The difference between fruit and nuts..

Voir aussi une traduction francais: La difference entre les fruits et les noix

Hi all,

I've blogged about this before, here: What is a fruit?, but as I keep noticing people's confusion on the subject, I thought I'd try and clarify things once more.. No doubt I'll be repeating much of what I've already written and said several times previously, but, well, here goes nothing..

What's the difference between a fruit and a nut?

I keep seeing people writing that botanically speaking, fruit and nuts are the same thing.. but in my opinion, although they are clearly in physical proximity, they are no more similar than a root and a leaf! (please see also, related blog post: Nuts on a fruitarian diet).

Think of a nectarine,, what we eat is the precious sweet nectar flesh that surrounds the stone/seed of the plant.. The seed is clearly separate from the flesh. The flesh is the thing that is, so to say, given karmically free.

Think of a melon, what we eat is the deliciously tasting flesh of the melon.. not the seeds in the centre which generally get left out of the digestive experience.. (yes, I'm aware that some cultures roast them, but fresh out of the fruit they are none too appealing in my eyes)

Think of a pawpaw, we eat the life giving juicy vibrantly colourful sweet flesh of the pawpaw.. the small black seeds get composted..

Chopped Papaya fruit Papaya Seeds

Notice how fruit is much more vibrant, in colour and texture, than seeds are

Think of an apple.. the flesh is savoured, the core... discarded..

I could continue ad infinitum..

So what's a nut?

Apart from yours truly, that is!


Mango the Fruit Nut
Clearly not every seed is surrounded by this so clearly precious substance called fruit.. some seeds/nuts/grains etc are void of the encapsulating fruit flesh..

that's just the way the world is.. not every plant consists of a fruit.. not every plant consists of a seed either, for that matter..

Nature is abundant with variations..

So what's wrong with nuts?

Well... that's a loaded question.. I'm not trying to say anything is wrong with nuts, but then again, I'm not saying anything is wrong with seeds, grains, shoots, leaves, roots, tubers, insects or animals.. Although there might be ( :) )

However, I just don't believe any of the above are ideal foods for humans..

But about nuts specifically.. I think it's well worth acknowledging, that unlike fruit, commercially available raw nuts are just not available!! I've had people write to me and say, but David Wolf is selling raw almonds or cashews etc! don't be fooled.. it's simply not true.. and if it is, then it's because he means something else by the word raw, than i do right now..

when I say raw, I'm talking unprocessed raw.. about raw ripe and fresh.. When others say they are selling raw nuts, then what they are really selling are processed (sun)dried nuts, about as raw as their dried goji berries..

Dried food has no instinctive stop.. At best, it's physiologically a 2nd class food..

When I talk about eating fruit, I'm talking about eating the raw ripe fresh fruit, the edible pulp that generally surrounds the seed of the plant..

So as a fresh fruitarian, I eat grapes, not raisins, plums, not prunes, fresh mango, not dried shriveled dehydrated mango.. And I don't eat nuts because:

1. Ethically, I'd like to give them the chance to fulfill their potential treeful destiny.
2. they are commercially not available raw.
3. I don't consider them to be physiologically ideal foods.. too heavy.

As an experiment, I'd like you to go out in nature, and find some truly fresh (ie, not even sun dried!) nuts, and sit and eat them. I think you will have had enough of them far sooner than you ever would with those readily picked and packed store bought ones..

Truly fresh nuts, are slightly wet and soft.. not dried and crispy/crunchy..!!

What about coconuts?

Well, yes, granted, unlike other nuts, they are definitely readily available, raw ripe and fresh and in abundance for some.. And physiologically, I'd reckon for that reason, that they'd have to be better for you than most any other nut available..

However..

They are still not fruit..

I love to see coconuts fall off when they are ready, and sprout in the sand.. Coconut palms are a beautiful sight.. And I have personally made the choice to try and avoid ending the life of another prematurely..

Of course, that's my choice, and I respect that others may not feel the same way.. We all have to reach our own conclusions about such deep matters..

I understand when people tell me that there are an abundance of nuts, and that by eating them, we also help propagate them.. yes.. if that's how you feel about them then great, enjoy them! My belief, which may be wrong, is that fruit offers superior nutritional benefits, and thus I'm just choosing, to stick to fruit.

I think one other thing we might observe with nuts, is how difficult they are to get in to.. think about it, every fruit, when it's ready, will let you have easy access to the flesh.. Try and get into a coconut with your bare hands, or a macadamia nut with you teeth, and that's a whole different story..

What about Legumes, peas, beans etc??

I see.. Well.. you can certainly get them fresh and ripe to eat, that's for sure.. I grew a few peas and beans in our last garden (in Sydney), and did eat them too (see also - just-fruit-no-nuts-seed-roots-or-greens)..

But I don't consider them fruit.. botanically or otherwise.. They are seed, and to be honest, although I've made occasional exceptions in the past, I'd rather let the seed be.

I'm not saying you yourself or anyone else should or shouldn't indulge.. Frankly you have to make up your own mind what you consider the right things to eat..

Me, I'm choosing to be fruitarian, because I believe it is the garden of Eden diet, and because I'm a hopeless romantic that believes it's love that ultimately makes the world go round, that "love is all you need" and that fruit is the only food that's fully compatible with that notion, being not only the highest of all foods (physically and spiritually).. but also the only food that is truly "given" by any living thing...

Peace,
Mango.

Nuts in a fruitarian diet??

Let me tell you why I don't do them..

For starters, they are not fruit.. Much as many might classify them as such..

And as a fruitarian, I try to avoid eating the seed of a plant, unless it is so intricately entwined with the fruit itself, that eating it together with the fruit is pretty unavoidable. (as is the case with pomegranate, tomato, passion fruit, kiwi, etc etc). In these cases, I see the seed as ultimately benefiting from or profiting through being swallowed unavoidably whole, as the digestion process will actually help kick start whatever enzymes are in the seed needed to get it germinating. Thus the deal is symbiotic for both us, and the plant.

However, there are other reasons too..

You may not be aware of this, but I believe all natural fresh ripe and ready foods eaten mono on an empty stomach, have what a group in France have christened an "instinctive stop"..

I've studied their philosophy somewhat (more on that in another blog entry), and certainly can't say that I am in agreement with it in it's entirety, but certainly there are aspects of it that are worthy of consideration.. The instinctive stop being one such item..

The instinctive stop is recognisable through a change in flavour.. It can bring on tingling sensations, or burning sensations, or just subtle changes in flavour of the fruit, rendering the fruit in question no longer as appealing as it was at the beginning of the (mono) meal..

An easy example of this, that you are probably already familiar with, is the burning sensation you might get if you eat too much pineapple.. That is your body telling you "Stop!.. Don't eat anymore.. that is enough now.."..

But the "stop" may be more subtle.. it may just be that whatever it is you are eating, suddenly becomes less appealing to you. Listen to these signs, as your body is telling you in it's own way, that it is finished with that now..

Compare this with any cooked food, - there is no instinctive stop with cooked or processed foods.. Eat chocolate, and your body will scream out insatiably "more more!".. It is easy to push things over the limit, overdo things, and consequently render yourself sick.. In fact, the intellect has to kick in and say "That's enough now! Break it up", because if it doesn't, the intellect knows the consequences..

But that's not how it should be.. The body should always be the one that decides..

On a fruit diet (keeping things simple and not over mixing as many raw fooders habitually do), you are safe to keep eating until the foods appeals no more.. There is no chance of putting on weight, or making yourself sick through over eating (provided the fruit is truly fresh, ripe and ready to eat without bruises or mold).

So.. Back to the nuts.. Did you know that pretty much ALL commercially available nuts are heat treated. I can think of no exception...

As such, there is no "instinctive stop" with nuts.. And your body will crave the addictiveness of them, thus be unable to truthfully tell you that enough is enough..

There have been times that I have found and eaten freshly fallen nuts directly from under the tree. These are commonly called "wet nuts" (due to them still being fresh and moist and soft), and they differ tremendously from the commercially available "dry nuts".. I can honestly report, that after eating 2 or 3 "wet" walnuts, I got a clear recognisable feeling of taste change, and the food became unappealing, just as it is supposed to.

Drawing from another experience, I think it was Christmas 2001, I was working night shift at the post office sorting department. Throughout much of the day I slept, and late afternoon, evening, with it being too cold outside (this is back in the UK, snow on the ground etc.etc.) I minimized my shopping and thought I'd sustain myself on predominantly nuts. I think I must have devoured about half a kilo of nuts (weight with the shells) every day for 2 weeks..

The consequence, I made myself sick sick sick.. My body struggled to cleanse itself, and basically knocked me out for about 3 weeks.

Fruit would never do that!

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Thanks to Fruktoed for a small russian translation:
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Перевод:
Что касается другого прошлого моего опыта, я думаю это было рождество 2001 года, я работал в ночную смену на почте, занимался сортировкой. На протяжении всего дня я спал, и после обеда вечером, становилось слишком холодно на улице (это происходило в Англии, снежная погода и т.п.) Я решил сэкономить и думал продержусь преимущественно на орехах. Я думаю что поглощал около пол кило орехов (вес вместе с скорлупой) каждый день в течении 2 недель.

В следствии чего я заболевал все сильнее и сильнее. Мое тело боролось с очисткой самого себя и в сущности я вырубился на 3 недели.

С фруктами никогда ничего подобного не могло бы случиться!
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Make no bones.. Commercially available nuts, or any dried nuts, are cooked food, they are as moreish as some cooked foods, and the consequences are the same... Intoxication!!

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