Ever wonder how your favorite foods stack up against each other in terms of nutrition?
We compared the nutritional contents of
grapefruit
versus
kale
(100g each)
below using 2020 USDA and NIH data[1].
For a quick recap of significant nutrients and differences in grapefruit and kale:
Kale and grapefruit contain similar amounts of calories - kale has 35 calories per 100 grams and grapefruit has 42 calories.
For macronutrient ratios, grapefruit is much lighter in protein, much heavier in carbs and much lighter in fat compared to kale per calorie. Grapefruit has a macronutrient ratio of 7:91:3 and for kale, 28:41:31 for protein, carbohydrates and fat from calories.
Macro Ratios from Calories:
Grapefruit | Kale | |
---|---|---|
Protein | 7% | 28% |
Carbohydrates | 91% | 41% |
Fat | 3% | 31% |
Alcohol | ~ | ~ |
Kale has 59% less carbohydrates than grapefruit - kale has 4.4g of total carbs per 100 grams and grapefruit has 10.7g of carbohydrates.
Kale is an excellent source of dietary fiber and it has 156% more dietary fiber than grapefruit - kale has 4.1g of dietary fiber per 100 grams and grapefruit has 1.6g of dietary fiber.
Kale has 5.9 times less sugar than grapefruit - kale has 0.99g of sugar per 100 grams and grapefruit has 6.9g of sugar.
Kale has 279% more protein than grapefruit - kale has 2.9g of protein per 100 grams and grapefruit has 0.77g of protein.
Both kale and grapefruit are low in saturated fat - kale has 0.18g of saturated fat per 100 grams and grapefruit has 0.02g of saturated fat.
Both kale and grapefruit are high in Vitamin C. Kale has 199% more Vitamin C than grapefruit - kale has 93.4mg of Vitamin C per 100 grams and grapefruit has 31.2mg of Vitamin C.
Kale is an excellent source of Vitamin A and it has 316% more Vitamin A than grapefruit - kale has 241ug of Vitamin A per 100 grams and grapefruit has 58ug of Vitamin A.
Kale and grapefruit contain similar amounts of Vitamin E - kale has 0.66mg of Vitamin E per 100 grams and grapefruit has 0.13mg of Vitamin E.
Kale is an excellent source of Vitamin K and it has more Vitamin K than grapefruit - kale has 389.6ug of Vitamin K per 100 grams and grapefruit does not contain significant amounts.
Kale has more thiamin, riboflavin, niacin, Vitamin B6 and folate. Both grapefruit and kale contain significant amounts of pantothenic acid.
Grapefruit | Kale | |
---|---|---|
Thiamin | 0.043 MG | 0.113 MG |
Riboflavin | 0.031 MG | 0.347 MG |
Niacin | 0.204 MG | 1.18 MG |
Pantothenic acid | 0.262 MG | 0.37 MG |
Vitamin B6 | 0.053 MG | 0.147 MG |
Folate | 13 UG | 62 UG |
Kale is an excellent source of calcium and it has 10 times more calcium than grapefruit - kale has 254mg of calcium per 100 grams and grapefruit has 22mg of calcium.
Kale has signficantly more iron than grapefruit - kale has 1.6mg of iron per 100 grams and grapefruit has 0.08mg of iron.
Kale is an excellent source of potassium and it has 158% more potassium than grapefruit - kale has 348mg of potassium per 100 grams and grapefruit has 135mg of potassium.
Naturally occuring in fruits and vegetables, flavonoids are associated with many health benefits and used in a variety of medicinal and pharmaceutical applications. [2][3]
For specific flavonoid compounds, grapefruit has more luteolin than kale per 100 grams, however, kale contains more kaempferol, quercetin and isorhamnetin than grapefruit per 100 grams.
Grapefruit | Kale | |
---|---|---|
luteolin | 0.6 mg | ~ |
kaempferol | 0.01 mg | 46.8 mg |
myricetin | 0.01 mg | ~ |
Quercetin | 0.33 mg | 22.58 mg |
isorhamnetin | ~ | 23.6 mg |
Carotenoids are micronutrients commonly found in plants and some animal products. An example is beta-carotene, the notable carotenoid which is a popular source of Vitamin A.[4][5]
For specific types of carotenoids, kale has more beta-carotene and lutein + zeaxanthin than grapefruit per 100 grams, however, grapefruit contains more lycopene than kale per 100 grams.
Grapefruit | Kale | |
---|---|---|
beta-carotene | 686 UG | 2873 UG |
alpha-carotene | 3 UG | ~ |
lycopene | 1419 UG | ~ |
lutein + zeaxanthin | 5 UG | 6261 UG |
For omega-3 fatty acids, kale has more alpha linoleic acid (ALA) than grapefruit per 100 grams.
Grapefruit | Kale | |
---|---|---|
alpha linoleic acid | 0.008 G | 0.378 G |
Total | 0.008 G | 0.378 G |
Comparing omega-6 fatty acids, kale has more linoleic acid than grapefruit per 100 grams.
Grapefruit | Kale | |
---|---|---|
linoleic acid | 0.029 G | 0.291 G |
other omega 6 | ~ | 0.003 G |
Total | 0.029 G | 0.294 G |
The comparison below is by common portions, e.g. cups, packages. You can also see a more concrete comparison by weight at equal weight (by grams) comparison.
Note: The specific food items compared are: Grapefruit (Grapefruit, raw, pink and red, all areas) and Kale (Kale, raw) .
Grapefruit g
()
|
Daily Values (%) |
Kale g
()
|
|||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
KCAL % |
|
5% | calories | 5% |
|
KCAL % | |
G % |
|
5% | carbohydrates | 5% |
|
G % | |
G % |
|
5% | dietary fiber | 5% |
|
G % | |
G | 5% | sugar | 5% | G | |||
G % |
|
5% | total fat | 5% |
|
G % | |
G % |
|
5% | saturated fat | 5% |
|
G % | |
G | 5% | monounsaturated fat | 5% | G | |||
G | 5% | polyunsaturated fat | 5% | G | |||
G | 5% | trans fat | 5% | G | |||
MG | 5% | cholesterol | 5% | MG | |||
MG % |
|
5% | sodium | 5% |
|
MG % | |
5% | Vitamins and Minerals | 5% | |||||
UG % |
|
5% | Vitamin A | 5% |
|
UG % | |
MG % |
|
5% | Vitamin C | 5% |
|
MG % | |
IU % |
|
5% | Vitamin D | 5% |
|
IU % | |
MG % |
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5% | calcium | 5% |
|
MG % | |
MG % |
|
5% | iron | 5% |
|
MG % | |
MG % |
|
5% | magnesium | 5% |
|
MG % | |
MG % |
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5% | potassium | 5% |
|
MG % | |
MG % |
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5% | thiamin (Vit B1) | 5% |
|
MG % | |
MG % |
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5% | riboflavin (Vit B2) | 5% |
|
MG % | |
MG % |
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5% | niacin (Vit B3) | 5% |
|
MG % | |
MG % |
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5% | Vitamin B6 | 5% |
|
MG % | |
MG % |
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5% | pantothenic acid (Vit B5) | 5% |
|
MG % | |
UG % |
|
5% | folate (Vit B9) | 5% |
|
UG % | |
UG % |
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5% | Vitamin B12 | 5% |
|
UG % | |
MG % |
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5% | Vitamin E | 5% |
|
MG % | |
UG % |
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5% | Vitamin K | 5% |
|
UG % | |
G % |
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5% | protein | 5% |
|
G % | |
UG % |
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5% | biotin (Vit B7) | 5% |
|
UG % | |
MG % |
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5% | choline | 5% |
|
MG % | |
MG % |
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5% | chlorine | 5% |
|
MG % | |
UG % |
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5% | chromium | 5% |
|
UG % | |
MG % |
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5% | copper | 5% |
|
MG % | |
UG % |
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5% | fluoride | 5% |
|
UG % | |
UG % |
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5% | iodine | 5% |
|
UG % | |
MG % |
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5% | manganese | 5% |
|
MG % | |
UG % |
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5% | molybdenum | 5% |
|
UG % | |
MG % |
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5% | phosphorus | 5% |
|
MG % | |
UG % |
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5% | selenium | 5% |
|
UG % | |
MG % |
|
5% | zinc | 5% |
|
MG % | |
G | 5% | Water | 5% | G | |||
G | 5% | Starch | 5% | G | |||
G | 5% | Alcohol | 5% | G | |||