Nutrient Intake & Diet Quality

One medium (4-inch diameter) or 1 cup fresh grapefruit sections, or 1 cup of 100% grapefruit juice, counts as one cup of fruit.¹  Adding fresh grapefruit or 100% grapefruit juice to your daily diet can help you achieve the recommended amount of fruit needed each day for optimal health.

There are many barriers to fruit consumption, including cost, access and convenience. Including fresh grapefruit and grapefruit juice as part of a healthy overall diet offers a step in the right direction to increase fruit intake.²

Grapefruit is Nutrient Dense

Grapefruit and 100% grapefruit juice contribute many important and beneficial vitamins, minerals, and bioactive plant compounds to the diet, including vitamin C, folate and thiamin, plus fibre in fresh grapefruit. In fact, 100% grapefruit juice is one of the most nutrient-dense of all commonly consumed 100% fruit juices³ and fresh grapefruit ranks high with respect to nutrient density among other fresh fruits.⁴ 

Grapefruit Supports Healthy Eating

Research shows that compared to non-consumers, people who consume any form of grapefruit have higher intakes of total fruit (all forms, including 100% juice), even above and beyond their consumption of grapefruit.⁴ This same research reported that grapefruit consumers had higher intakes of vitamin C, potassium, magnesium, dietary fiber and whole grains, lower intakes of added sugars and saturated fat (women only), and were more likely to meet adequate intake levels for dietary fibre. These data suggest that grapefruit in any form – fresh, juice, frozen or canned – can be an essential component of a healthy diet.

Grapefruit has Beneficial Plant Compounds

Grapefruit and 100% grapefruit juice, like all citrus fruit, have many plant compounds linked to health benefits. These phytonutrients or bioactives include flavonoids and carotenoids like beta-carotene (colorful plant pigments). The amount of phytonutrients can vary dramatically depending on cultivar, growing conditions, and other factors. Citrus flavonoids are primarily concentrated in the peel of the fruit. Commercial processing of fresh grapefruit into grapefruit juice extracts flavonoids from the peel into the juice. For this reason the juice tends to have a higher flavonoid content than the whole fruit.

We always hear that breakfast is the most important meal of the day, and it actually is! Start off your day with a nutritious breakfast and ½ of a fresh grapefruit or 1 cup of grapefruit juice to provide great taste and the nutrients your body needs to conquer the day.