The juicy, red-fleshed fruit is treated at summer outings like nature’s popsicle, passed out in wedged cuts to screaming kids as a cold sweet treat on a hot day. Sadly, watermelon’s nutritional value is often perceived similarly as little more than colored flavored sugary water. In other words… empty calories. As far as fruit goes, we assume it provides little nutritional value and is higher in sugar than most of its cousins!
Fortunately for these hot summer days, that’s just not true. Watermelon’s sugar content (for one slice) is comparably to that of a medium sized apple. While it may have a higher glycemic index than other fruits, the glycemic load (measured to account for impact of carbs based on serving size of fruit consumed) is very low. Other fruits commonly thought of as “sugary” like bananas and grapes have glycemic loads 3-4 times higher than watermelon. Continue reading “Watermelon Gets a Bad Rap”
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