Grapefruit vs Mango – Which is Healthier?

Our Verdict

When comparing grapefruit to mango, we picked the mango.

Why?

It’s pretty clear-cut today, despite a fairly even start:

In terms of macros, mango has a little more protein and carbs, but the differences are so small as to be negligible, while the two are equal on fiber; in realistic terms we’re calling this first round a tie.

In the category of vitamins, grapefruit has more of vitamins B1 and B5, while mangos have more of vitamins A, B2, B3, B6, B7, B9, C, E, and K, winning easily in this round.

Looking at minerals, grapefruit has more calcium and phosphorus, while mangos have more copper, iron, magnesium, manganese, potassium, selenium, and zinc, winning this round by quite a margin too.

One more consideration that’s not shown in the nutritional values, is that grapefruit contains high levels of furanocoumarins, which can inhibit cytochrome P-450 3A4 isoenzyme and P-glycoptrotein transporters in the intestine and liver—slowing down their drug metabolism capabilities, thus effectively increasing the bioavailability of many drugs manifold.

This may sound superficially like a good thing (improving bioavailability of things we want), but in practice it means that in the case of many drugs, if you take them with (or near in time to) grapefruit or grapefruit juice, then congratulations, you just took an overdose. This happens with a lot of meds for blood pressure, cholesterol (including statins), calcium channel-blockers, anti-depressants, benzo-family drugs, beta-blockers, and more. Oh, and Viagra, too. Which latter might sound funny, but remember, Viagra’s mechanism of action is blood pressure modulation, and that is not something you want to mess around with unduly. So, do check with your pharmacist to know if you’re on any meds that would be affected by grapefruit or grapefruit juice!

PS: the same substance is quite available in pummelos and sour oranges (but not meaningfully in sweet oranges); you can see a chart here showing the relative furanocoumarin contents of many citrus fruits, or lack thereof as the case may be, as it is for lemons and most limes).

Adding up the sections makes for an overwhelming overall win for mangos, but by all means do enjoy either or both, unless any of the furanocoumarin contraindications apply, in which case, definitely stick to the mangos!

Want to learn more?

You might like:

Watch Out For Furanocoumarins!

Enjoy!