Dr. McDougall's Online Discussion Board

Hi McDougallers. I have a question about sugars and the mechanics by which they can be helpful for gaining weight. I understand that so long as you are not underweight to start with, starch does not make you gain weight, because calories from sugar are normally burned off as energy and heat, rather than stored as fat. My question is why are dried fruits recommended for those who want to gain weight on the McDougall diet? I understand they are high in calories but they are high in calories from sugar not fat, so surely the calories should not be stored as fat, right? Any ideas please? If you can point me towards something Dr McDougall has written that explains this that would be most appreciated. Thanks.

The source of calories may matter for other reasons, but if you eat more calories than you need, you will store those excess calories as fat - that is, you will gain weight. That's true for starches, fruit, or anything else.

So the fact that calories in dried fruit are mostly from sugar doesn't matter. What does matter: Dried fruit are high in calories. And because they're so sweet (because they're dehydrated), it's easy to eat a lot of them without feeling full. That's why they're not recommended for people losing weight, and completely forbidden on the max weight-loss diet.

PS - this site has a pretty good search function. Use it whenever you wonder what Dr. McD. has said on a topic. For ex., search "dried fruit" and you will get quite a few results, including this one:
https://www.drmcdougall.com/2019/03/14/ ... nsumption/

The answer to your question leads to details in human hunger and metabolism. It’s a good question and leads to further learning.

PJK’s answer pointed to a very good Jeff Novick RD article about hunger and passive overconsumption.

Other parts of the equation are de novo lipogenesis, actual food composition and human metabolism.

https://www.drmcdougall.com/misc/2006nl/sept/sugar.htm
https://www.drmcdougall.com/misc/2009nl ... ionate.htm

If only a couple percent of starch calories eventually turn into fat, consistent excess will cause gain, just much slower gain. That holds for starch, but not all sugars. Fructose (type of sugar) in fruit is an exception, and it is readily turned into triglycerides (fat) by the liver.

https://www.drmcdougall.com/misc/2003nl ... erides.htm

And any other fat consumed, and all foods contain some fat, is still readily stored as excess.

Search for de novo lipogenesis (or just lipogenesis) and triglycerides, and you’ll find lots of reading.

viewtopic.php?f=22&t=14103

In health
Jeff