Sudbury dietitian recommends sticking to whole produce

There are many ways to eat fruit — everything from grabbing an apple and taking a bite, to slicing it up.

However, you may have noticed pouches of fruit are becoming more popular. But is grabbing a pouch of fruit and squeezing it down as good for you as taking a bite?

"All and all, it's a way to eat fruits and vegetables," Tammy Cheguis, a registered dietitian at the Sudbury and District Health Unit said.

"I think the thing to think about though is that people often say that this stuff is a lot more convenient. I can't really see how washing an apple or grabbing a banana or an orange … is not convenient."

Cheguis says pouches of fruit or fruit bars usually contain a mix of processed fruits and vegetables. She says due to the processing, vitamin C is usually added to the end product.

"The minute you pick a piece of fruit or vegetable off the vine or out of the ground, that's when the process of nutrient loss starts," she said.

When some products are concentrated or dehydrated, the nutritional value can increase, Cheguis said, but most of the time, it goes down.

"Every step of that processing, you get more and more nutrient loss," she said.

"Eating as fresh and eating is as close to home as you can, is probably the best idea."