I would say that climate, health, upbringing [dah…] and knowledge determine an impact that fruits have on us. One could say “Who cares! we eat fruits not thinking about it for a second. We just eat them.”
Yet, there is so much to eating fruits deliberately. No doubt about it. Live and learn.

Every region has different fruits, but globalization allows us to eat fruits irrelevant of seasons and ignorant to where they came from. Where I came from, decades ago, a single orange was shared between five, at Easter, and banana was a luxury, largely reserved for babies and sick. However we had countless apples, pears, plums and berries of all sorts, that I have not seen in North America. Fruits do not taste the same in Winter as in Summer. Winter always demanded warm foods, and Californian “eating nothing but fruits until afternoon” as a model of healthy eating, felt very strange. Recently, Ayurvedic take on fruits dropped into my reading list, and I learned that I ate fruits for several decades somewhat wrong way. Wow!

Most people know that fruits spend a short time in our digestive track, so we eat them first, before major meals. Cooking connoisseurs add fruits to exquisite dishes of all sorts. Some diets eliminate fruits all together. It is important to know in what circumstances we can make the most of wholesome fruits.

Ayurveda says: Eat fruit alone or not at all.

It also divides fruits to warming and cooling (irrelevant to actual temperature of it), while it makes sense to know what our body type and health condition needs. Main principle of seasons is the key to healthy living, respected by ‘blue zones’ around the world. With my focus on thyroid, heart, and healthy aging, I want to know about warming fruits and best time/way to eat them. Turns out, best time to eat fruit is at 8am, 11am and not later than 4pm. One type of fruit at a time, alone, whole, freshly cut [not pre-cut], ripe and right for the health condition.
There is an article in Healthline, reviewed by American nutritionist, debunking ‘myth’ of eating fruit separately from meals, however other medical sources [research here], say “Preferably, fruit should be eaten before the two main meals because the fibers it contains help reduce the absorption of simple sugars, thus reducing the glycemic index of foods.”

In the Summer our body requires more water and easy to digest, light foods. In the Winter [northern climates], it’s harder to maintain warmth, and our body needs richer, warming foods. Said warming fruits are for example apples, pears, mangoes, oranges and dry fruits like raisins, apricots, figs and dates. Excessive consumption of these fruits may lead to stomach irritation. Fruits like bananas, berries, watermelons, kiwi and apricots are cooling.

A diet rich in fruits can lower blood pressure, reduce the risk of heart disease and stroke, prevent some types of cancer, lower blood sugar, and risk of eye and digestive problems. Being rich sources of vitamins – A, B, C, E, K, potassium, protein, fiber, and many other phytonutrients, fruit deeply nourishes hair and strengthens hair roots. [just thinking of princess Catherine’s hair, attributed to many fruits she eats!]

_{This is a personal blog, not intended to replace any medical advice – ask your doctor what’s right for you.}