3 Biggest Myths About Fruits (and the Facts)

Fruits are an excellent all-natural way to keep our bodies in good health. However, in recent years less and less fruits are being consumed by our nation, especially our youths. This is the result of plenty of false information spread across social media, being passed on from person to person through social media and chat groups.

As a result, many are following false advice from unnamed “nutritionists” on things such as the types of fruits to eat, the time to consume them, and what fruits to stay away from altogether.

Let’s bust the three largest myths once and for all, and reveal the truth behind them:

Myth 1: Only Bright and Colourful Fruits are Good for You

It’s true; colourful fruits are healthy for you. However, that doesn’t mean you should only consume brightly-coloured fruits. Each fruit has its own nutrient profile, packed with varying types of vitamins and other nutrients such as antioxidants and fibre; so each fruit provides you with a plethora of different health benefits!

Just because a fruit looks dull doesn’t mean it’s not beneficial! Our bodies require a mix of vitamins and nutrients, too little or too much of certain types isn’t healthy for you.

The next time you go shopping for fruits, remember to keep this in mind, don’t shy away from picking up multiple fruit types just because an article you read previously said claims only colourful fruits are good.

Myth 2: Fruits Should Be Consumed Before Meals

This is a prevalent myth here in Singapore, and was popularised by local nutritionists and famous chefs within our nation. The claim is that consuming fruits before meals aids in absorbing of its nutrients as your stomach would be empty. It also goes on to say that if you eat fruits after a meal, it could remain undigested for long periods of time, and go on to begin rotting in your stomach, resulting in pain, discomfort and other health issues.

This myth spread like wildfire across Facebook, and many Singaporeans immediately heeded the advice in fears of long-term health issues. The fact is that this myth is entirely false.

Eating fruits after meals do not cause food to be stuck in your stomach indefinitely, it merely slows down digestion, which should be nothing of concern. In fact, this can also be a good thing. Slower digestion helps you feel full for more extended periods of time, helping you eat less and potentially lose weight by consuming fewer calories.

Myth 3: Frozen Fruits are Bad for Your Health

Many people assume that you should avoid frozen fruits as they are bad for you. This myth is partially false. Fruits start losing its freshness right after it’s picked from the field, and the best way to retain nutrients isn’t fast transportation to the store – especially since the vast majority of our fruits come from overseas – it’s flash freezing.

Flash freezing is a process which freezes freshly picked fruits almost instantaneously by exposing the fruit to a very low temperature, far below the freezing point, to lock in its nutrients at the farm.

The myth is only partially false as extremely fresh fruits usually are almost on par with frozen fruits in terms of nutrient content. The real difference is when comparing canned fruits and frozen fruits. In such a scenario, frozen fruits are almost always superior comparing nutrient content as canned fruits are usually peeled, washed and blanched before packaging. These processes, especially blanching, destroys many vitamins before the fruit even arrives at the store.

Luckily, our government has stepped in to play their part in promoting the consumption of fruits to our nation. You can hear Fruitwerkz’s Founder Andy Lim talking to Channel 8 on this topic here. Learn more about our Singapore fruit delivery service here.