Dried fruit is concentrated sugar. Removing water concentrates everything into a smaller package—a quarter-cup of raisins has the sugar of a full cup of grapes, but raisins can be eaten by the handful. Research by Flood-Obbagy and Rolls found fresh fruit provides satiety while dried fruit does not. Dried mango, dates, cranberries often contain 15-25+ grams of sugar per small serving. Some have added sugar on top.
This companion covers the concentration effect, the numbers for common dried fruits, added sugar, the health halo, conducting the audit, fresh versus dried, and the trail mix trap. (5 min read)