There are various types of sugar out there, but the two found in fruit are fructose and glucose.

The confusion starts with how sugar presents in whole fruit versus fruit juice. If you juice a load of oranges to make some home-made orange juice, that technically counts as one of your five a day – no matter how many oranges you squeeze.

A 150ml glass of 100% fruit or vegetable juice or a smoothie equals one portion. But according to the NHS, sugar found in unsweetened fruit juices, vegetable juices and smoothies still count as “free sugars”, which it says is the “type of sugar most adults and children in the UK eat too much of.” Sugar found to naturally occur in whole fruit and veg, however, doesn’t count as free sugars. Confusing right?

While whole fruits and veg don’t count towards that daily sugar limit (we’re supposed to eat no more than 30g of free sugars a day – the equivalent of seven sugar cubes, according to the Association of UK Dieticians), different fruits contain different amounts of fructose and glucose. Fruits like mangoes, grapes, cherries, pears and watermelon are all relatively high in the stuff (the sweeter the fruit, the higher the fructose), while bananas are also high in glucose (hence why they’re excellent to eat pre- and post-workout).

How much sugar is in fruit and should you avoid it on a low-sugar diet?