Introduction
Fructose, or “fruit sugar”, is one of the three most common natural monosaccharides. The other two are glucose and galactose. As its name implies, fructose is found in almost all fruits.Fructose is the sweetest tasting carbohydrate and is found in many fruits and vegetables.
It's also added to many processed foods and beverages. It's used in many foods, including canned fruits, jams, paste candies, cakes, and soft drinks.
Consuming too much fructose can be bad for your liver. It can lead to fatty liver disease, which can cause liver inflammation and damage to liver.
Excess fructose thus adversely affects the liver:
The liver uses excess fructose to create fat, a process called lipogenesis.
Fructose can disrupt the epithelial barrier that protects the liver from bacterial toxins in the gut.
This can lead to a leaky gut, which can exacerbate the lipogenic process in the liver.
The metabolism of fructose can lead to a fall in ATP, which can lead to oxidative stress, inhibition of protein synthesis, and mitochondrial dysfunction.
Fructose from whole fruits is generally safe and healthy, but added fructose can be harmful. Fructose in fruit is generally safe for most people, but high amounts of fructose from other sources can be harmful to the liver.
High-fructose corn syrup isn't necessarily worse for us than table sugar.fructose is considered relatively difficult to metabolize compared to glucose, primarily because the body can only metabolize significant amounts of fructose in the liver, unlike glucose which can be used by most cells in the body; this unique metabolic pathway can lead to issues when consuming excessive fructose, potentially contributing to metabolic disorders if not managed properly.
In contrast to glucose, fructose cannot be directly metabolized by most cells of our body, and needs first to be converted into lactate, glucose or fatty acids.
Fructose is a sugar found naturally in fruits, fruit juices, some vegetables and honey. Table sugar, called sucrose, also has fructose. High-fructose corn syrup is a sweetener that is in many processed foods and drinks. In these forms, fructose sugars can be part of a nutritious diet. However, fructose is also a component of high fructose corn syrup, which manufacturers make from corn starch and add to foods such as sodas and candies.
Fructose in fruits is not harmful but when added as suppliment in form of fructose corn syrup in certain foods it will be difficult for liver to metabolize extra load.
Fatty liver disease is a condition where fat builds up in the liver. It can be caused by a number of factors, including obesity, high alcohol intake, and diabetes.
Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD): Caused by being overweight or obese, high blood sugar, high cholesterol, or high blood pressure .
A moderate intake of up to 50 grams of fructose per day is generally considered safe.
However, the amount of fructose in the average diet has increased significantly in recent decades.
Fructose intake has changed in recent years.
In past, people consumed about 16–20 grams of fructose per day.
Today, people consume much more fructose, sometimes as much as 85–100 grams per day.
The health risks of high fructose intake:
High fructose intake has been linked to metabolic syndrome, obesity, and liver disease.
High fructose intake has also been linked to an unhealthy lifestyle, including smoking, alcohol consumption, and low physical activity.
Limit your intake of processed foods and beverages that contain added sugars including fructose.
According to NCBI. Consuming more than 100 grams per day can lead to negative health effects.
Consuming more than 100 grams of fructose per day can lead to adverse effects on body fat and metabolic markers.
A high fructose diet can cause weight gain and metabolic disorders.
The amount of fructose in the US population has increased significantly in the last three decades. This is due to increased consumption of processed foods that contain added sugars.
Many fruits are high in fructose, including apples, bananas, and watermelon.
Fruits high in fructose
Bananas
A medium banana contains about 5.7 grams of fructose. Bananas are also a good source of fiber, vitamin C, and potassium.
Apples
The amount of fructose in apples varies depending on the variety. Apples have a high fructose content and an unfavorable fructose/glucose ratio.
Watermelon
A medium wedge of watermelon contains about 17 grams of sugar. Watermelon is also high in water and electrolytes.
Other fruits high in fructose
mangos, pears, berries, melon, kiwi, oranges, and plums.
Considerations for fructose intolerance
People who are intolerant to fructose should limit foods that are high in fructose, such as juices, apples, pears, and watermelon. Some people may be able to tolerate foods with lower levels of fructose if they eat them in small amounts with meals.
Fructose is only harmful in large amounts, and it's difficult to get excessive amounts of fructose from fruit. For most people, the amount of sugar in fruit is safe to eat. Eat fruits in moderation.One may tapke 3 fruits per day.Diabetics should avoid sugary fruits such as mango, banana, chikoo and grapes or may eat in small quantities.,
High-fructose corn syrup (HFCS) is a sweetener made from corn starch. As in the production of conventional corn syrup, the starch is broken down into glucose by enzymes. To make HFCS, the corn syrup is further processed by D-xylose isomerase to convert some of its glucose into fructose.
All sweetener products derived from raw materials involve similar processing steps of pulping, hydrolysis, enzyme treatment, and filtration, among other common steps of sweetener manufacturing from natural sources. In the contemporary process to make HFCS, an "acid-enzyme" step is used in which the corn starch solution is acidified to digest the existing carbohydrates, then enzymes are added to further metabolize the corn starch and convert the resulting sugars to their constituents of fructose and glucose.
As of 2022, there is no scientific consensus that fructose or HFCS has any impact on cardiometabolic markers (heart) when substituted for sucrose.As in the production of conventional corn syrup, the starch is broken down into glucose by enzymes. To make HFCS, the corn syrup is further processed by D-xylose isomerase to convert some of its glucose into fructose..
High Fructose fruits '
Many fruits are high in fructose, including apples, bananas, and watermelon.
Here's a list of high fructose fruit to know.
Apples: 12.5 g. ...
Grapes: 12.3 g. ...
Pears: 11.4 g. ...
Raisins: 9.9 g. ...
Blueberries: 7.4 g. ...
Bananas: 5.7 g. ...
Tomato Paste: 3.8 g.
Apples are indeed high in fructose, which can be problematic for individuals with fructose malabsorption or intolerance.
Bananas and mangos are equally high in fructose, but mangos have less glucose, so they usually cause more problems.
Jackfruit: 15.2 g. Jackfruit has become incredibly popular in recent years as a plant-based meat alternative as it has a texture remarkably similar to pulled meat. ...
Honey, the sweet liquid produced by honeybees (Apis mellifera), is composed of about 40% fructose, in contrast to the 50% fructose in table sugar and 40-90% fructose in high-fructose corn syrup.
People who have fructose intolerance should limit high-fructose foods. These include juices, apples, pears, watermelon, asparagus and peas. Some people can tolerate foods with lower fructose levels if they eat them in small amounts with meals.
Papaya is not high in fructose and is considered a low-sugar fruit.
It is better to consume low fructose fruits..
List of some Low-fructose fruits:
Limes: zero grams fructose.
Lemons (1 lemon): 0.6 grams of fructose.
Cranberries (1 cup): 0.7 grams of fructose.
Passion fruit (1 passion fruit): 0.9 grams of fructose.
Guava (1 guava): 1.1 grams of fructose.
Prunes (1 medium-sized prune): 1.2 grams of fructose.
Apricot (1 apricot): 1.3 grams of fructose.
*Drinks that contain fructose
are Soda: Coca-Cola, Sprite, Mountain Dew, and A&W Root Beer contain high fructose corn syrup (HFCS)
*Fruit juices: Grape juice, pomegranate juice, and apple juice contain fructose
*Sweetened teas: Many sweetened teas contain fructose
*Other foods and drinks that contain fructose:
Candy, such as Hershey's Cookies 'N' Creme Bars, Reese's Take 5, and Baby Ruth bars
Ice cream and ice pops, such as Original Double Pop Popsicle and Popsicle's SpiderMan Frozen Bars
Bread and crackers, such as Ritz Crackers, Club Crackers, and Wonder bread
*Pancake syrup and dessert syrup, such as Pearl Milling Original Style pancake syrup, Hershey's Chocolate Syrup, and Smucker's Caramel Sundae Syrup
*Dried fruit, such as sweetened cranberries
% of fructose in soda drinks:
Pepsi 60.00%
Sprite 60.00 %
Mountain Dew 59.48 %
Coca-Cola 59.41 %
It can be observed that soda drinks contain more than 50% of fructose.
Tip. Diet drinks with zero calories, such as Diet Coke, Diet Pepsi and Coke Zero, all contain artificial sweeteners instead of fructose.
About sucrose:
There are many different types of sugars, the most common of which is sucrose, otherwise known as table sugar. Sucrose is the form of sugar that comes from sugar cane or sugar beet, and which is used to make food sweet.
Sucrose is a molecule composed of two monosaccharides, namely glucose and fructose.
When we consume sucrose, it is broken down by sucrase into equal parts glucose and fructose. Glucose ultimately gets taken up by our cells with the help of insulin, while fructose is handled in the liver and does not need insulin to be absorbed.
Sucrase is an enzyme that breaks down sucrose into glucose and fructose. Sucrase is a digestive enzyme present in the intestinal mucosa of animals.
In order to protect your liver
avoid consuming excess amount of fruits , fruit juices,soda drinks and food products containing High fructose corn syrup.
Moderation is key.Any thing in excess can be poison..
Information complied by Dr.Bhairavsinh Raol
