Fruit Facts

• Only 1 out of 11 people eats the recommended serving of fruits and vegetables per day.
• Like “recommended daily intake” or RDI, the Dietary Guidelines apply to the diet that you consume over several days, not to single meals or foods.
• Plant foods like fruits are a great source of fiber which is important for healthy digestion and can reduce the symptoms of chronic stomach problems, colon diseases, and may even lower the risk for heart disease and some cancers.
• Fruits and vegetables are naturally low in fat and provide many essential nutrients. They are also excellent sources of folic acid and antioxidants including vitamins A, C, E, B6 , beta carotene, and selenium. Diets low in sodium along with a good source of potassium, found in most juices and fruit, may help reduce the risk for both high blood pressure and stroke.

Below is a list of the low carb fruits with under 20 grams per 1 cup serving (raw). When eaten raw, these provide essential enzymes as well as vitamins and minerals.

Low Carb Fact

1 Cup Raw Fruit	Carb Grams
Strawberries	11g
Blackberries	18g
Grapes	16g
Kiwi	15g
Cantelope	15g
Honeydew	16g
Pineapple	19g
Raspberries	14g

Cantaloupe (1/4 medium)		Grapes (1-1/2 cups)
Calories	50	Calories	90
Total Fat (g)	0	Total Fat (g)	1
Cholesterol (mg)	0	Cholesterol (mg)	0
Total Carbohydrates (g)	12	Total Carbohydrates (g)	24
Sugar (g)	11	Sugar (g)	23
Vitamin A (%DV)	100	Vitamin A (%DV)	2
Calcium (%DV)	2	Calcium (%DV)	2
Calories From Fat	0	Calories From Fat	10
Saturated Fat (g)	0	Saturated Fat (g)	0
Sodium (mg)	25	Sodium (mg)	0
Dietary Fiber (g)	1	Dietary Fiber (g)	1
Protein (g)	1	Protein (g)	1
Vitamin C (%DV)	80	Vitamin C (%DV)	25
Iron (%DV)	2	Iron (%DV)	2

Strawberry

The strawberry you eat is not really a fruit or a berry but is the enlarged receptacle of the flower.

Strawberries were cultivated in ancient Rome and were used as a medicinal herb in the 13th Century. They are a member of the Rose family. A museum dedicated to them in Belgium. During the 1700's, a hybrid variety was developed in France by breeding wild strawberries brought from North America with others from Chile. The first important American variety, the Hovey, was grown in 1834 in Massachusetts.

Nutrition and Consumption:

One serving of strawberries contains 20% RDA of folic acid. That's more per comparable serving than any other fruit. Folic acid is a water-soluble B vitamin which has been proven to reduce birth defects involving brain and nerve disorders. Strawberries are one of the most delicious and nutritious fruits. According to FDA regulations, strawberries are a sodium-free, fat-free food. They are not only cholesterol free but low in calories as well. 

Eight medium sized strawberries contain:

• 140% of the U.S. Recommended Daily Allowance of Vitamin C, which is more than one orange.
  
• 20% of the daily value for folic acid.
  
• Only 50 calories.
  
• No fat grams.
  
• Recognized source of potassium, folacin and dietary fiber. · Approximately 50% of this total dietary fiber is a water soluble pectin.
  
• Clinical studies that soluble fibers help reduce serum cholesterol levels.*
  
• Detailed nutritional information can be found by searching the USDA Nutritional Database. Enter "Strawberry" (no quotes) as the keyword and select the link and report of interest.