grapes nutrition facts

Grapes nutrition facts

Widely popular, grapes are regarded in many cultures as “the queen of fruits," since centuries. These tiny berries are the storehouse of numerous health promoting phyto-nutrients such as poly-phenolic antioxidants, vitamins, and minerals. No wonder why many of us include them as an integral part of our diet, be it in the form of fresh table fruits, juice, or in salads!

Botanically, they are small round berries; grow in clusters on a perennial and deciduous woody vine of the genus: Vitis. Grapes are native to Europe and Mediterranean regions but now widely cultivated all around the world.

White/green variety	Red/purple variety	Blue/black variety

In structure, each berry features semi-translucent flesh encased in a smooth, thin skin. Some varieties contain edible seeds, while others are seedless. The color to the fruit is because of the presence of poly-phenolic pigments in them. Red or purple berries are rich in anthocyanins while white-green berries contain more oftannins, especially, catechin. Interestingly, these antioxidant compounds are densely concentrated on the skin and seeds!

The three main species of grapes grown around the world are; European (Vitis vinifera), North American (Vitis labrusca and Vitis rotundifolia), and French hybrids.

• Some of popular green cultivars are Thompson seedless, sugarone, and calmeria.
• Red varieties include emperor, red globe, cardinal, and flame seedless.
• Concord and zinfandel are some of flavorful blue-black cultivars.

Commercially, many cultivars of grapes are grown for different purposes either eaten as table fruit, fresh or dried (raisin, currant, sultana) or in wine production. 

Health benefits of grapes

• Grapes are rich in polyphenolic phytochemical compound resveratrol. Resveratrol is one of the powerful anti-oxidant, which has been found to play a protective role against cancers of colon and prostate, coronary heart disease (CHD), degenerative nerve disease, Alzheimer's disease and viral/ fungal infections.
• Resveratrol reduces stroke risk by altering the molecular mechanisms in the blood vessels. It does so firstly by reducing susceptibility of blood vessel damage through decreased activity of angiotensin (a systemic hormone causing blood vessel constriction that would otherwise elevate blood pressure) and secondly, through increased production of the vasodilator substance, nitric oxide (a beneficial compound that causes relaxation of blood vessels).
• Anthocyanins are another class of polyphenolic anti-oxidants present abundantly in the red grapes. These phyto-chemicals have been found to have an anti-allergic, anti-inflammatory, anti-microbial, as well as anti-cancer activity.
• Catechins, a type of flavonoid tannin group of anti-oxidants, found in the white/green varieties have also shown to possess these health-protective functions.
• In addition, the berries are very low in calories. 100 g fresh grapes just provide 69 calories but zero cholesterol levels.
• Grapes are rich source of micronutrient minerals like copper, iron and manganese. Copper and manganese are an essential co-factor of antioxidant enzyme, superoxide dismutase. Iron is especially concentrated more in raisins. In addition, 100 g of fresh grapes contain about 191 mg of health benefiting electrolyte,potassium.
• They are an also good source of vitamin-C, vitamin A, vitamin K, carotenes, B-complex vitamins such as pyridoxine, riboflavin, and thiamin.

See the table below for in depth analysis of nutrients:

Grapes, red or green
(European type, Thompson seedless),
Nutritive Value per 100 g,
ORAC Value 3,277 (Source: USDA National Nutrient data base)

Principle	Nutrient Value	Percentage of RDA
Energy	69 Kcal	3.5%
Carbohydrates	18 g	14%
Protein	0.72 g	1%
Total Fat	0.16 g	0.5%
Cholesterol	0 mg	0%
Dietary Fiber	0.9 g	2%
Vitamins
Folates	2 µg	0.5%
Niacin	0.188 mg	1%
Pantothenic acid	0.050 mg	1%
Pyridoxine	0.086 mg	7.5%
Riboflavin	0.070 mg	5%
Thiamin	0.069 mg	6%
Vitamin A	66 IU	3%
Vitamin C	10.8 mg	18%
Vitamin E	0.19 mg	1%
Vitamin K	14.6 µg	12%
Electrolytes
Sodium	0%	1 mg
Potassium	191 mg	4%
Minerals
Calcium	10 mg	1%
Copper	0.127 mg	14%
Iron	0.36 mg	4.5%
Magnesium	7 mg	2%
Manganese	0.071 mg	3%
Zinc	0.07 mg	0.5%
Phyto-nutrients
Carotene-α	1 µg	--
Carotene-ß	39 µg	--
Crypto-xanthin-ß	0 µg	--
Lutein-zeaxanthin	72 µg	--

Selection and storage

Fresh grapes are available all around the seasons. In the store, choose those that feature plump in consistency, free from surface wrinkles with intact skin, without any cuts or cracks or leaking juice, and firmly attached to a healthy-looking green stem. Lift up the whole bunch in the air and shake gently; loose berries, if any falls off easily.

Buy exactly ripened berries; green grapes should have a slight yellowish hue; red types should be mostly pinkish-red, while purple and blue-black types should be deep and rich in color.

Since the fruit tends to spoil early and ferment at room temperature, they should always be stored in the refrigerator. Loosely wrap washed grapes in a paper towel and place them in a zip pouch bag set at high relative humidity. This way, they will keep fresh in the refrigerator for several days.

Preparation and serving method

Grape juice is a delicious juice drink. Photo: Mai Le

Just before eating, wash the whole bunch to remove any pesticide residues and dust by rinsing in cold-water for several minutes. Place then in fresh cold water and gently swish them around few times. Pat dry using a soft cloth.

If you are not going to consume the whole bunch at one go, then separate it into small clusters using scissors. This way, you can keep the remaining fruit fresher by preventing the stem from drying out.

Although, its seeds are rich in nutrients, seedless grapes make recipes much more pleasant to eat.

Here are some serving tips;

• Enjoy them as they are without any additions.


• Add seedless berries in fruit/vegetable salads with peach, pear, tomato, lettuce, apricot , berries,currants, apple, pineapple etc.


• Dry grapes (raisin, currant, and sultana) are being used in confectionary, puddings, cakes, muffins, bread, etc.


• The fruit can also be used by food industry for the preparation of jams, jellies, juice and wine.