Peaches and watermelon, summer favorites: which food pairings are harmful?
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St. Peter's Hospital 26-07-23 00:00Main content
Peaches and watermelon, summer favorites: which food pairings are harmful?
Reporter Ha, Ji Su
Posted 2026.07.23 08:00
Updated 2026.07.23 08:09
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[Food Encyclopedia] How to eat fruit in summer
Eating well starts with knowing what you are eating, both for flavor and for nutrition. Our 'Encyclopedia of Ingredients' goes through the benefits, storage and uses of seasonal ingredients one by one. Don't miss the practical tips you can put to work in the kitchen right away. <Editor's note>
People with diabetes are advised to divide fruit into appropriate portions and eat it once or twice a day. [Source: Gettyimagesbank]
People with diabetes are advised to divide fruit into appropriate portions and eat it once or twice a day. [Source: Gettyimagesbank]
Fruit is an indispensable part of summer eating. It is eaten just as it is, and also enjoyed as juice or shaved ice. But even fruit, known as a healthy food, can affect health differently depending on when and how it is eaten. Eating too much of it, or eating it together with foods that do not combine well, can instead place a burden on health. Here we look at how to eat fruit in a way that brings out its benefits, and which food combinations work.
People with diabetes should split intake into 1-2 moderate servings
Fruit is a healthy food rich in vitamins and dietary fiber, but it is high in sugars, so eating too much of it can raise blood sugar sharply. Shaved ice desserts and smoothies in particular gain sugar and calories during processing, which can have a negative effect on health — not only blood sugar spikes but also weight gain. It is best to eat fruit in unprocessed, fresh form where possible, and patients with diabetes are advised to divide an appropriate amount into one or two servings a day. The recommended amount per serving is about half a Korean melon or one kiwi.
Peaches eaten with eel risk an upset stomach
[Image generated by ChatGPT]
[Image generated by ChatGPT]
Eel, prized as a restorative food, and the peach, the signature fruit of summer. The two are considered a bad match. Eating peaches together with high-fat foods such as eel or pork belly can cause an upset stomach, because the organic acids in peaches block the breakdown of fat. Watermelon, another summer fruit in season, is well known for pairing poorly with fried food. Fried food is high in fat and slow to digest, and the water in watermelon can dilute gastric juices and lengthen digestion time further.
Watch out for high-potassium fruit if your kidneys are weak
Summer is a season in which heat and dehydration readily place a heavier burden on kidney health. Patients with chronic kidney disease, whose kidney function is already reduced, therefore need to pay particular attention not only to fluid intake but also to their diet. Fruit with a high potassium content calls for special care. About 90% of the potassium contained in fruit is excreted through the kidneys. When kidney function is reduced, however, potassium cannot be properly excreted and builds up in the body, which can raise the concentration of potassium in the blood. Patients with chronic kidney disease should therefore be careful not to eat excessive amounts of fruit that is high in potassium. Representative high-potassium fruits include Korean melon, watermelon and bananas. Low-potassium fruits include apples, pears, grapes and strawberries.
Reporter Ha, Ji Su ha.jisu@joongang.co.kr
With advice from Lee Ji-yeon, Chief of Nephrology at St. Peter's Hospital, and Professor Lee Hye-jin of Endocrinology at Ewha Womans University Mokdong Hospital
Reporter Ha, Ji Su ha.jisu@joongang.co.kr
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Peaches and watermelon, summer favorites: which food pairings are harmful?
Peaches and watermelon, summer favorites: which food pairings are harmful?
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Reporter Ha, Ji Su
Posted 2026.07.23 08:00
Updated 2026.07.23 08:09
More sharing options
Save article
Font size
[Food Encyclopedia] How to eat fruit in summer
Eating well starts with knowing what you are eating, both for flavor and for nutrition. Our 'Encyclopedia of Ingredients' goes through the benefits, storage and uses of seasonal ingredients one by one. Don't miss the practical tips you can put to work in the kitchen right away. <Editor's note>
People with diabetes are advised to divide fruit into appropriate portions and eat it once or twice a day. [Source: Gettyimagesbank]
People with diabetes are advised to divide fruit into appropriate portions and eat it once or twice a day. [Source: Gettyimagesbank]
Fruit is an indispensable part of summer eating. It is eaten just as it is, and also enjoyed as juice or shaved ice. But even fruit, known as a healthy food, can affect health differently depending on when and how it is eaten. Eating too much of it, or eating it together with foods that do not combine well, can instead place a burden on health. Here we look at how to eat fruit in a way that brings out its benefits, and which food combinations work.
People with diabetes should split intake into 1-2 moderate servings
Fruit is a healthy food rich in vitamins and dietary fiber, but it is high in sugars, so eating too much of it can raise blood sugar sharply. Shaved ice desserts and smoothies in particular gain sugar and calories during processing, which can have a negative effect on health — not only blood sugar spikes but also weight gain. It is best to eat fruit in unprocessed, fresh form where possible, and patients with diabetes are advised to divide an appropriate amount into one or two servings a day. The recommended amount per serving is about half a Korean melon or one kiwi.
Peaches eaten with eel risk an upset stomach
[Image generated by ChatGPT]
[Image generated by ChatGPT]
Eel, prized as a restorative food, and the peach, the signature fruit of summer. The two are considered a bad match. Eating peaches together with high-fat foods such as eel or pork belly can cause an upset stomach, because the organic acids in peaches block the breakdown of fat. Watermelon, another summer fruit in season, is well known for pairing poorly with fried food. Fried food is high in fat and slow to digest, and the water in watermelon can dilute gastric juices and lengthen digestion time further.
Watch out for high-potassium fruit if your kidneys are weak
Summer is a season in which heat and dehydration readily place a heavier burden on kidney health. Patients with chronic kidney disease, whose kidney function is already reduced, therefore need to pay particular attention not only to fluid intake but also to their diet. Fruit with a high potassium content calls for special care. About 90% of the potassium contained in fruit is excreted through the kidneys. When kidney function is reduced, however, potassium cannot be properly excreted and builds up in the body, which can raise the concentration of potassium in the blood. Patients with chronic kidney disease should therefore be careful not to eat excessive amounts of fruit that is high in potassium. Representative high-potassium fruits include Korean melon, watermelon and bananas. Low-potassium fruits include apples, pears, grapes and strawberries.
Reporter Ha, Ji Su ha.jisu@joongang.co.kr
With advice from Lee Ji-yeon, Chief of Nephrology at St. Peter's Hospital, and Professor Lee Hye-jin of Endocrinology at Ewha Womans University Mokdong Hospital
Reporter Ha, Ji Su ha.jisu@joongang.co.kr
More articles
Copyright © Health JoongAng. Unauthorized reproduction and redistribution prohibited.
0 Comments
Member Login
Author
Author
Password
Password
Enter your comment
Posts that infringe on rights, contain abusive language or demean a particular person may be subject to sanctions under the terms of use and the relevant laws. Logging in as a member makes writing comments easier.
0 / 400
Submit
Sort comments Newest Most liked Most replies
BEST Comments
Top News
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Normal eye pressure, but you should not stop your glaucoma eye drops: 3 surprising reasons
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No access to standard drugs used abroad and emergency medicines cut off… the ‘treatment gap’ in brain disease reaches its limit
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Peaches and watermelon, summer favorites: which food pairings are harmful?
Peaches and watermelon, summer favorites: which food pairings are harmful?
Benfovel S
Most Read
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How to make old rice taste like freshly harvested rice… add three drops of ‘this’
2
‘Shingles’, the summer scourge that drains stamina and immunity… women in their 50s are especially vulnerable
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4
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