first take a look at the case FOR fruit.

1.	Fruit tastes good. In fact, fruit is one of the very few foods that taste great and are edible in their natural raw state. You cannot say that for meat, or dairy or grain foods. (You wouldn’t eat a freshly killed animal, nor would you suckle a cow, nor would you eat raw wheat).
2.	Fruit digests really well for us. Contains all the enzymes needed for digestion, and is providing energy within minutes of eating it. Concentrated foods like meat, dairy and grains need hours to digest.
3.	Fruit is the preferred food of our nearest animal relatives. The bonobo chimpanzee is 98.4% the same as you or I, and eats primarily fruit, and fresh greens.
4.	Fruit is the food we can easily eat. From our stereoscopic vision, to our peeling hands, to our sliching and grinding teeth, we are fruit eating machines! We don’t have the claws for meat, or the stomachs for grains.
5.	Fruit is slow release energy. It is buffered with pure water and fibre which helps to avoid sudden increases in blood sugar.
6.	Fruit contains the vitamins and minerals required to properly release the carbohydrate energy.

So those are some of the reasons why fruit is a good thing.
But, regardless, fruit is still getting a bad press in some quarters.

Indeed, people suffering from diverse complaints like diabetes, candida, digestion problems, and cancer, are being told to eat little, or even NO fruit at all.

I was frankly not comfortable with that, and I have never recommended eating no fruit.

But then I got the greatest clarity on the issue when it was brought to my attention that:

1.	We all need calories every day.
2.	An optimum diet will naturally exclude refined carbohydrates like grains, breads, pasta, rice. (Despite what many people may say about whole grains, the fact is that grass seeds are not natural or healthy foods. They are impossible to digest in their natural form and must be processed in some way, and they cause acid in the body).
3.	The question arises....where will you get your calories?

You see, there are only four possible sources of calories.

1.	Alcohol. Frankly for your optimum health and your survival you should avoid alcohol. You don’t need it.
2.	Protein. It is conclusively proven that we only need about 6% of our calories from Protein, and any more than 10% from protein is inviting trouble.
3.	Fat. While we need a certain small amount of GOOD fats, there is general agreement that fats should never be above 25% of calories, and ideally 15% of your calories.
4.	Carbohydrate. Despite the nonsense zero carb fad diets, the fact is our bodies run on carbohydrates. You cannot think, or move without the cellular energy that is best provided by carbohydrates.

Our Modern industrialised Standard Affluent Diet (S.A.D.) is way too high in protein and fat. Excessive consumption of both of which are directly linked to diabetes, heart disease, and cancer.

So, the question is, if you limit or exclude fruit, where will you get your calories.

To answer this question I did a detailed examination of my food intake, with SHOCKING results.

First, I listed a typical daily intake of healthy foods, but LIMITING fruit to just two pieces per day.

To reach my goal of 3000 calories, (I’m quite active so I need some more calories than if I was more sedentary) I included the following:

NO bread, meat, dairy or alcohol as these are poor foods.

I specified one banana, one apple, two dates, plus a selection of greens (everyone is in agreement on the benefits of raw green foods). This is already far more sweet fruit than allowed by the no-fruit advocates.

The Problem I found at this point is that my calories were just a few hundred.

So I added a typical selection of healthy high calorie foods, including

3 avocados, 1 cup quinoa seed, 5 tablespoons olive oil for dressings etc., plus an handful each of flax seeds, walnuts and almonds.

On the face of it I had achieved 3000 calories on a diet limiting fruit intake.

But then I got the SHOCK of my life.

My fat intake for that day would be an incredible 58% of my calories from fat.

That is a disastrous amount of fat to consume, no matter how healthy the fats are. Fats are very slow to digest and actually block the absorbtion of sugars. Which actually leads to many of the problems blamed on fruit! Indeed, if you are not feeling your very best, it may well be FAT, not Fruit, that is the culprit!

The solution for me was to greatly increase my intake of fruit as follows:

8 bananas, 2 cups strawberries, 5 dates, 3 apples, 2 oranges, 1 cup grapes. With plenty of fresh greens of course.

I also included 1 cup quinoa, plus 1 avocado plus a fistful of flaxseed/linseed, for good fats.

The result was 3000 calories, but now calories from fats were reduced to just 16%.

The proof they say is in the eating! I have experience of both ways of eating and I can say without a doubt that I feel by far better when I limit fats and take generous amounts of fruit.

Remember to take LOADS of greens, including greens in your fruit smoothies. And your daily 2 glasses of green juice.

Also eat greens after fruit to cleanse your mouth of acids. And rinse also for the same reason. Do not eat dried fruit as a snack! Very bad for teeth. I include a little in the smoothie. But even then rinse well afterwards.

Warm regards

Cathal Spelman

For more information and help on achieving your own Real Healthy Lifestyle, visit..
www.realhealthylifestyle.com/tenyears.html

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