Which fruit is the healthiest? As supermarket grapes are branded ‘sacks of sugar’, nutritionist flags the type that could leave you hungrier…and reveals if ‘natural’ sugar really is better

The grapes on today’s supermarket shelves have been carefully bred to deliver a hit of intense sweetness – perfect for the modern-day, sugar-obsessed generation.

That’s the claim of countless diet gurus on social media who say eating some types of fruit is no healthier than a packet of sweets. 

With our five-a-day available in new, fanciful varieties with sickly names like ‘cotton candy’ and ‘tutti frutti’, it’s easy to believe that said gurus have a point.

But do they?

As a nutritionist, the question of whether ‘natural’ sugar, such as the type in fruit, honey and juices, is healthier than the cubes in your tea is one I’m asked most often.

The answer is, on the whole, yes – but sometimes only marginally. 

Here, I reveal the ultimate guide to ‘healthier’ sweet stuff. Whether honey really is better than sugar, which fruit is best for you – and why a glass of freshly squeezed orange juice really is just as fattening as a can of Sprite. 

Fruit is said to be a healthy sweet treat – but some types contain twice the sugar of others

Juice is as calorific as a fizzy drink…but it’s healthier

From September 2027, fruit juice will no longer be served with primary-school meals in England under updated School Food Standards aimed at reducing children’s sugar intake.

To parents, this may seem baffling. After all, fruit juice is ‘natural’, made from nothing but fruit and often marketed as a healthier choice.

But calling a sugar ‘natural’ tells us only where it came from, not how it affects the body. 

When fruit is juiced, its natural fibrous structure is broken down and its sugars become ‘free’ – the same category as table sugar, syrups and, in fact, honey. 

One glass of freshly squeezed orange juice contains around three teaspoons of free sugar and 80 calories, roughly the same as in a 330ml can of Sprite. 

The Government recommends that adults consume no more than 30g – or roughly seven teaspoons – of free sugars a day.

Juicing also compresses several fruits into a smaller volume, making it easy to consume a concentrated dose of sugar quickly, and stripping away virtually all the bowel-boosting fibre.

Whole fruit, however, is a different story. Its natural sugars are held within intact cell structures alongside fibre and water. This physical bulk makes whole fruit more filling, while its sugar tends to be absorbed more gradually.

Supermarkets like Asda and Marks and Spencer have received backlash for selling super sweet varieties of grapes named ‘Cotton Candy’ and ‘Candy Floss’ 

 But, importantly, this doesn’t mean fruit juice boasts no benefits at all. It still contains vitamins and minerals that many Britons are lacking, unlike fizzy drinks. 

The NHS states that a 150ml glass of juice counts as only one of your five-a-day, however much more you drink.

Date and agave syrup are as bad as table sugar

Don’t be fooled by wholesome-looking labels that claim ‘unrefined’ products like date and maple syrup are somehow healthy. 

While some contain small amounts of vitamins, minerals or antioxidants, the quantities are typically too low to be meaningful. 

Nutritionally, they’re all considered unhealthy free sugars, and the body does not make distinctions based on whether they came from a plant, a beehive or a factory.

Standard table sugar begins as a plant, extracted from sugar cane or sugar beet and refined into sucrose. During digestion, sucrose is broken down into equal parts glucose and fructose – the same sugar molecules found in fruit.

Honey, maple syrup and date syrup ultimately provide the same basic sugar molecules: glucose and fructose.

The chemical composition of agave syrup is different – but that doesn’t make it healthier.

It usually contains around 80 per cent fructose, substantially higher than table sugar, industrial sweeteners or honey. 

Because fructose does not raise blood sugar or insulin levels as sharply as glucose, this can sound appealing. 

But, due to differences in how it is digested, fructose can contribute to higher blood fat levels and the accumulation of fat in the liver over time.

The Groovy Food Company’s agave nectar contains more sugar and calories, per 100g, than maple syrup, but less than golden syrup and honey.

Are some fruits healthier than others?

Yes, but every type of fruit comes with several micronutrients that boast particular benefits. 

In other words, the benefits of the vitamins and minerals in fruit are always worth the calories. 

Still, if you’re on a strict weight loss diet, it’s worth knowing that some are more calorific – and sugary – than others. 

While fruit doesn’t contain ‘free’ sugar that’s bad for teeth, eating too much in one go can still result in extreme spikes in blood glucose that are linked to hunger pangs and, therefore, weight gain.

Pears and bananas are the sweetest and most calorific, with between three-and-a-half and four teaspoons of sugar per piece of fruit, and about 100 calories.

It means that eating two or three a day could put you in a calorie surplus quite easily compared to, say, a portion of seven strawberries, which contain just over a teaspoon of sugar and just 32 calories. 

Hailey Bieber crafted a smoothie with luxury store Erewhon that was marketed as ‘nourishing’ – but experts say smoothies can be just as bad for your teeth and your waistline as a can of pop

However, pears have the highest fibre count of all fruits, boasting about 4g – more than a tenth of your daily needs. 

Bananas have a little less fibre, but contain a tenth of your daily potassium needs and a quarter of your daily B6, nutrients involved in nerve function and energy metabolism.

It’s worth noting that greener bananas have less sugars and very ripe ones have more.

Other fruits with high sugar and calorie counts include mango – about 75 calories per half a fruit and three teaspoons of sugar – and apples, with around 95 calories and three-and-a-half sugars.

An apple would not be my recommended fruit of choice; it only contains a modest 1.5g of fibre, and very small amounts of vitamin C compared to kiwis, pineapple, easy peelers, strawberries and peach. 

Kiwis, raspberries and strawberries are probably the best of the bunch, with low sugar and calories, decent amounts of fibre and immune-boosting vitamin C. 

Eating two kiwis a day has helped people with constipation in clinical trials—an enzyme called actinidin in kiwis helps aid stomach emptying. 

Dates aren’t as bad for blood sugar as you think

Like fresh fruit, dried fruit retains its natural fibre, vitamins, and minerals, and its sugars remain within the fruit rather than being ‘free’.

But drying fruit removes water, concentrating its calories and natural sugars into a much smaller volume. 

This makes dried fruit easy to over-eat, which is why a 5-a-day portion is just 30g—roughly a heaped tablespoon of raisins, three dried apricots, or two small dates. That 30g portion delivers around two-and-a-half to four teaspoons of sugar, dependent on the fruit.

Despite their intense sweetness, most dried fruits – including dates, raisins, figs, and dried apricots – don’t have a dramatic effect on blood sugars, due to the combination of fibre and plant compounds.

This makes a couple of dates ideal for powering through a workout or an afternoon slump.

Beyond portion control, the main caveat is dental health: because dried fruit is sticky, its concentrated sugars can cling to teeth. It’s best enjoyed as part of a meal rather than grazed on continuously throughout the day.