Fruits That’ll Help You Lose Weight

Today we’re looking at the best fruits for weight loss. One of the biggest reasons people who are on a diet avoid fruits altogether is because of the fructose or the fruit sugars that they contain. People wonder if fruit sugar bad for you and whether they make you fat?

Well, unless you’re on really low carb diet, you don’t have feel restricted when it comes to eating fruit. On the contrary fruits can actually provide unique advantages when combined properly with a weight loss program or a healthy diet.

Fruits have been linked with lowering the risk of diseases such as diabetes, high blood pressure and cardiovascular problems.

Eating fruits can help satisfy our cravings for sweets, fill our stomachs up while costing only a small amount of calories. They can also reduce our hunger and appetite as well.

The only thing is, even though all fruits are full of great micronutrients, fiber, vitamins, and some important dietary minerals, certain fruits that are high in sugar wouldn’t be as beneficial to your weight loss as others.

So in this article today we’re going over the best 10 fruits that have been scientifically proven to actually help to lose weight and body fat, and maintain a healthy body.

Best Fruits for Weight Loss and Maintenance

#1. Banana

It might come as surprise to have bananas being the first one. A lot of people who are mindful of their weight avoid the banana because of the amount of sugar they contain. But there’s a trick that can help you enjoy bananas whilst dieting or being careful your weight.

It’s true that most of the time when someone is taking the banana they’ll be taking in more natural sugar than they would get from many other fruits. But when it comes to the amount of fructose in the banana, the level increase the more ripe the banana becomes.

Bananas in their unripened state contain relatively low levels of fructose. It’s only when they start getting black marks on them that the sugar levels become a bigger problem. So the good tip here is to only eat them in their unripened state while you’re dieting.

You want to eat them while they are still hard and they are still slightly green. This will help fill you up without adding a spike in blood sugar.

Now aside from that bananas are also really nutrient-dense. They contain high levels of potassium, magnesium, manganese, antioxidants, fiber, along with a number of vitamins.

Bananas also contain a type of starch known as resistance starch. This has been shown in studies to feed the healthy bacteria in your gut. These good bacteria lead to the production of butyric acid. This acid reduces insulin resistance and improves the blood sugar response to the food you eat which will help you control your weight.

Some studies also show that eating bananas reduce blood glucose levels in Type 2 diabetics and result in increased weight loss. One study group that ate purely banana starch lost almost 3.5 lbs over a four week period compared to the control group who lost almost half of a pound.

This doesn’t mean you can sit around and eat bananas all day until you’re lean but they are a nutritional powerhouse that help you control your blood sugar and lose weight.

#2. Avocado

One of the best fruits for weight loss is the avocado. The average has 60 grams of calories, 9 grams of carbs 7 of which are fiber. It also has 2 grams of protein and 15 grams of monounsaturated fat. This is the healthy type of fat that you want to consume to help you lose weight.

Avocados are full of plant sterols which have been shown time and again through various studies to lower cholesterol levels. There are other studies that also revealed that avocados help lower LDL (low density lipoproteins) or the bad cholesterol levels due to high amount of monounsaturated fat they contain.

Research has also shown that swapping up palm and vegetable oil for avocado oil in cooking may help reduce visceral body fat around the belly area. As well being low calorie, nutrient-dense and full of good fats, the avocado is also great at suppressing your appetite.

This is something that lots of people don’t know. A scoop of guacamole could be very effective at reducing hunger. In a study on the appetite suppressing effects of avocado, participants who ate half a fresh avocado with lunch reported a 28 percent decreased desire to eat for four hours afterward. (1)

#3. Grapefruits

The next of the best fruits for weight loss is the grapefruit. It’s healthy low calorie fruit that is also packed full of vitamins and minerals. Research has shown that it can help you lose weight.

In one study of group of volunteers ate half a grapefruit before each meal. They were later compared to a control group that did not eat. The researchers saw some interesting results. The group that ate the grapefruit lost 5 times the amount of weight.

The secret weight loss weapon found in grapefruit is an enzyme called AMPK (Adenosine Monophospate-Activated Protein Kinase). This enzyme gets activated by a compound in grapefruit called Nootkatone. When it’s activated AMPK encourages glucose uptake.

This then leads to the metabolism leading to more calories burned. AMPK is also released during exercise to encourage the body to use stored body fat for energy.

And animals study on Nootkatone’s ability to encourage weight gain was concluded it significantly reduced the effect that high fat and high sugar diets have on weight gain, abdominal fat accumulation and the development of high blood sugar and high insulin levels and leptin levels.

High levels of blood sugar and insulin levels promote weight gain and high leptin levels are a sign that a person is leptin resistant. This means that your brain isn’t getting the signal that tells you that you’re full when eating and that you need to stop.

So a grapefruit can help us manage blood sugar and leptin a little better and that’s big plus. Needless to say grapefruit is also a great source of vitamin C which is essential for fat metabolism. If you deficient in vitamin C, your body has a big problem using stored fat in your body.

Red grapefruit in particular has been shown to be very effective in lowering triglycerides levels as well. Eating half a grapefruit everyday may help you experience some of these benefits.Some people also eat half a grapefruit before each meal.

However do not count on eating these fruits for weight loss alone as your only solution for losing belly fat. This is the mistake many people make on fad diets such as the grapefruit diet. If you eat a loads of processed foods everyday, eating grapefruit won’t magically save you from failure to lose weight or unwanted belly fat.

#4. Apple

When talking about top fruits for weight loss, apples will always be in the mix for the following reasons. They are a great source of antioxidants, soluble and insoluble fiber. The insoluble fiber that is found in the skin of apples is filling making a great food for controlling our appetite and one of the best fruits to eat for weight loss.

One study, participants were divided into three groups and they were given three apples, three cookies or three pears each day for 10 weeks. The apple group lost 2 lbs compared to 1.6 lbs for the pear group and no surprisingly no change for the cookie group.

Another great things about apples as fruits that help you lose weight is that they help you control your blood sugar levels. The high fiber content of the apple means that the fruit sugars are released a lot slower into the bloodstream.

Apples also have a low glycemic index which means that it will help you stay fuller for longer, preventing blood sugar spikes and crashes.

#5. Grapes

Compared to other fruits that you can eat for weight loss, grapes contain a lot more sugar. However, it contains a concentration of phytochemicals known as polyphenols. Polyphenols slow aging and they help protect us from cancer although the exact mechanism that causes this is not clear yet.

Grapes are also very nutritious. They’re packed full of antioxidants including beta carotene, lutein, selenium and vitamins A, C and E.

What’s more? They also contain resveratrol, a plant-derived compound found in the skin and seeds of grapes. Among its many other health promoting benefits, it has been shown to stimulate the development of energy consuming brown fat rather than the obesity causing white fat.

Brown fat burns calories in order to create heat whereas white fat sits in your body as a stored reserve of energy. Specifically red grapes seem to provide the best benefit of weight loss because they contain ellagic acid which has been shown to slow down the growth of fat cells and to discourage the formation of new fat cells.

However, with all that said, while grapes are great and one of the best fruit to eat for weight loss, they do contain quite a lot of natural sugar. So you don’t want to overindulge and you should eat them in moderation to experience the health benefits that they offer.

#6. Berries

Berries also come in as some of the best fruits for weight loss. They are full on antioxidants which gives them their vibrant colors and flavor. The antioxidants have been linked with lowering the risk of a number of cancers. They also help in healing poor memory, counteracting the effects of old age.

Berries are also a great source of dietary fiber which will feel full for longer.

In one study, people who were given 65 calorie berry snacks ate less food in the next meal than those who given a candy snack with the same number of calories. There is evidence that eating berries will help to bring down unhealthy cholesterol level and reduce blood pressure.

Out of all the different kinds of berries – blackberries, strawberries and raspberries are lower in carbohydrates as opposed to blueberries. Blueberries are also very healthy but they are higher in sugar.

Berries also have a high flavanoids count. Flavonoids are believed to have a beneficial effect on the cardiovascular system, having the ability to reduce cardiovascular risk factors. Blackberries in particular have a very high flavonoids counts.

#7. Kiwifruit

Moving on. The next of the best fruits for weight loss is the kiwifruit. A single kiwi has just 42 calories and is one of the most nutrient-dense foods you can find in your grocery store.

Kiwis contain over 20 important micronutrients including vitamins A, E, B6 and B12, potassium, copper. Kiwis have also been shown to reduce blood sugar levels after eating high sugar foods.

Again this doesn’t justify eating candy is okay as long as you eat kiwi with it. However, in one study researchers found an interesting results. They found that the blood glucose response after eating a high carb breakfast with and without added kiwi.

The hunger levels after three hours were also measured. The kiwi group had much lower blood glucose level spikes over the entire three hours. They were also the least hungry after the three hours. Moreover kiwis are also high in omega-3 fatty acids.

As wells as supporting brain health, omega-3s have also been shown to remove triglycerides from the bloodstream and to lower inflammation. At the same time, they strengthened the joints and tendons. All of these make the kiwi fruit a smart choice of a fruit for weight loss.

If want to see quick weight loss results, use kiwis as a replacement for high calorie, less nutritious snacking option

#8. Orange

Similar to grapefruits, oranges are a low calorie fruit that is high in vitamin C and fiber. It shouldn’t come as no surprise that oranges were shown to be four times mores filling than croissants and twice as filling as a muesli bar.

The problem is that a lot of people who are looking for fruit options for weight loss will just down a whole glass of orange juice instead of eating the whole fruit. This is a big mistake.

Not only do many brands of processed orange juice contain lots of added sugar, but the fiber that’s supposed to fill you up when eating it has been removed.

Studies have shown eating the fruit rather than just drinking the juice fills you up a lot more and reduces your caloric intake. Also one orange has about 9 grams of sugar, 45 calories.

Compare that to a less filing processed glass of orange juice that contains 23 grams of sugar and 110 calories. You quickly see why you should go with the fruit over the juice.

#9. Passion fruit

The passion fruit is also one of the best fruits for weight loss and helping you reduce belly fat. It’s the lowest calorie fruit among our list of best fruits to eat.

With just 17 calories in an average piece, they are high in vitamins A and C, and minerals iron and potassium. However, passion fruits really excel in their very high dietary fiber content. (2)

Five passion fruits will provide you with 42% of the total of recommended daily intake of fiber without even exceeding a hundred calories. Also the seeds inside the passion fruit contain a compound called piceatannol. Some preliminary research has linked piceatannol with lowering blood pressure and improving insulin sensitivity.

#10. Stone fruits

Finally on our list of best fruits to eat for weight loss we have the stone fruits. These include peaches, nectarines, plums and other fruits that have a hard pit inside of them. As well as being high on the glycemic index, stone fruits have low calorie counts and high in healthy nutrients.

Most stone fruit will only cost you between 75 and 100 calories per serving. One study found that some of the bio-active compounds found in stone fruits (peaches, plums and nectarines) could help ward off metabolic syndrome.

Metabolic syndrome is the name given to the risk factors for diseases such as obesity and inflammation that increase the risk of heart disease. Metabolic syndrome also makes it very difficult to lose weight.

The researchers identified a phenolic compound that were able to reduce the oxidation of bad cholesterol or LDL which contribute to cardiovascular disease

Conclusion

Those are the top 10 fruits for weight loss. The takeaway is that fruits are an essential component of healthy diet that’s meant to help you lose weight.

Fruits can be eaten as snacks or as part of a healthy meal. It’s best to eat these fruits in their unprocessed form if you have the option to choose.

Can you simply subsist on fruits alone just to lose weight? Unfortunately this is not the case. Fruits alone will not cause you lose weight and live healthily. A healthy weight loss plan will involve combinations of whole, unprocessed foods and regular exercise practiced on consistently.

Did we miss your favorite fruit? If you have any comments and recommendations you’re welcome to use the comments section below.