If you are watching your weight, and you are eating large quantities of fruit, you probably should moderate your intake. (Shutterstock.com)

I have a confession to make. Last night, while watching a Blue Jays game on TV, I polished off more than a pound of cherries. And, they were delicious! I thought of putting them in a smaller bowl, so I would eat fewer, but by the time that occurred to me, most were already eaten. So, I figured that I had eaten about 350 pleasurable calories over about 5 innings of play and it started me thinking about fresh fruit and calories and how much is too much. It's a question I'm getting asked more and more lately.

I know that Weight Watchers now gives fresh fruit as a 0 points food, which pleases many of my clients, and of course, I promote fruit as being rich in vitamins, minerals, fibre and disease fighting plant chemicals. It's also true that eating more fruit is certainly better than eating cookies, cakes or other snack foods.

So, as we enter the season when so much fruit is available and delicious, I think it's time to clear up some of the confusion.

Yes, it's possible to polish off a pound of cherries from time to time, but -- surprisingly -- for the most part, it's harder to overeat fruit. For example, you may love fresh pears and apples but it's not likely you would eat five or six at a sitting. When I talk to my clients, more of them have trouble eating enough fruit and so eating too much is seldom a concern.

Fruit is a source of carbohydrate, most of which comes in the form of fructose, or fruit sugars and does contain some calories. If you have insulin resistance, diabetes or high triglycerides (a fat linked to heart disease risk) you probably need to limit the amount of fruit you eat. This might mean eating about three serving per day. A serving is 1 medium-sized fruit, 1/2 cup (125ml) cut up fresh fruit, half a grapefruit or mango. It doesn't mean you have to or should eliminate fruit from your diet. And, if you have any of these health problems, its a good idea to discuss this with a dietitian. If you are watching your weight, and you are eating large quantities of fruit, you probably should moderate your intake.

When it comes to fruit juice, it's a different story. It's a hot summer day, and it's easy to quench your thirst with a couple of cups of lemonade or other fruit juice or fruit drink. Those calories (about 100 calories in a cup) and grams of sugar can add up quickly and even more so when you look at the bottle sizes that they come in these days. Water, with no calories is a more desirable drink and if you don't like the taste, add a squeeze of lemon or lime or a dash of fruit juice that will give you flavour without all the sugar and calories. As I've written before, an apple or orange will leave you much fuller than drinking a small glass of juice that has the same calories.

Dried fruit also must be considered because it contains more sugar and calories per serving than fresh fruit. Fresh fruit contains lots of water which gives it bulk and satiety and when you take that water out, all the nutrients become more concentrated including the calories. One-quarter cup (175ml) of raisins has about 110 calories, 3 prunes have 60 and 3 figs have 65. It's easy to eat these foods like candy and the calories and sugar can grow quickly.