Fresh Fruit Diet

Consuming high-calorie foods can prevent you from receiving proper nutrition. A fresh fruit diet, on the other hand, is low-calorie and contains many vitamins and minerals beneficial to health.The United States Department of Agriculture, or USDA, recommends that women aged 19 to 30 consume 2 1/2 cups of fruit each day. Comparatively, men 19 to 30 need to eat 3 cups a day.

Benefits

Eating whole fruit in the diet promotes good health. Fruit contains few calories, and eating them as snacks can help you lose weight. A serving of fruit contains 60 calories. Half a banana or a small-sized apple counts as a serving. Including fresh fruit in the diet helps prevent disease. Eating fresh fruit helps prevent stroke, cardiovascular disease, type 2 diabetes and some cancers, according to the USDA. Eating the skin from whole fruits provides fiber. Fiber can reduce risk of coronary artery disease. It also helps eliminate waste in the body.

Significance

Most fruits are naturally low in fat, sodium and calories. None have cholesterol.
Americans do not consume adequate amounts of fruit. A diet lacking fruit will not provide complete nutrition. Whole fruits contain many essential nutrients vital to disease prevention, including potassium, fiber, vitamin C and folate. Many Americans have high blood pressure from consuming salty foods. Potassium can help regulate blood pressure. You can eat bananas prunes, cantaloupe and peaches to increase calcium intake. Vitamin C helps the growth and repair of tissues. This vitamin helps heal wounds and cuts. It also helps keep teeth and gums healthy. Citrus fruits like oranges and grapefruit contain vitamin C. Increasing fiber in the diet promotes digestive health. It helps prevent diverticulosis and constipation. All whole fruits contain fiber.

Considerations

Fresh fruit can spoil quickly. Decay from bacteria or fungus causes spoilage. Look at ripeness, color, skin punctures and bruises before purchasing fresh fruit. Handle fruit carefully to avoid bruising. You should consume fresh fruit as soon as possible to avoid waste. Some fruit costs more money when bought out of season. For example, buying oranges in winter months will cost more than during summer.

Whole fruit uses pesticides to control insects and additives to preserve color. Ingestion of pesticides may cause health consequences. Organic fruit is grown without use of pesticides. Organic fruit also contains lower levels of nitrates. Fresh fruit costs less money compared to organic fruit.

Misconceptions

Organic fruits do not contain higher-quality nutrients than fresh fruit. Farmers grow these fruits without use of pesticides or additives. However, this does not alter nutrition quality of fruit.

Warning

Always wash fresh fruit in water before consumption. Unwashed fruit can contain harmful pesticides and bacteria. Rinse fruit in hot water for at least 30 seconds before eating. This will destroy harmful bacteria.

You should consume a wide variety of food to obtain all essential vitamins and minerals. A fruit only diet will lack fat and protein essential to health.