Have you ever eaten a giant piece of cake or a donut and still felt ravenous after? What about a nice piece of juicy fruit? Most of us know that sugar isn’t considered a “health” food by any stretch, and it comes in various forms. But are all sugars created equal? Is one sugar the greater of the two evils? 

It turns out that fructose tops that list. Fructose is a simple sugar added to highly processed sweeteners like high fructose corn syrup. And, fructose is naturally found in fruit and plants. So if fruit is so healthy, why does fructose get such a bad rap? (Or why doesn’t fruit get a bad rap?)

Here’s what you need to know about fructose—specifically, the kind added to processed foods—and how it affects your appetite and long-term health in ways you may not have realized.

 Let’s first start by clearing the air: Fruit really is good for you, and you should absolutely continue to include it in your meals and snacks. Fruit—we’re talking whole, real fruit—gives you fiber and water. It also contains vital nutrients for your overall health and wellbeing. The fiber helps the natural sugars found in fruit (including fructose) move more slowly through your digestive system. This helps sustain your energy and balance blood sugar.

As a result, you don’t get the same “sugar crash” after eating fruit that you might from eating a sugary donut. However, fructose can send your hunger through the roof when you eat too much.

Fructose affects your ability to control how much you eat by increasing your hunger hormone ghrelin and decreasing the activity of your brain’s satiety centers—the part that signals to your body that you’re full. Without that signaling to your body that you’ve had enough, you’re much more likely to continue eating those excess calories.

Fructose is the sweetest of simple sugars and sneaks its way into many conventionally packaged and processed foods in the form of high fructose corn syrup. These foods leave you coming back for more of them, even when you know you’ve eaten enough. An example of this is soda: Believe it or not, one can of soda is over 50 percent fructose. Because of their fructose content, soft drinks, in particular, are associated with a higher risk for chronic health conditions such as diabetes, metabolic syndrome, fatty liver disease, and obesity.  

Awareness is power, and while it’s important to limit processed foods and added sugars like fructose in your diet, it’s all about balance and moderation. Eating a wide variety of real, whole foods is key to maintaining a healthy weight and sustaining your long-term health. Remember that you are in the driver's seat!  Take some time to log your meals, movement, and other dailies in the app to track your progress. It gives you time to reflect, and science shows it supports your success.