Both honeydew and cantaloupe melons are low in carbs and sugars. They contain about 9 g of carbs and 8 g of sugars per 100g.
What’s the carbohydrate content of melons?
All melon varieties are mainly carbs. Melons contain between 6 g and 10 g of carbs per 100g. They’re poor in protein and contain negligible amounts of fat.
Honeydew, casaba, and cantaloupe are the three most common melon varieties.
Honeydew melon is the richest variety in carbs. It contains 9.1 g of carbs per 100g. Cantaloupe contains 8.2 g of carbs per 100g. Casaba melon has a lower carbohydrate content. It contains about 6.6 g of carbs per 100g.[1]
What types of carbs are in melons?
The main carbohydrate type of all melon varieties is sugar. The carbohydrate type of melons consists of 91% of sugars and 9% of fiber. Melons contain no starch.
Are cantaloupe & other melon varieties high in sugar?
Honeydew melon contains 8.1 g of sugars per 100g. An 1-cup serving contains almost 14 g of sugars, while a large wedge contains up to 13 g of sugars.
Cantaloupe melon contains slightly less than 8 g of sugars per 100g. So, honeydew and cantaloupe melons have almost the same sugar content.
Casaba melon contains about 30% less sugar than the other two most popular melon varieties. It contains 5.7 g of sugars per 100g, or 9.7 g per serving.
Is fructose the main type of sugar in melons?
Melons have 3 types of sugar. They consist of sucrose, glucose, and fructose. Every melon variety has a slightly different sugar composition.
For instance, the sugar content of honeydew melon is 36% fructose, 33% glucose, and 31% sucrose.
On the other hand, cantaloupe melon is quite rich in sucrose. It’s 55% sucrose, 20% glucose, and only 24% fructose. It contains small amounts of other sugar types as well.
Is sugar of fruits bad for health?
Excessive sugar intake has been linked to obesity, type 2 diabetes, metabolic syndrome, inflammatory diseases, and cardiovascular disease. Furthermore, excess sugar consumption may lead to fat accumulation in the liver, decreased insulin sensitivity, and increased uric acid and cholesterol levels.[2]
The upper recommended daily intake of added sugar is 25 g. Extra sugar is added in most commercial products. Cutting down sugar is very difficult because it interferes with the reward system of the brain, causing overeating.[3,4,5]
But, there isn’t a maximum safe dose of sugar which is naturally present in fruits. Healthy people can safely consume melon, and other fruits naturally containing sugar, like watermelon, grapes, papaya, grapefruit, and many more.
Can people with diabetes eat melons?
Melons have a medium Glycemic Index. They won’t spike blood sugar levels. According to the American Diabetes Association, people with diabetes can eat up to 1 cup of melon a day.[6]
Always consult your physician before changing your diet, though.
Are melons keto-friendly?
People on keto should limit their daily carbohydrate intake to 20-50 g.[7]
A serving of honeydew melon contains about 16 g of carbs, while a serving of cantaloupe melon contains about 13 g of carbs.
Hence, people who follow a ketogenic diet shouldn’t consume melons. At least, people on keto should consume small amounts.
Moreover, better prefer the casaba variety. Casaba melon contains only 11 g of carbs per serving.
Can the sugar content of melons make us gain weight?
We gain weight when we consume more calories than we burn.
Melon won’t make us fat. Despite its sugar content, melon is low in calories. Any melon variety provides up to 65 calories per serving.
Actually, a serving of honeydew, cantaloupe, and casaba melon has 64, 55, and 48 calories, respectively.
So, melon consumption is good for weight loss.
Should we eat melons daily?
We can eat melon every day. It’s low in calories, fat, carbs, and sugar. On the other hand, it contains decent amounts of fiber, potassium, vitamin C, and many antioxidant compounds.
Cantaloupe melon is particularly rich in carotenoids, and vitamin C!
The best time to eat melons in order to lose weight is before a high-calorie meal. Melon controls appetite and decreases total energy intake.
