Plant
Raw cherries
USDA description: Cherries, raw
How raw cherries scores for gout, what moved that score, and the nutrition and portions behind it.
Food Index score
Raw cherriesExcellent
| Starting score | 100 |
| Fructose | -4.2 |
| Nutrient Gaps | -4 |
| Cherry/Berry | +3 |
| Fiber | +1.3 |
| Vitamin C | +1 |
| Purine Load | -0.4 |
| 2 smaller factors | +0.2 |
| Final score | 97 |
Raw cherries scores 97 out of 100 and sits in the excellent band. Among the lower-risk choices for most people with gout, and often carries protective nutrients.
Penalties took 8.7 points off a starting score of 100, and protective factors added 5.6 back. Every factor is listed in full below.
Scores run 0–100, where higher means more gout-friendly on average. They reflect relative ranking across foods, not a personal risk level. The same food can suit one person and not another, so use the score as a starting point for a conversation with your clinician.
The underlying data
Nutrition and portions
Nutrition Facts
- Total Fat0.19 g
- Saturated Fat0.04 g
- Sodium0 mg
- Dietary Fiber2.1 g
- Total Sugars13.9 g
- Protein1.0 g
- Calcium12 mg
- Iron0.11 mg
- Magnesium12 mg
- Vitamin C10.4 mg
- Folate4 ug
- Water82.2 g
- Alcohol0 g
- Omega-3 EPA0 g
- Omega-3 DHA0 g
Common portions
- 1 cherrytypical7 g
- 1 cup150 g
- Quantity not specified75 g
Where the purine figure comes from
The purine content of this food has been measured directly in published laboratory studies, so the score uses that measured figure.
We rate this a high confidence estimate.
How purines affect the score →Nutrition values from the USDA FoodData Central database.
Scoring rationale
Every factor, in full
Each row shows the points a factor moved, what drove it, and the studies behind its weight.
- -4.2Long-term
FructoseLong-term
An estimated 5.8 g of fructose per 100 g, with no portion adjustment. Reduced 70% because whole fruit blunts the fructose effect.
Evidence: Choi HK 2008, BMJ · Choi HK 2010, JAMA
- -4Long-term
Nutrient GapsLong-term
Provides meaningful amounts of only 3 of the 5 protective nutrient groups (vitamin C, fiber, omega-3, magnesium and folate).
Evidence: Choi HK 2009, Arch Intern Med · Juraschek SP 2016, Arthritis Rheumatol · Zhang M 2019, Arthritis Rheumatol
- +3Flare risk
Cherry/BerryFlare risk
Cherry and berry anthocyanins are linked to fewer flares (odds ratio 0.65).
Evidence: Zhang Y 2012, Arthritis Rheum
- +1.3Long-term
FiberLong-term
2.1 g of dietary fiber per 100 g, with no portion adjustment.
Evidence: Juraschek SP 2016, Arthritis Rheumatol
- +1Long-term
Vitamin CLong-term
10.4 mg of vitamin C per 100 g, with no portion adjustment. Vitamin C helps the kidneys excrete urate.
Evidence: Choi HK 2009, Arch Intern Med · Juraschek SP 2011, Arthritis Care Res
- -0.4Flare risk
Purine LoadFlare risk
8 mg of purines per 100 g, weighted 0.45x as a plant source and 1.0x for the typical portion: 4 mg effective.
Evidence: Choi HK 2004, N Engl J Med · Kaneko K 2014, Biol Pharm Bull · Zhang Y 2012, Ann Rheum Dis
- +0.3Long-term
MagnesiumLong-term
12 mg of magnesium per 100 g, with no portion adjustment.
Evidence: Li X 2015, BMJ
- -0.1Long-term
Saturated FatLong-term
0.04 g of saturated fat per 100 g, with no portion adjustment.
Evidence: Juraschek SP 2016, Arthritis Rheumatol · Yokose C 2021, Curr Opin Rheumatol
Common questions
About raw cherries
Look up any food's Food Index score
Each score lists the factors that moved it, the portion it assumes, and the studies behind each factor's weight.