Apricot: glycaemic index 56 dried, and one kernel is a toddler's ceiling

Dried apricots came out at a glycaemic index of 56 in 11 healthy adults aged 18 to 25, each fruit given as 50 g of available carbohydrate, the same as raisins and well above dried apples at 43. Eleven young people eating one portion each ranks these fruits against one another without predicting what one person will do. The more useful finding in that trial was about company. Adding 30 g of almonds to a meal of dried fruit and rice lowered the glycaemic index and the size of the glucose swing over four hours in every combination except the dried-apple one. So what dried apricots are eaten with also changes the glucose response, although this trial never weighed that against the effect of the fruit itself. Fresh apricots got their own three weeks and no change was reported. In a 21-day trial on 35 healthy Egyptian adults in five arms of seven, the arm eating 200 g of fresh apricots a day was not among those whose antioxidant markers changed, while the pomegranate juice and fermented sobya arms were. With seven people per arm and blood markers as the outcome, that is an absence of a reported effect rather than a measured null. Composition is shakier than a single number suggests. USDA analysed eight samples of raw apricot with skin and they disagree by more than twofold on iron, from 0 to 0.41 mg per 100 g, and run from 0.45 to 3.0 g on fructose.

The numbers, per 100 g

How much is actually in it

• USDA's own eight samples of raw apricot with skin disagree by more than twofold on iron, from 0 to 0.41 mg per 100 g, and on fructose, from 0.45 to 3.0 g, so one number for one apricot hides that spread. — USDA Foundation Foods record Apricot, with skin, raw, eight analysed samples (n = 8 samples) Evidence E source
  Iron 0.1634 mg per 100 g with range 0 to 0.41 and spread 251%, fructose 1.69 g with range 0.45 to 3.0 and spread 151%, copper 0.05614 mg with range 0.0285 to 0.0834 and spread 98%

What your body absorbs

• Adding 30 g of almonds to a meal of dried fruit and rice lowered its glycaemic index and the size of the four-hour glucose swing in every combination except the dried-apple one. — 11 healthy adults, meals of dried fruit plus rice with and without 30 g of almonds, 17 test mornings (n = 11) Evidence B source
  Glycaemic index and the amplitude of glucose excursion over 240 minutes fell significantly in all dried fruit plus rice plus almond combinations except dried apple

What cooking and storage change

• USDA's retention table keeps 90% of copper and potassium when dried fruit is baked and 100% when it is reheated, and it holds no factor for fibre at all, because fibre is not among the 26 nutrients in the release. — USDA retention factors for the group Fruits and Fruit Juices, code 9, which is the group apricot belongs to (n = 13 methods) Evidence E source
  Dried fruit baked 90% copper and 90% potassium, dried fruit reheated 100% for both; no factor for fibre in the release

What it does to your health

• Dried apricots came out at a glycaemic index of 56 in 11 healthy adults, the same as raisins and well above dried apples at 43. — 11 healthy adults aged 18 to 25, each dried fruit given as 50 g of available carbohydrate (n = 11) Evidence B source
  Glycaemic index 56 for dried apricots, 56 for raisins, 55 for dried jujubes, 43 for dried apples
• In a 21-day trial on 35 healthy adults the arm eating 200 g of fresh apricots a day was not among those whose antioxidant markers moved, while the pomegranate juice and fermented sobya arms were. — 35 healthy Egyptian adults aged 21 to 35 in 5 equal groups, supplements given daily for 21 days (n = 35) Evidence B source
  Significant rise in plasma and urinary antioxidative activity and a fall in urinary TBARS reported for pomegranate juice, and a rise in erythrocytic glutathione transferase for fermented sobya, with no such change reported for the 200 g apricot arm
• Across 187382 health professionals and 12198 new cases of type 2 diabetes, three extra servings a week of peaches, plums and apricots together carried a hazard ratio of 0.97 (95% CI 0.92 to 1.02), while blueberries reached 0.74. — 66105 women in the Nurses' Health Study, 85104 in Nurses' Health Study II and 36173 men in the Health Professionals Follow-up Study, 3464641 person years (n = 187382) Evidence C source
  Hazard ratio 0.97 (95% CI 0.92 to 1.02) per three servings a week of peaches, plums and apricots, against 0.74 (0.66 to 0.83) for blueberries and 1.08 (1.05 to 1.11) for fruit juice

Safety, limits and interactions

• EFSA set an acute reference dose for cyanide of 20 micrograms per kg of body weight, taken from the exposure that goes with a blood cyanide level counted as non-toxic. — general population, one-off exposure to cyanogenic glycosides from raw apricot kernels Evidence E source
  Acute reference dose 20 micrograms of cyanide per kg body weight, derived from an exposure of 0.105 mg/kg bw
• Among 13 fruit allergy patients sensitised to gibberellin-regulated protein, apricots were a causative fruit for 61.5%, second only to peaches, and in 61.5% exercise or aspirin was needed for the reaction to start. — 13 of 100 consecutive Japanese fruit allergy patients, selected for negative results to the usual pollen-food allergy markers and positive to purified nPru p 7 (n = 13) Evidence C source
  Causative foods peaches 92.3%, apricots 61.5%, oranges 46.2%, apples 30.8%; facial edema in 92.3% and laryngeal tightness in 66.7%; cofactor needed in 61.5%

What people believe that the data does not support

• A woman who swallowed 20 g of an apricot kernel amygdalin supplement needed intubation and two rounds of antidote, and her acidosis and QT prolongation came back 12 hours after the first treatment worked. — one 33-year-old woman, presenting five hours after intentional ingestion of 20 g of an amygdalin supplement (n = 1) Evidence C source
  Lactate 14.1 mmol/L and QTc 538 ms on arrival, then recurrent hypotension, acidemia and QT prolongation 12 hours later, resolved by repeat hydroxocobalamin and sodium thiosulfate
• Amygdalin from apricot kernels is sold as vitamin B17 although it is no vitamin, and it is still bought online despite a ban by the US Food and Drug Administration. — buyers of amygdalin supplements sold online Evidence E source
  Amygdalin is hydrolysed to cyanide in the small intestine and remains on sale online in spite of the FDA ban

Who this works differently for

• Thirteen children reached one Turkish intensive care unit over four years with cyanide poisoning from eating apricot seeds, symptoms starting at a mean of 60 minutes, and four of them needed mechanical ventilation. — 13 children admitted to a paediatric intensive care unit between 2005 and 2009 after eating apricot seeds (n = 13) Evidence C source
  Onset at a mean of 60 minutes with a range of 20 minutes to 3 hours; mechanical ventilation in 4, coma in 2, convulsions in 1, all discharged within a mean of 3.1 days
• By the same EFSA opinion one small raw apricot kernel already takes a toddler past that acute reference dose, an adult can eat three small kernels, and less than half of one large kernel can be enough to pass it. — toddlers and adults eating raw apricot kernels Evidence E source
  One small kernel exceeds the acute reference dose in toddlers, three small kernels stay within it for adults, and under half of a large kernel can exceed it in adults
• Among 8 adults with asthma known to react to sulfites, 4 lost lung function on sulfited lettuce, and 2 of 3 of those also reacted to dried apricots under double-blind challenge. — 8 adults with asthma diagnosed as sulfite sensitive by double-blind capsule and beverage challenge, then challenged with sulfited foods (n = 8) Evidence C source
  4 of 8 reacted to sulfited lettuce; 2 of 3 of those reacted to dried apricots and white grape juice; none reacted to sulfited shrimp

The bottom line

For whole fruit and disease, the figure that exists is not about apricots alone. Across 187382 nurses and health professionals with 12198 new cases of type 2 diabetes, three extra servings a week of peaches, plums and apricots together carried a hazard ratio of 0.97 (95% CI 0.92 to 1.02), against 0.74 for blueberries and 1.08 for fruit juice. The food frequency questionnaire never separated apricots from peaches and plums, so that interval belongs to the three fruits together and cannot be read as apricot. Cooking data is thinner again. USDA retention factors work by food group, and for Fruits and Fruit Juices they keep 90 percent of copper and potassium when dried fruit is baked and 100 percent when it is reheated. The table holds no factor for fibre at all, because fibre is not among the 26 nutrients in that release, so how much fibre survives baking is missing from the source itself. The kernels are a different food from the fruit, and they are where the real danger is. EFSA set an acute reference dose for cyanide of 20 micrograms per kg of body weight, derived from an exposure of 0.105 mg per kg linked to a blood cyanide level counted as non-toxic. That makes it a regulatory ceiling for one-off exposure rather than a measured harm threshold in people. By the same opinion one small raw kernel already takes a toddler past that dose. An adult reaches the same ceiling at three small kernels, and under half of one large kernel can be enough to pass it, with kernel weight carrying the whole calculation. That arithmetic marks where a regulatory ceiling for one-off exposure is crossed, and it is not an amount anyone has tested as safe to eat. Thirteen children reached one Turkish intensive care unit over four years with cyanide poisoning after eating apricot seeds, symptoms starting at a mean of 60 minutes with a range of 20 minutes to three hours. Four needed mechanical ventilation, two were comatose, and all went home within a mean of 3.1 days. Nobody recorded how many seeds they had eaten, so the series shows the shape of the harm without the dose behind it. Amygdalin from those kernels is sold as vitamin B17. It is no vitamin, and it is hydrolysed to cyanide in the small intestine. The authors of a 2020 case report say it is still bought online despite a United States Food and Drug Administration ban, which is their reading of the market and not a count of how often harm follows. Their patient was a 33-year-old woman who swallowed 20 g of an amygdalin supplement and arrived with a lactate of 14.1 mmol/L and a QTc of 538 ms. Twelve hours after the first treatment worked, her low blood pressure, acidaemia and QT prolongation came back and needed a second round of hydroxocobalamin and sodium thiosulfate. One deliberate overdose in one person tells you what a large dose did once, not what a kernel does. Two cautions sit with the fruit itself. Dried apricots are usually sulfited. In a double-blind challenge study of 8 adults with asthma confirmed as sulfite sensitive, 4 lost lung function on sulfited lettuce, and 2 of 3 of those also reacted to dried apricots. That work is from 1988 and its authors tie the reaction to how much residual sulfite a food holds, so a bag bought today may sit anywhere on that scale. Apricot is also a frequent trigger inside one specific allergy. Among 13 Japanese fruit allergy patients sensitised to gibberellin-regulated protein, apricots were a causative fruit for 61.5 percent, second to peaches, with facial swelling in 92.3 percent. In 61.5 percent exercise or aspirin was needed before the reaction started. Those 13 were picked out of 100 consecutive patients precisely because the usual pollen-food markers were negative, so 61.5 percent is not the share of apricot eaters who react. Our cards say nothing about apricots with medicines and nothing about kidney disease, which is an absence in the corpus and not reassurance. One exclusion is worth naming. Japanese apricot, the fruit behind umeboshi, is a different species, and the research on it says nothing about the apricot on this page.

Sources

1. apri-r2-01 · USDA FoodData Central Foundation Foods, dataset
   Apricot, with skin, raw (Foundation Foods, release 2026-04-30): Iron, Fe 0.1634 MG range 0.0-0.41 (median 0.126), samples 8, spread 251%; Fructose 1.69 G range 0.45-3.0 (median 1.435), samples 8, spread 151%; Copper, Cu 0.05614 MG range 0.0285-0.0834 (median 0.0538), samples 8, spread 98%
   USDA FoodData Central, Foundation Foods, release 2026-04-30, FDC 2710815 · checked 2026-09-24
2. apri-r2-04 · randomised crossover trial
   With the addition of almonds, the GIs and MAGE0⁻240 decreased significantly in all DF + A + R combinations except DApp + R + A.
   Nutrients, 2018 · checked 2026-09-24
3. apri-r2-02 · USDA Table of Nutrient Retention Factors, dataset
   USDA Table of Nutrient Retention Factors, Release 6 (2007), group Fruits and Fruit Juices (9): FRUITS(DRIED),BAKED copper 90% potassium 90%; FRUITS(DRIED),REHEATED copper 100% potassium 100%; fibre is not in Release 6 at all
   USDA Table of Nutrient Retention Factors, Release 6, 2007 · checked 2026-09-24
4. apri-r2-03 · randomised crossover trial
   The GI values of 4 DFs were 43 for DApp, 55 for DJ, 56 for both Ra and DApr.
   Nutrients, 2018 · checked 2026-09-24
5. apri-r2-05 · randomised controlled trial
   the second group received fresh apricot fruits (200 g); the third (PGJ)...Daily intake of (PGJ) for 3 weeks significantly increased the plasma and urinary anti-oxidative activities and reduced the urinary excretion of (TBARS). Daily intake of (FS) for 3 weeks increased only (E-GST) activity.
   Nutr J, 2016 · checked 2026-09-24
6. apri-r2-06 · prospective cohort analysis
   With mutual adjustment of individual fruits, the pooled hazard ratios of type 2 diabetes for every three servings/week were 0.74 (0.66 to 0.83) for blueberries, 0.88 (0.83 to 0.93) for grapes and raisins, 0.89 (0.79 to 1.01) for prunes, 0.93 (0.90 to 0.96) for apples and pears, 0.95 (0.91 to 0.98) for bananas, 0.95 (0.91 to 0.99) for grapefruit, 0.97 (0.92 to 1.02) for peaches, plums, and apricots, 0.99 (0.95 to 1.03) for oranges, 1.03 (0.96 to 1.10) for strawberries, and 1.10 (1.02 to 1.18) for cantaloupe.
   BMJ, 2013 · checked 2026-09-24
7. apri-r2-08 · EFSA scientific opinion
   An acute reference dose (ARfD) of 20 μg/kg bw was derived from an exposure of 0.105 mg/kg bw associated with a non-toxic blood cyanide level of 20 micro mol (µM)
   EFSA Journal, 2016, acute health risks related to cyanogenic glycosides in raw apricot kernels · checked 2026-09-24
8. apri-r2-13 · prevalence study
   In 13 nPru p 7-sensitized patients, the causative foods were peaches (92.3%), apricots (61.5%), oranges (46.2%) and apples (30.8%)...In eight patients (61.5%), exercise or aspirin intake enhanced the allergic reaction onset as cofactors.
   J Dermatol, 2017 · checked 2026-09-24
9. apri-r2-10 · case report
   A 33-year-old woman intentionally ingested 20 g of "apricot POWER B17 Amygdalin" supplements...Twelve hours later, she developed recurrent hypotension, acidemia, and QTc prolongation that resolved with repeat hydroxocobalamin and sodium thiosulfate dosing.
   Clin Toxicol (Phila), 2020 · checked 2026-09-24
10. apri-r2-11 · background statement in a case report
    It remains available for purchase online despite a ban from the US Food and Drug Administration.
    Clin Toxicol (Phila), 2020 · checked 2026-09-24
11. apri-r2-07 · retrospective case series
    Thirteen patients admitted to the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit (PICU) of Erciyes University between 2005 and 2009 with cyanide intoxication associated with ingestion of apricot seeds were reviewed retrospectively...The mean time of onset of symptoms was 60 minutes (range 20 minutes to 3 hours).
    Ann Trop Paediatr, 2010 · checked 2026-09-24
12. apri-r2-09 · EFSA scientific opinion
    Thus the ARfD would be exceeded already by consumption of one small kernel in toddlers
    EFSA Journal, 2016, acute health risks related to cyanogenic glycosides in raw apricot kernels · checked 2026-09-24
13. apri-r2-12 · double-blind food challenge
    The other four patients experienced a decrease in pulmonary function on double-blind challenges with sulfited lettuce. Two of three of these patients reacted to challenges with dried apricots and white grape juice; the fourth patient has not yet been challenged with these products.
    J Allergy Clin Immunol, 1988 · checked 2026-09-24