Contents
What it is
The pomegranate is the fruit of a tree native to western Asia, long cultivated across Iran and the Mediterranean. What you eat is not flesh but the juice-filled sac around each seed, which botany calls an aril — that is why the texture bursts grain by grain. The inside is divided into chambers by white membrane, and breaking the fruit open under water separates them easily, since the arils sink while the membrane floats. The juice stains clothing deeply. There are reports that it interferes with the metabolism of some medicines.
Scientific name Punica granatum
Pomegranate juice measures higher in polyphenol concentration than red wine or green tea. At the centre of that is a distinctive tannin called punicalagin.
The "pomegranate equals female hormones" story common in Korea deserves more caution. Pomegranate seed oil does contain phytoestrogens, but human trials on menopausal symptoms are few and inconsistent.
Key benefits
- Nutrition data
Very high antioxidant capacity
Punicalagin and anthocyanins together produce high measured antioxidant scores. Gut bacteria convert them into urolithin A, and that metabolite has become a research subject in its own right.
- Moderate evidence
The blood pressure evidence is relatively solid
A meta-analysis of 8 randomised trials found systolic pressure down 4.96 mmHg and diastolic down 2.01 mmHg. The systolic drop held regardless of trial length or dose. The dose split runs against intuition, though: under 240 cc a day gave a larger fall (11.01 mmHg) than over 240 cc (3.62 mmHg). This is not a reason to drink more.[1]
- Moderate evidence
It lowers inflammatory markers
A meta-analysis of 16 randomised trials (572 participants) found high-sensitivity CRP, IL-6 and TNF-α all lower. But the same analysis found no significant change in ordinary CRP, nor in the vascular adhesion molecules (E-selectin, ICAM, VCAM) or lipid peroxidation (MDA). Only some of the inflammatory markers responded.[2]
- Nutrition data
High in fibre for a fruit
4 g per 100 g of arils. That fibre is in the seeds you chew, though — juice alone does not deliver it.
How to eat it well
- Chew and swallow the seeds. Most of the fibre is there.
- De-seed it underwater: the arils sink while the white membrane floats, which makes the job easy.
- Check that juice is 100%. Pomegranate-"flavoured" drinks are closer to sugar water.
- Scatter it over yoghurt or salad and it gets eaten with no cooking at all.
- It freezes well, and the polyphenols hold up after thawing.
How to read the grades
Each benefit carries a label showing how far research on people supports it. Grades differ between items even within the same ingredient.
- Nutrition data
- A fact verifiable from food composition databases or health authorities. This is a different kind of statement from a clinical effect.
- Strong evidence
- Consistently confirmed across randomised controlled trials or meta-analyses.
- Moderate evidence
- Human studies exist, but effect sizes are small or results are mixed.
- Early research
- Cell or animal work, or small preliminary studies.
- Not established
- Commonly claimed, but not confirmed in studies on people.
What to watch out for
- Pomegranate can inhibit some drug-metabolising enzymes such as CYP3A4. If you take statins, certain blood pressure drugs or immunosuppressants, discuss large intakes with your clinician.
- On blood pressure medication, watch for pressure dropping too far.
- Juice is concentrated in sugar; if you manage blood glucose, choose the arils.
- High-dose pomegranate extracts marketed for menopausal symptoms rest on weak evidence — judge them carefully.
Nutrition
Approximate values per 100 g edible portion.
- Calories
- 83 kcal4%
- Carbohydrates
- 18.7 g7%
- Fiber
- 4.0 g14%
- Sugars
- 13.7 g
- Protein
- 1.7 g3%
- Vitamin K
- 16.4 µg14%
- Folate
- 38 µg9%
- Potassium
- 236 mg5%
Percentages are of the US FDA Daily Value for adults and children 4 and over. National reference intakes differ by sex and age.
Calculate this alongside other ingredients →
Key nutrients
By health concern
Sources
The databases and health authorities this article's nutrition figures and health statements draw on.
- 1Effects of pomegranate juice on blood pressure: A systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trialsMeta-analysisSahebkar A, et al. Pharmacol Res 2017PMID 27888156
- 2The effects of pomegranate supplementation on biomarkers of inflammation and endothelial dysfunction: A meta-analysis and systematic reviewMeta-analysisWang P, et al. Complement Ther Med 2020PMID 32147056
- 3USDA FoodData CentralFood composition database
- 4NIH Office of Dietary SupplementsHealth authority
- 5PubMedResearch literature
