I'm in my first week of the Zone Diet. Is there any general guideline about how many of the carb mini blocks in a day can be fruit? Is 50% too high? I'm not trying to lose weight and I like the hydrating effect of fruit (grapes, apples, applesauce, pineapple, strawberries, mostly).

Your fruit should be fine. Most folks, while trying to lose weight are better with more vegetables than fruit.
I, too, love fruit, lots of fruit - though I am in maintenance mode, so I eat both fruits and vegetables.
See how you do. Some, even in maintenance are sensitive to fruit - which tends to be higher glycemically overall.

NOTE: pineapple and applesauce are not favorable fruit, so watch carefully - they could easily take you out of the Zone.

thank you, John. I must have been looking at an older version of the food block guide. It says both unsweetened applesauce and pineapple are favorable.

But I found this other, perhaps newer, guide that says that unsweetened applesauce is favorable but that pineapple isn't.

http://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=...aafoTRRfgA

thanks for bringing me up to date

Hi Larry and John,

Applesauce has been is a favorable carbohydrate since I started the Zone about 17 years ago As with all foods, even favorable carbohydrates, some will work better than others form some people depending on your degree of sensitivity to carbohydrate.

Hi Larry,

Re you qn about 50% of carbohydrate from fruit daily. For the best insulin control, regardless of whether your goal is weight loss or health driven, or both, most of your carbohydrates should come from vegetables. Berries are the preferred fruit for the Zone due to their lower glycemic load.

thank you Sue - I'm not comfortable with a high volume of food and fruit has been easier to eat for me than a lot of vegetables. I could eat carb blocks of beans or barley but I have the same question about them. Should they be limited, too?

You're welcome, Larry. As you suspect, they are also more carbohydrate dense. For best results, eat them together with less dense carbohydrates in the same meal. The best veggies for the Zone are things like peppers, tomatoes, greens, mushrooms, cabbage, eggplant, artichokes, zucchini, green beans, etc.

Fresh fruits are more beneficial for the health and fitness as compare to any other type of foods.
These are the natural sources of the vitamins, protein, fiber, calcium, iron, and mineral.
They improve our health and fitness and fight against the number of diseases.
They control our cholesterol level, burn the fat and lose extra body weight to improve our fitness level.
We must include the fresh fruits and raw vegetables in our daily diet for the healthy life.

Hi,
For my diet Apple, banana, Blackberry,Blueberry,Cherry,Cranberry, Cranberry, Goji berry, Grape,Grapefruit, Kiwifruit, Papaya, Pineapple , Pomegranate are very much essential as well as beneficial because it improve my overall health i

Careful! Pineapple is unfavorable. Banana's - touted for potassium, are a mere 1/3 banana per block, and do not really have a lot of potassium per the number of calories in a full banana, let alone 1/3 of a banana. I'd stick more with berries - the most beneficial anti=oxidant fruits.
.
The big surprise is that bananas don't even make the top 10 list of superfoods with the most potassium!
The Recommended Daily Allowance (RDA) is 4,700 mg for both men and women. Eat right with these, the top food sources of potassium as listed by the USDA’s Dietary Guidelines for Americans and National Nutrient Database for Standard Reference .
.
Top food for Potassium? Sweet Potato (though unfavorable)
This root vegetable is the top source of potassium – one potato has 694 mg of potassium – about 15% of the daily recommended amount – and just 131 calories.
A true superfood, sweet potatoes are also a top source of both Beta Carotene and Vitamin A.
.
Second is Orange Juice, also unfavorable.
This breakfast staple is known for its Vitamin C (though it's actually No. 4 on the list of top sources of Vitamin C) but orange juice is also an excellent source of potassium. The good thing about this superfood? It's easy to eat up – or drink up.
.
Third best source of Potassium is Beet Greens, and favorable.
The greens of this root veggie are not only a top source of Vitamin A and Vitamin K, but they are also full of potassium – 655 mg in half a cup. If you don’t already grow this superfood yourself, find them at your local farmers’ market. They can often be substituted in recipes for collards.
A true superfood, beet greens are also a top real food source of Vitamin A and Beta Carotene.
.
The next three are also unfav carbs.
And so, seventh is Yogurt.
This quick and easy dairy snack may be your number one source for Calcium, but did you know it’s also high in potassium?
Eight ounces of plain non-fat yogurt has 579 mg of potassium.