Why being a fruitarian can be dangerous to your health
Is too much of a good thing a bad thing? In this case, absolutely.
The “clean eating” trend is building momentum and as a result, more individuals are turning to extreme diets such as fruitarianism. The motivation for adopting a diet like this varies, but followers are often persuaded by health, environmental, religious, and even political factors. Many tout the fruitarian diet as the original diet of mankind, believing it promotes a holistic approach to health. In fact, the regimen has been embraced by some notable figures in history: Leonardo da Vinci followed fruitarianism, Mahatma Gandhi was a fruitarian for 6 months in the early 1990s, and Steve Jobs also briefly implemented a fruit diet.
Often known as a subset of veganism, fruitarianism involves adopting a diet that is made up of 75% fruit. Depending on individual preferences, diets can consist of nuts, seeds and other vegan and raw food. Indeed, those who switch to a diet full of fruits and vegetables can feel immediate improvements to their health, especially if their previous diets were not very balanced. Prepared to jump on board the all-fruit train? Not so fast. Turns out, it’s actually not such a great nutritional plan as it can be harmful to your health in the long run.
For starters, the diet is incredibly restrictive and high in sugar. Striking the right balance can be really tricky as fruits can only provide a limited amount of energy from carbohydrates, fibre, and certain antioxidant vitamins and minerals in small quantities. In addition, sticking to a fruitarian diet would lead to a deficiency in nutrients such as vitamin B12, vitamin D, iron, zinc and protein – all of which are essential building blocks required to maintain the structure of your bones, immune cells, organ tissue, muscles, and hormones. Furthermore, you could be putting yourself at risk of developing more detrimental health issues in the future like osteoporosis or anaemia.
Having said that, going on an all fruit plan for just a day can actually have some benefits if you need a slight detox to give your system a rest. However, you should consult your general practitioner if you’re keen on starting a fruitarian diet.
Jade Yeo
Photo: Getty Images
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