Is it possible to eat too much fruit?
Did you know that the latest dietary guidelines call for five to thirteen servings of fruits and vegetables a day (2½ to 6½ cups per day), depending on one’s caloric intake. How much of that should be fruit and is it possible to overdo it?
The most traditional principle of health is moderation in everything. The body will try and expel any kind of excess to preserve balance. We tend to eat in excess the foods that we really enjoy, especially if we are told they are very good for us, as is the case with fruit. But a healthy diet is one in which yin and yang are balanced, regardless of how nutritious the food is supposed to be. Most fruit is yin (especially tropical and citrus) and cooling in energy, therefore eating three or four oranges or increasing the amount of juice you drink a day because you think you might catch a cold and you need extra vitamin C is actually producing excess mucus and potentially causing dampness in the body.
According to the theory of balance, yin (cold/cool) foods are usually recommended for yang constitutions. Yang (warm/hot) foods are good for yin constitutions, and those foods with neutral energy are suitable for everyone.
Examples of yin (cold/cool) fruits are: bananas, melons, citrus, kiwi fruits, apples, pears, peaches, purple plums, strawberries
Examples of yang (warm/hot) fruits are: cherries
Examples of neutral fruits are: yellow plums, pineapples, grapes, apricots, figs
Whatever the fruit you are eating, remember to always eat local produce according to the season and – whether you think it tastes better or not – try to eat it at room temperature, not chilled from the refrigerator!
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