Pomegranate: nutrition per 100 g

1. 01

   Folate is the strength

   At 39 micrograms per 100 g, pomegranate ranks 5th of 44 fruits for folate, covering about 13 per cent of a man's and 18 per cent of a woman's daily requirement.

2. 02

   Vitamin B6 and K1

   Pomegranate gives 0.29 mg vitamin B6 per 100 g, about 12 per cent of a man's and 15 per cent of a woman's daily need, and 18.5 micrograms of vitamin K1.

3. 03

   Some vitamin C

   Its 12.7 mg vitamin C per 100 g meets about 16 per cent of a man's and 20 per cent of a woman's daily requirement, 29th of 44 fruits.

4. 04

   Low in iron, despite the reputation

   IFCT 2017 lists only 0.31 mg iron per 100 g, about 2 per cent of a man's daily requirement. The red colour comes from plant pigments, not iron.

Values per 100 g of the edible portion. Source: Longvah T, Ananthan R, Bhaskarachary K, Venkaiah K. Indian Food Composition Tables 2017. National Institute of Nutrition, Indian Council of Medical Research, Hyderabad. Daily-need shares use the ICMR-NIN 2020 recommended dietary allowances for a 65 kg man and a 55 kg woman doing sedentary work (ICMR-NIN brief note). Nutrients IFCT did not analyse for this food are left out rather than shown as zero.

• Sprinkled over curd rice, thayir sadam, as a sweet and juicy garnish.
• Tossed into sprouts salad or fruit chaat with chaat masala and lemon.
• Anardana, dried sour pomegranate seeds, ground into Amritsari chole for a dark, tangy gravy.
• Anar raita with roasted cumin and mint, served with pulao.
• Fresh anar juice, best pressed at home and drunk at once without added sugar.

Pomegranate does not build blood in the way many families believe; its iron is low, and anaemia needs proper diagnosis and iron-rich foods or supplements on a doctor's advice. Juice loses much of the fibre and concentrates the sugar of several fruits, so whole seeds are the better habit. People taking warfarin or other regular medicines should ask their doctor before drinking large amounts of pomegranate juice every day, as it may affect how some drugs are handled.

Food composition is general information, not a diet plan. Anyone managing a medical condition should plan their diet with a doctor or a registered dietitian.

• Guava

  Nutrition per 100 g, from IFCT 2017.

• Orange

  Nutrition per 100 g, from IFCT 2017.

• Grapes

  Nutrition per 100 g, from IFCT 2017.

• Apple

  Nutrition per 100 g, from IFCT 2017.

• Amla (Indian gooseberry)

  Nutrition per 100 g, from IFCT 2017.

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