The real reason fruit juices and smoothies have SmartPoints®
So, what’s the bottom line? If it’s something you’ll drink, like a juice or fruit smoothie, the nutritional data for fruit counts towards the total SmartPoints value. If it’s something you’ll eat, like a salsa, sauce, stew or soup, most fresh fruits and vegetables have a 0 SmartPoints value.
Are there other times when I need to count the SmartPoints for fruit and vegetables?
The WW programme encourages you to eat fresh fruits and vegetables as part of a healthy diet. Studies have shown that about 70% of Brits do not eat enough fruits and vegetables.³ That’s why most fruits and vegetables are ZeroPoint foods, whether they're fresh, unsweetened, frozen or canned in their own juice and drained.
When a fruit has added sugar, such as fruit in syrup or its own juice, or when there’s less water content (for example, dried fruit) the SmartPoints values will count.
Can I eat too much fruit?
We encourage you to eat fruits and vegetables because they are nutritious, satisfying and tasty.
ZeroPoint foods don’t need to be measured or tracked, but that doesn’t mean they’re all-you-can-eat. Fruits and vegetables aren’t calorie-free just because many of them are ZeroPoint foods!
Eating any food, even ZeroPoint foods, to extremes could make you gain weight.
If you’re eating more fruits and vegetables than you used to, and you’re using them for healthy snacks, to bulk up your meals, or as a tide-me-over when you’re down to the last few SmartPoints values for the day or week, then great.
If you’re overeating fruit because it’s “free” you might want to pull back a bit. Like everything, it’s about balance and becoming mindful of what you’re eating. Let your hunger, and your weight loss, be your guide.
Sources
¹Cassady BA, Considine RV, Mattes RD. Beverage consumption, appetite, and energy intake: what did you expect? Am J Clin Nutr 2012;95:587-93.
²Migquel-Kergoat S, Axais-Braesco V, Burton-Freeman B, Hetherington MM. Effects of chewing on appetite, food intake and gut hormones: a systematic review and meta-analysis. Physiol Behav 2015;151:88-96.
³Public Health England, (2014). National Diet and Nutrition Survey: results from Years 1 to 4 (combined) of the rolling programme for 2008 and 2009 to 2011 and 2012. National Diet and Nutrition Survey:. [online] Public Health England, p.10.