Nutritionists Say These Fruits May Be Beneficial for Weight Loss
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Fruit has caused some debate in the weight loss sphere. Some diets recommend you avoid it entirely, while others suggest severely limiting your intake. But fruits are a healthy food group, making it understandable to wonder about the best fruits for weight loss.
For the record, nutritionists say that fruit can absolutely be part of a healthy weight loss plan. “I'm not sure why and when fruit got a bad rap, but fruit is definitely part of a healthy diet and one that is focused on weight loss or weight management,” says Vanessa Rissetto, R.D., CEO and co-founder of Culina Health. “If there’s a fruit you enjoy, you should have it,” says Jessica Cording, M.S., R.D., author of The Little Book of Game-Changers: 50 Healthy Habits For Managing Stress & Anxiety.
Meet the experts: Jessica Cording, M.S., R.D., is the author of The Little Book of Game-Changers: 50 Healthy Habits For Managing Stress & Anxiety; Scott Keatley, R.D., is the co-owner of Keatley Medical Nutrition Therapy; Vanessa Rissetto, R.D., is the CEO and co-founder of Culina Health; Sonya Angelone, R.D., is a nutritionist and spokeswoman for the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics.
You’ve probably heard people suggest in the past that you substitute fruit for dessert when you’re trying to lose weight, but Cording doesn’t recommend trying this hack. “I get really annoyed when I hear people tell someone to satisfy a craving for sweets with fruit,” she says. “A piece of fruit is never going to be candy or chocolate.” Instead, she recommends focusing on the health benefits of these foods and doing your best to incorporate them into your meals, like having berries on top of Greek yogurt or making apple slices and nut butter your go-to snack. “Fruit is a wonderful, nutrient-dense food that’s healthy, but it doesn’t have to be a replacement for sweets,” she says.
With that in mind, these are the best fruits for weight loss, according to dietitians.
#1 Oranges
Citrus fruits like oranges can be a great choice when you’re trying to lose weight, says Sonya Angelone, R.D., a nutritionist and spokeswoman for the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics. Having excess weight is linked with bodily inflammation, she points out. “Choose fruits that are rich in antioxidants, which are anti-inflammatory,” Angelone says. Oranges are high in the antioxidant vitamin C, as well as fiber, to help fill you up, she says.
#2 Avocados
Avocados are high in calories, but they can also help you feel full, Angelone says. Some research has also linked avocados to weight loss. One 12-week randomized controlled trial of 51 people with overweight or obesity found that people who ate a low-calorie diet that included an avocado a day had “significant” weight loss, along with the control group. They also had a drop in triglycerides, which are a type of fat that circulate in your blood.
#3 Kiwis
Kiwis aren’t an overly common fruit in the U.S., but several experts recommend adding them to your diet if you’re trying to lose weight. These fruits are packed with vitamin C, vitamin K, folate, and fiber, Cording says.
Research has also linked kiwis with weight loss. One small study of 41 people with prediabetes had them eat two kiwis a day for 12 weeks. By the end of the study, the researchers found that kiwi-eaters had lowered blood pressure and lost over an inch in their waist circumference.
“Kiwi is really great for weight loss,” Cording says. “It also has an enzyme called actinidin which is great for digestion.”
#4 Apples
Apples are packed with fiber to support good digestion and help you to feel fuller, longer, says Scott Keatley, R.D., co-owner of Keatley Medical Nutrition Therapy. “They are also relatively low in calories and can be filling due to their high water content,” he says.
Pairing apples with nut butter can be a great snack, Cording says.
#5 Pears
Like apples, pears are high in fiber, low in calories, and can be filling, Keatley says. They also are known for helping keep you regular thanks to their higher fructose and sorbitol content, Cording points out.
#6 Grapefruit
Grapefruit does well on its own or in salads—and it has perks to help support weight loss. It’s low in calories and high in water and fiber content, Keatley points out. “When eaten with greens, it can help unlock nutrients like iron,” he says.
#7 Pomegranate seeds
Pomegranate seeds have a lot going for them. A one-cup serving features an impressive 6 grams of fiber (22% of your daily recommended intake) and 25% of your recommended vitamin C intake. They also have a sweet and tarte taste and are perfect for elevating salads, Angelone says.
#8 Strawberries
Strawberries are nutritional powerhouses. A one-cup serving gives you more than 3 grams of fiber, as well as 97.6 milligrams of vitamin C to tamp down on inflammation. Pair them with nuts, toss them into salads or sprinkle them over yogurt—this fruit is highly versatile.
#9 Blueberries
Like strawberries, blueberries are a good source of fiber. They also offer plenty of vitamin C, vitamin A, and beta carotene to help lower inflammation in your body. “High in fiber and low in calories, blueberries can help you feel full longer,” Keatley says.
#10 Watermelon
Watermelon has a high water content to help meet your hydration needs and help you to feel full, Cording points out. But it’s also a good source of vitamin C and fairly low in calories—a one-cup serving has just 46 calories. Pair it with nuts or toss it into salads or have it as a refreshing side with chicken or other lean meats.
#11 Raspberries
Raspberries are packed with fiber—they have 8 grams per one-cup serving—and also serve as an impressive source of vitamin C. “Some of the most nutrient-dense fruits I recommend are berries," Cording says. "They have tons of antioxidants and are great sources of fiber.” Like strawberries, raspberries pair well with a range of sweet and savory foods.
What to be aware of with fruits for weight loss
The average person doesn’t get enough fruits or vegetables in their diet, Cording says. But adding more fruit to your life may not help you to feel more full than usual.
“A really important part of weight loss is satiety, or feeling full,” Cording says. “It helps you to reduce compulsive snacking—that can make it harder to sustain a weight loss plan.” While some fruits, like avocadoes, can help with satiety more than others, many won’t necessarily help you to feel full on their onw.
“Ideally, you want to consume the fruit with a protein and/or a fat,” Cording says. “That helps buffer the breakdown of the carbohydrates in the fruit so you feel fuller longer.”
Cording says that “no fruit needs to be excluded” when it comes to fruits for weight loss, but she says that you’ll likely get the most mileage out of high-fiber fruits like berries, apples, and pears.
How to get more fruit in your diet
The United States Department of Agriculture recommends that adults eat one to two cups of fruit a day—and that can be any fruit.
“It’s important to choose fruit that you actually like,” Cording says. “That’s a mistake I see a lot of people make. They eat it because they hear it’s healthy, but they don’t actually enjoy it.”
Instead, Cording suggests adding more fruit to your life in a way that’s sustainable. “Berries get expensive in the offseason, so maybe you purchase the frozen variety—you’re still getting all those vitamins, antioxidants, and fiber,” she says.
Cording also suggests incorporating fruit into other ingredients, too. “Maybe you add fruit to a salad or, if you're making a peanut butter and jelly sandwich, put sliced strawberries or bananas in there,” she says. “Find ways to incorporate it so that it will be approachable.”
Can eating more fruit alone help you lose weight?
It depends. If you’re replacing unhealthy foods you were eating before with fruits, that swap may help you to lose weight, Cording says. But simply adding fruit to your life is unlikely to help you lose a significant amount of weight.
“Fruit provides vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants, but there is really very low protein or fat in fruit,” Cording says. “It’s not enough to provide your body what it needs to feel full for a significant period of time. It’s hard to feel satisfied if you’re eating fruit by itself.”
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