Pickers can be choosers

Nutrition Action Healthletter, June, 2003 by Bonnie Liebman, Jayne Hurley

Sometimes they look so tempting. The beautifully shaded, perfectly round peach. The smooth, unblemished pear. The shiny, deep-purple plum.

Until you take a bite.

One mouthful of mushy, mealy, flavorless, dry, or rotten fruit and you swear you'll never buy another one.

A sizeable body of research suggests that fruit may help reduce the risk of stroke, heart disease, and cancer. With fruit prices not always so cheap, it's annoying to have it end up in the wastebasket. That's why we've put together a clear, concise guide to picking and storing fruit (see "Pick Your Own," p. 14).

The well-informed fruit-eater also needs to know which fruits are packed with the most nutrients ... and which are packed with the most pesticides.

Pesticides

With different pesticides used on different fruits during different seasons on different farms, it may seem impossible to steer clear of the worst. In fact, it's simpler than you think.

"Most uses of most pesticides on most foods do not leave residues that raise any public health concern," says Ned Groth, senior scientific adviser at Consumers Union, publisher of Consumer Reports magazine.

"Only 15 to 20 of the most hazardous pesticides, each used on a handful of foods, are responsible for the vast majority of dietary risk."

Groups like Consumers Union and the Environmental Working Group have used sophisticated computer analyses to estimate how often which fruits carry residues of the least and most dangerous pesticides. Using their data, we've boiled it down to one simple rule: Try to buy organic apples, cherries, grapes, peaches, pears, raspberries, and strawberries.

Those are the fruits most likely to contain harmful pesticide residues. The rule only applies to flesh fruit. Canned peaches, for example, are among the least contaminated fruits. (So are fresh bananas, blueberries, kiwis, mangos, watermelon, and canned pineapples.)

Washing and peeling removes some, though not all, residues from any fruit. Whether you want to pass up the fiber in the peel of that firm, juicy apple is up to you. But there's no excuse for not washing it.

And don't let pesticides scare you away from fruit. Ultimately, you're better off eating fruit with pesticides than not eating fruit.

Nutrients

All fruit is good fruit, but some fruit is better than others. We've ranked fruits by adding up their nutrients--calcium, carotenoids, fiber, folate, iron, potassium, and vitamin C (see "The Fruit Bowl," p. 15). (Not all carotenoids are nutrients. Some--like beta-carotene--are converted to vitamin A by the body. But others--like lycopene--may cut the risk of cancer even though they're not converted to vitamin A.)

Our scores aren't perfect. No one knows which nutrients matter the most, or whether something other than nutrients explains why fruit helps cut the risk of disease.

Nevertheless, our chart can tell you which fruits have which nutrients (and how many calories). So check out your favorites ... and then try some new ones. If you limit yourself to top-seeded guava and watermelon, eating fruit will seem like a chore.

It should be a pleasure.

The information for the chart on p. 14 was compiled by Heather Jones DeMino.

Pick Your Own

   Fruit                     What to Look For

Apples            Firm fruit with a pleasant smell.

Apricots          Uniform golden-orange plump fruit.

Bananas           Bright, firm, yellow fruit. At peak of
                  ripeness, brown specks appear.

Blueberries,      Plump berries with good color.
Raspberries,
Strawberries

Cantaloupe,       Melons with a strong aroma.
Honeydew Melon    The blossom end (opposite the
                  fridge for up to 3 days (whole) or in a
                  indented end where the stem used
                  to be) should yield to gentle pressure.

Cherries          Very dark color with smooth,
                  glossy skins and stems attached.

Grapefruit        Fruit that is heavy for its size, with
                  firm, blemish-free, thin skin.

Grapes            Well-colored plump fruit attached
                  to pliable stems.

Guava             Soft green fruit with a fragrant aroma.

Kiwifruit         Plump, unwrinkled fruit that gives to
                  gentle pressure.

Lemons,           Firm, heavy fruit with thin, smooth
Limes             skins.

Mangos            Full, somewhat firm fruit with a
                  strong aroma.

Oranges,          Firm, heavy fruit with bright-looking
Tangerines        skin.

Papaya            Firm fruit with unblemished skin.

Peaches,          Rich-colored fruit that is fairly firm or
Nectarines        a little soft.

Pears             Fruit that has begun to soften.

Pineapple         Bright yellow-orange color, strong
                  aroma, and slight separation of the
                  "eyes" on the skin.

Plums             Fairly firm to slightly soft, plump fruit.

Watermelon        Whole melon that's symmetrical.
                  Cut melon with deep red color
                  that's free from white streaks.

   Fruit                       How to Store

Apples            In the fridge in an open plastic bag
                  for up to 2-3 weeks.

Apricots          At room temp. in a closed paper bag
                  until ripe. * Then in the fridge for up to
                  1 week.

Bananas           At room temp. until ripe.

Blueberries,      In the fridge in the container they
Raspberries,      were sold in for up to 10 days (blue-
Strawberries      berries) or 1-2 days (other).

Cantaloupe,       At room temp. until ripe. Then in the
Honeydew Melon    fridge for up to 3 days (whole) or in a
                  covered container for up to 2 days (cut).

Cherries          In the fridge in a closed plastic bag
                  for up to 3 days.

Grapefruit        At room temp. for up to 1 week, or in
                  the fridge in an open plastic bag for
                  up to 1 month.

Grapes            In the fridge in a closed plastic bag
                  for up to 5 days.

Guava             At room temp. until ripe. Then in the
                  fridge for up to 1-2 days.

Kiwifruit         At room temp. in a close paper bag
                  until ripe. * Then in the fridge for up to
                  1-2 weeks.

Lemons,           At room temp. for up to 1 week
Limes             or in the fridge in an open plastic bag
                  for up to 1 month.

Mangos            At room temp. until ripe. Then in the
                  fridge for up to 3 days.

Oranges,          At room temp. for up to 1 week
Tangerines        or in the fridge in an open plastic bag
                  for up to 1 month.

Papaya            At room temp. until ripe. Then in the
                  fridge for up to 1 week.

Peaches,          At room temp. in a closed paper bag
Nectarines        until ripe. * Then in the fridge (in a
                  single layer) for up to 1 week.

Pears             At room temp. in a close paper bag
                  until ripe. * Then in the fridge (in a
                  single layer) for up to 1 week.

Pineapple         At room temp. until ripe. Then in the
                  fridge for up to 3 days (whole) or in a
                  covered container for 2-3 days (cut).

Plums             At room temp. in a closed paper bag
                  until ripe. * Then in the fridge for up to
                  3-5 days.

Watermelon        At room temp. 1-2 days or in the fridge
                  for up to 1 week (whole) or in a
                  covered container for 2-3 days (cut).

   Fruit                  Tips

Apples            Softens ten times faster
                  at room temp.

Apricots          Avoid soft, pale, or
                  greenish-yellow fruit.

Bananas           Bananas lose flavor
                  in the fridge.

Blueberries,      Don't wash until
Raspberries,      ready to serve.
Strawberries

Cantaloupe,       A ripe cantaloupe has a
Honeydew Melon    yellowish cast to its rind.

Cherries          Don't wash until ready
                  to serve. Absorbs odors
                  from leeks, onions, and
                  peppers.

Grapefruit        Produces odors
                  absorbed by meat,
                  eggs, and dairy.

Grapes            Don't wash until
                  ready to serve. Absorbs
                  odors from leeks and
                  green onions.

Guava             There's no need to peel.
                  The edible rind is rich in
                  vitamin C.

Kiwifruit         Water-stained exterior
                  doesn't affect taste.

Lemons,           Produces odors
Limes             absorbed by meat,
                  eggs, and dairy.

Mangos            Avoid solid green fruit.
                  Other colors don't
                  indicate ripeness.

Oranges,          Produces odors
Tangerines        absorbed by meat, eggs,
                  and dairy.

Papaya            Best to eat when fruit
                  is mostly yellow-orange.

Peaches,          Peaches get juicier, not
Nectarines        sweeter, as they ripen.

Pears             Ripe when the flesh
                  around the stem yields
                  to gentle pressure.

Pineapple         Absorbs odors from
                  avocados and green
                  peppers. Avoid fruit
                  that smells of vinegar.

Plums             Avoid fruit that's too
                  hard or soft.

Watermelon        Underbelly should be
                  creamy, not yellowish.

* Storing in a paper bag hastens ripening.

Sources: U.S. Department of Agriculture and the U.S. and Canadian
Produce Marketing Associations.