Are Dates Bad for Gout? Dates, Figs, Raisins and Fructose
Dates are low in purines, about 15 mg per 100 g. The gout issue is fructose: two Medjool dates carry about 15 g. How dried figs and raisins compare.
TL;DR
- Dates aren’t high in purines: dates, dried figs and raisins are all listed at about 15 mg per 100 g, in the Low band.
- What matters is fructose, the one sugar that raises uric acid. Two Medjool dates carry about 15 g, roughly three-quarters of what’s in a 12-ounce cola.
- Whole fruit isn’t consistently linked to gout the way sugary drinks and juice are, but drying packs a lot of fructose into a few bites. Keep portions small.
Dates aren’t bad for gout because of purines. They’re one of the lowest-purine foods there is. The real question is sugar, specifically fructose, and dried fruit concentrates it.
A date or two is fine for most people with gout. A bowl of them, a bag of trail mix or a date-sweetened smoothie is where the fructose adds up.
Are dates high in purines?
No. Dates, dried figs and raisins haven’t been analyzed for the USDA and ODS-NIH Database for the Purine Content of Foods, but older tables list all three at about 15 mg per 100 g, and Urica uses that figure. That’s in the Low band.
| Dried fruit | Per 100 g | Typical serving | Purines per serving |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dates | ~15 mg | 2 Medjool (48 g) | ~7 mg |
| Dried figs | ~15 mg | 3 figs (25 g) | ~4 mg |
| Raisins | ~15 mg | 1 oz (28 g) | ~4 mg |
Our bands: Low under 50 mg per 100 g, Moderate 50–100, High 100–200, Very high over 200.
For scale, a 4-ounce raw chicken breast carries about 180 mg (published analyses of raw breast range from about 130 to 290 mg per 100 g). You can’t eat enough dates to make purines the problem.
How much fructose is in dates, figs and raisins?
This is the number that matters. Per serving, from USDA FoodData Central:
| Food | Serving | Calories | Total sugar | Fructose* |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Medjool dates | 1 (24 g) | 66 | 16 g | ~7.7 g |
| Medjool dates | 2 (48 g) | 133 | 32 g | ~15.5 g |
| Deglet Noor dates | 5 (36 g) | 100 | 22 g | ~11 g |
| Dried figs | 3 (25 g) | 63 | 12 g | ~6 g |
| Raisins | 1 oz, about 60 (28 g) | 85 | 18 g | ~10 g |
| Raisins | small 1.5-oz box (43 g) | 129 | 28 g | ~15 g |
| Dried cranberries, sweetened | ¼ cup (40 g) | 123 | 29 g | ~14 g |
| Prunes | 5 (48 g) | 114 | 18 g | ~6 g |
| Dried apricots | 10 halves (35 g) | 84 | 19 g | ~6 g |
| Fresh grapes | 1 cup (151 g) | 104 | 23 g | ~12 g |
| Regular cola | 12 oz can | 155 | 37 g | ~22 g |
*Free fructose plus half of any sucrose, since table sugar is half fructose. This is how the major gout and fructose study counted it.
A few things stand out:
- Medjool dates are the heavyweights. At about 7.7 g of fructose each, two Medjools come close to three-quarters of a can of cola.
- Deglet Noor dates are smaller, about 7 g each, with about 2 g of fructose apiece.
- Raisins are as concentrated as dates. A quarter cup of raisins has about the same fructose as a full cup of fresh grapes, in a quarter of the weight. See are grapes bad for gout.
- Sweetened dried cranberries have sugar added, which puts them level with raisins.
- Prunes and dried apricots carry roughly a third to a half of the fructose of dates or raisins, gram for gram.
Why does fructose matter for gout?
Fructose is the only carbohydrate known to raise uric acid. Taken in quickly, it speeds the breakdown of ATP, the cell’s energy molecule, into AMP, a precursor of uric acid, and it increases purine production. Researchers have found this effect is exaggerated in people who already have high uric acid or a history of gout. Our guide to fructose, the hidden gout trigger covers the mechanism in more detail.
The population evidence, though, is mostly about drinks:
- The big US study. In 46,393 men followed for 12 years, those in the top fifth of fructose intake had about twice the risk of developing gout (relative risk 2.02). Two or more sugary soft drinks a day carried an 85% higher risk. Fruit juice and fructose-rich fruits such as apples and oranges were also linked to higher risk. Raisins were one of the main fructose sources the researchers named in that group, supplying about 5% of the men’s free fructose.
- A later meta-analysis pooled three cohorts with 154,289 people. Sugary drinks (relative risk 2.08) and fruit juice (1.77) were linked to gout. Whole fruit wasn’t (0.85, not statistically significant), though the authors rated the certainty of the fruit and juice findings very low.
- Feeding trials help explain the gap. In a review of 21 controlled trials, swapping fructose for other carbohydrates at the same calories (18 trials) didn’t change uric acid. Adding very large amounts on top of a normal diet (213 to 219 g a day, 3 small trials) did raise it. The review was partly funded by the Calorie Control Council, a food-industry group.
Put together: fructose matters most when it arrives in large amounts on top of everything else you eat. Drinks and juice make that easy, and so does dried fruit, because drying removes the water and bulk that slow you down with fresh fruit. Two dates instead of a slice of cake is a different thing from a bag of dates on top of dessert.
The American College of Rheumatology’s 2020 guideline conditionally recommends limiting high-fructose corn syrup for people with gout. The Arthritis Foundation advises choosing lower-fructose fruits. For the numbers on other foods, see fructose content in foods.
How many dates can you eat with gout?
For most people with gout, a small serving fits:
- 1 to 2 Medjool dates, or 3 to 5 Deglet Noor, as a sweet. That’s roughly 7 to 15 g of fructose.
- Instead of dessert, not on top of it. That’s the difference the feeding trials point to.
- Pair them with protein or fat. A date with a few walnuts or a spoon of yogurt makes a more balanced snack than a handful of dates alone.
- Count the hidden forms. Date-sweetened bars, energy balls and smoothies carry the same sugar as the dates that went into them.
- Watch the calories. Two Medjools are about 133 calories, and weight matters for gout. The ACR conditionally recommends weight loss for people with gout who are overweight.
If you also have diabetes, dates’ sugar counts toward your carbohydrates too; see gout and diabetes.
Better swaps for dates, figs and raisins
| Instead of | Try | Fructose (approx.) |
|---|---|---|
| 4 Medjool dates | 1 Medjool date + 1 oz walnuts | ~31 g down to ~8 g |
| 1 oz raisins on oatmeal | 1 cup fresh strawberries | ~10 g down to ~4 g |
| Sweetened dried cranberries on salad | Toasted walnuts or pecans | ~14 g down to under 1 g |
| Trail mix that’s half dried fruit | Mostly nuts, a few raisins | Much lower |
| Date-sweetened smoothie | Plain yogurt blended with berries | Lower, plus dairy protein |
Fresh fruit is the easy upgrade. A cup of strawberries has about 4 g of fructose and a cup of blueberries about 7 g, with far more water and bulk than the same fructose from dried fruit. Cherries are a popular choice with gout; see are cherries good for gout.
If you want to see where your sugar comes from across a week, an app like Urica can log snacks and drinks alongside your meals.
The Bottom Line
Dates aren’t high in purines: dates, dried figs and raisins are all listed at about 15 mg per 100 g. The gout concern is fructose. Each Medjool date carries about 7.7 g, and an ounce of raisins about 10 g. Studies link sugary drinks and fruit juice to gout more consistently than whole fruit, and feeding trials suggest fructose matters most in large amounts on top of your usual diet. Enjoy one or two dates, or a few figs, in place of dessert. Keep raisins to a sprinkle, and lean on fresh fruit and nuts when you want a bigger snack.
Sources
- USDA FoodData Central. Dates, medjool.
- Choi HK, Curhan G. Soft drinks, fructose consumption, and the risk of gout in men: prospective cohort study. BMJ, 2008.
- Ayoub-Charette S, et al. Important food sources of fructose-containing sugars and incident gout: a systematic review and meta-analysis of prospective cohort studies. BMJ Open, 2019.
- Wang DD, et al. The effects of fructose intake on serum uric acid vary among controlled dietary trials. Journal of Nutrition, 2012.
- FitzGerald JD, et al. 2020 American College of Rheumatology Guideline for the Management of Gout. Arthritis Care & Research, 2020.
This article is for informational purposes only and is not medical advice. Talk to your rheumatologist or healthcare provider about your specific situation.
Track Your Personal Response
Everyone responds differently to foods. Urica helps you track how specific foods affect YOUR flare patterns by analyzing purines, fructose, and glycemic load together — not just purines alone.
Frequently Asked Questions
Are dates high in purines?
No. Dates are listed at about 15 mg of purines per 100 g, in the Low band, so two Medjool dates carry only about 7 mg. Dates haven't been analyzed for the USDA purine database, but no dried fruit is a meaningful purine source. The gout question with dates is fructose, the one sugar that raises uric acid. Each Medjool date has about 7.7 g of it.
How many dates can I eat with gout?
One or two Medjool dates, or three to five of the smaller Deglet Noor dates, is a reasonable sweet for most people with gout. That's roughly 7 to 15 g of fructose, less than a can of regular cola. Eat them in place of dessert rather than on top of it, pair them with nuts or yogurt, and remember that date-sweetened bars and smoothies count too.
Are raisins bad for gout?
Not in small amounts. Raisins are low in purines, but drying concentrates their sugar: an ounce, about 60 raisins, carries roughly 10 g of fructose, and a quarter cup has about as much as a full cup of fresh grapes. In a large US study of men, raisins were one of the main fructose sources the researchers named. Use a small sprinkle rather than a handful, or swap in fresh fruit.
Are figs better than dates for gout?
Slightly, gram for gram. Dried figs have about 23 g of fructose per 100 g, versus about 32 g for Medjool dates. Per piece the gap is bigger, because a dried fig weighs about a third as much as a Medjool date: roughly 2 g of fructose per fig versus about 7.7 g per date. Both are low in purines, so the portion you eat matters most.