My kids eat a lot of fruit -- apples, strawberries, bananas, you name it. I don't think they've met a fruit they don't like and when I discourage them from their junk-food tendencies, they always opt for fruit. I've always considered this a good thing. Fruit is healthy. Why not let them eat their little hearts out. But today, after serving seven-year-old Joey his third bowl of strawberries, I wondered: How much fruit is too much fruit? So I did a little digging and found these answers.

According to this Woman's Day website, if eating fruit replaces sweet foods like candies and muffins, then indulging is A-OK. "I don't know anyone who has got fat from eating fruit," says writer Judy Davie who warns us not to forget a balanced diet consisting of other essential nutrients such as Vitamin A, B group vitamins, iron, and calcium

The folks at The World's Healthiest Foods say fruit can cause weight gain -- any food in large quantities causes weight gain -- although fruit may be safer to eat in excess than other foods. Fresh fruits contain about 15-20 calories per ounce -- a medium-sized apple contains about 120 calories, for example. Calories are calories. Unless you burn them off, they stick around. And dried fruit is particularly dangerous. Beware: Six ounces of raisins contain about 500 calories.

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There's been a lot of weighty discussion about my recent Catherine Zeta-Jones post. More than 130 comments have been left, all of them passionately spelling out thoughts and opinions about celebrities and weight loss. You see, the actress has recently trimmed down her already-svelte figure, and people are noticing. Some media folk say she's anorexic; some say "leave the poor girl alone." Your comments echo these sentiments.

Now that I've poured through each and every comment on the topic of Ms. Zeta-Jones, I want you to know how I feel about thinness.

I think thin is OK. In fact, I tend to think the whole "too skinny" problem is not as bad as the obesity problem facing our nation. Now I don't by any means promote skeletal pursuits, and it worries me to no end when girls and boys alike are swallowed up by eating disorders. But right now, at this very moment, I truly believe the fat we carry on our bodies is so much more dangerous than our lack of it. There are countless posts right here on this blog that warn of obesity and its inherent dangers. Other posts reflect on the value of eating a calorie-restricted diet. Those who eat less live longer, say the experts. And now, we learn from a new landmark study that excess fat is linked to six different cancers. I feel even more secure in my position now.

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My husband told me about this ground-breaking news flash today at lunch, and I suspect that the little blurb he first heard on talk radio is going to soon infiltrate the media. It's that big. Here's what he heard: Excess body fat almost certainly causes cancer.

The evidence is stronger now than ever before and is detailed in a landmark report issued today by the American Institute for Cancer Research (AICR) and the World Cancer Research Fund (WCRF). Evidence linking cancer with consumption of alcohol, red meat, and processed meat is also pretty darn convincing.

The report, available here, has been five years in the making and consists of data pulled together from nine independent teams of scientists from around the world and 21 international experts who analyzed more than 7,000 large-scale studies.

If you were unsure about the connection between cancer and diet before today, consider this: Body fat is convincingly linked to six different cancers -- colon, kidney, pancreas, adenocarcinoma of the esophagus and endometrium, and post-menopausal breast cancer. And this is just one striking point made in the 517-page report. There are 10 other issues outlined, which have led to these ten recommendations:

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I tend to excuse the 50 pounds and the 42 pounds I gained during my two pregnancies as understandable given the two whopper babies who emerged from my body. My first baby boy weighed 10 pounds, nine ounces. The second guy: 10 pounds, two ounces. I had to gain a lot of weight to support the monsters growing inside me. Or did I?

Nearly half of all pregnant women may be packing on excess and unnecessary pounds, say experts on the topic. As a result, the 1990 guidelines issued by the Institute of Medicine -- doctors still rely on these -- may soon be up for review. What do you think about these almost 18-year-old standards?

• Underweight women should gain 28 to 40 pounds. By the way, I was not in this category prior to my pregnancies.

• Normal weight women should gain 25 to 35 pounds. This is my category -- which means I surpassed my target by 15 and then seven pounds. That puts me in the "half-of-all-pregnant-women" category.

• Overweight women should gain 15 to 20 pounds.

• Obese women should gain at least 15 pounds.

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