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When you’re first adjusting to a diagnosis of prediabetes or diabetes, it can be tempting to avoid all foods that can spike your blood sugar, including fruit. And yet, it’s important not to cut fruit out of your diet entirely. Leaning on the number-one fruit to eat for better blood sugar, at least while you’re learning to manage your levels, can help ensure you’re not missing out on all the beneficial nutrients and plant compounds that fruit has to offer.
Meet the experts: Stephanie Crabtree, M.S., R.D., a holistic registered dietitian in Venice, FL; Courtney Pelitera, M.S., R.D.N., C.N.S.C., a registered dietitian nutritionist at VNutrition.
“Whole fruit provides fiber, water, vitamins, minerals, and beneficial compounds like antioxidants and polyphenols that support overall health and disease prevention,” Stephanie Crabtree, M.S., R.D., a holistic registered dietitian in Venice, FL, previously told Prevention. Research suggests that eating enough fruit can help ensure you’re consuming adequate amounts of key vitamins and minerals, such as vitamin C, magnesium, and potassium, while also getting plenty of inflammation-fighting antioxidants.
So what is the number-one fruit to eat for better blood sugar management? Courtney Pelitera, M.S., R.D.N., C.N.S.C., a registered dietitian nutritionist at VNutrition, recommends enjoying raspberries. “They are the most accessible fruit with the highest fiber content,” she adds. According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), one cup of fresh raspberries contains an impressive 8 grams (g) of fiber and just 5 g of sugar, the high-fiber, low-sugar combination that dietitians say is key in the best fruits to lower blood sugar. What’s more, new research in the British Journal of Nutrition suggests that raspberries may even lower glucose levels and improve insulin response after a meal.
If you’re trying to avoid blood sugar spikes after eating fruit, it’s also important to pair fruit with another food that helps keep blood sugar stable. “Diabetics and prediabetics want to avoid ‘naked carbs,’ or carbohydrates eaten alone,” Pelitera has explained. “Some foods that pair really well with any fruit include yogurt, cottage cheese, nuts or seeds, cheese, hard-boiled eggs, dry roasted legumes, and peanut butter.” Doing so can help you get all the beneficial nutrients from fruit without sending your blood sugar levels on a roller coaster ride.
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