If you were presented with two snacks—one containing a modest seven grams of sugar and another boasting over thirty—it would seem instinctive to choose the former. Most people have been conditioned to believe that less sugar automatically equates to better health. Yet, nutrition is far more complex than such straightforward arithmetic. Foods do not exist in isolation, and the impact they have on the body depends not only on their sugar content but on the matrix of nutrients, fibres, and bioactive compounds that accompany that sugar. Thus, the assumption that the lower-sugar snack is automatically healthier deserves a more nuanced examination.
For nearly one hundred million adults in the United States living with prediabetes, the idea that a sweet tropical fruit could help reduce the risk of diabetes may sound implausible. Tropical fruits, after all, are known for their naturally high sugar content—often ranging from ten to fifty grams per serving. Mangoes, one of the sweetest of these fruits, frequently find themselves on the “to avoid” list for those watching their blood sugar levels. At first glance, this reasoning seems sensible. However, recent research led by clinical nutrition scientist Raedeh Basiri offers a fascinating counterpoint. Her work suggests that mangoes, despite their natural sweetness, may actually confer metabolic benefits that could help prevent diabetes, particularly in individuals at risk of developing it.
Dr Raedeh Basiri, an assistant professor in George Mason University’s Department of Nutrition and Food Studies, has emphasised the importance of considering foods in their total nutritional context. “It is not just the sugar content that matters, but the overall food context that matters,” she explains. Her team’s study marks a milestone as the first long-term clinical trial to show both metabolic and body composition benefits associated with regular mango consumption in prediabetic adults. These findings challenge the prevailing narrative that foods high in natural sugars are inherently detrimental, and instead highlight the importance of how nutrients interact within whole foods to influence health outcomes.
In essence, it is not merely the amount of sugar that dictates a food’s healthfulness, but the form and context in which that sugar is delivered. Mangoes contain natural sugars that are bound within a fibrous structure and accompanied by beneficial compounds such as vitamins A and C, antioxidants, and phytonutrients. This combination slows sugar absorption, supports gut health, and provides anti-inflammatory effects. In contrast, many processed snacks—particularly those marketed as “low-sugar” or “diabetic-friendly”—lack these natural co-factors. They may contain refined carbohydrates, artificial sweeteners, or additives that disrupt metabolic balance and may even increase the long-term risk of insulin resistance.
Basiri’s objective, as she articulates it, is to encourage a shift in focus towards whole fruits as part of balanced, evidence-based dietary strategies for diabetes prevention. “The goal is to encourage people to include whole fruits, like mango, as part of healthy eating behaviours and practical dietary strategies for diabetes prevention,” she says. “Individuals at high risk of diabetes should not only focus on the sugar content of foods, but on how sugars are delivered.” This distinction between naturally occurring and added sugars is crucial. The sugars in fruits come packaged with nutrients that enhance their digestibility and lessen their metabolic strain. In contrast, added sugars in refined foods are stripped of their nutritional balance and often lead to unhealthy spikes in blood glucose levels.
To investigate these effects in real-world conditions, Basiri and her research team conducted a six-month randomised clinical trial. Participants were divided into two groups: one group consumed a fresh mango daily, while the other received a commercially produced low-sugar granola bar. The researchers closely monitored participants’ blood glucose levels, insulin responses, and changes in body fat composition throughout the study. The comparison between a high-sugar fruit and a low-sugar snack bar offered a clear test of whether natural sugars, in their whole-food context, behave differently in the body from those found in processed foods.
The results were both surprising and illuminating. Despite containing nearly three times as much sugar—approximately 32 grams compared with 11 grams in the granola bar—the mango group exhibited superior health outcomes. Participants who consumed mangoes daily demonstrated improved blood glucose control, enhanced insulin sensitivity, and measurable reductions in body fat. These findings reinforce the idea that whole fruits should not be unfairly demonised for their natural sweetness. Instead, they illustrate that the body responds differently to sugars consumed in their natural form, where fibre and phytonutrients work in harmony to support metabolic health. Basiri’s research thus offers a powerful reminder that nutrition is about balance and biological context rather than mere numbers on a nutritional label. When it comes to managing or preventing diabetes, the key may not lie in shunning sweetness altogether, but in embracing it from the right sources—those that nature has already balanced for us.
More information: Raedeh Basiri et al, Daily Mango Intake Improves Glycemic and Body Composition Outcomes in Adults with Prediabetes: A Randomized Controlled Study, Foods. DOI: 10.3390/foods14172971
Journal information: Foods Provided by George Mason University
