How eating whole fresh fruit can lower the risk of type 2 diabetes and its complications – have two servings a day – and even help reverse the disease

Many people avoid consuming fruit because of its high sugar content, but they may be missing out on essential nutrients

Studies show that eating fruit daily may reduce risk of type 2 diabetes and lower the risk of complications and mortality in those with the disease

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Eating fresh whole fruit can lower the risk of type 2 diabetes despite its high sugar content, doctors say. Photo: Getty Images

Published: 4:45pm, 30 Oct 2021Updated: 8:12am, 8 Nov 2021

Fruit is known as “nature’s confectionery”, which might be why diabetics and anyone trying to limit their sugar intake tend to shun it.

When low-carbohydrate diets such as the keto diet started gaining popularity more than two decades ago, the overall message about fruit was that it was high in carbohydrates and therefore “bad”. Many people mistakenly believed that consuming fruit caused blood glucose (sugar) levels to spike and that excess glucose in the body would immediately be converted into fat.

But fruit is an essential component of a healthy diet, says Dr Soham Patel, an endocrinologist and lifestyle medicine doctor who practises in Florida in the United States. Patel is an advocate for a plant-based diet and the founder of the Centre for Preventive Endocrinology and Nutrition.

“Fruit is low in fat and high in vitamins, minerals, antioxidants, water and fibre, plus, it’s an excellent source of energy as it contains carbohydrates. Everyone should consume a couple of servings of whole fruit every day,” he says.

Endocrinologist Dr Soham Patel says fresh whole fruit is an essential part of a healthy diet.

Rather than increase your risk of type 2 diabetes, eating whole fruit may actually lower it. A recent Australian study revealed that people who consumed about two servings of fruit per day as part of a healthy diet had a 36 per cent lower risk of developing the disease over the following five years than those who consumed less than half a serving per day.