Are Grapes Good for Fatty Liver? Sugar, Raisins and Resveratrol
In normal portions, yes. A cup of grapes has about 23 g of natural sugar, raisins and juice pack in more, and resveratrol pills haven't proven to help.
TL;DR
- Grapes fit a fatty liver diet in measured portions: a cup (about 30 grapes) has 104 calories and 23 g of natural sugar, but only 1.4 g of fiber.
- Raisins and grape juice concentrate that sugar. A small 1.5-ounce box of raisins has 28 g, and a cup of grape juice has 36 g.
- Resveratrol, the grape compound in the headlines, hasn’t consistently helped fatty liver in trials, and grapes and wine contain only a tiny fraction of the doses tested.
Grapes are fine for fatty liver in normal portions, but they aren’t a liver superfood. They’re one of the higher-sugar, lower-fiber fresh fruits, so they work best measured into a bowl rather than eaten straight from the bag.
People with MASLD (formerly NAFLD) also hear a lot about resveratrol, the compound found in grape skins and red wine. Here’s what grapes, raisins and grape juice actually contain, and what the resveratrol research does and doesn’t show.
How Much Sugar Is in Grapes?
According to USDA data, one cup of red or green seedless grapes (151 g, about 30 grapes) has:
- 104 calories
- 23.4 g of natural sugar, about half of it fructose
- 1.4 g of fiber
That puts grapes near the top of common fresh fruits for sugar per serving and near the bottom for fiber. A cup of raspberries, by comparison, has about 5.4 g of sugar and 8 g of fiber. None of this makes grapes off-limits. Whole fruit is a different thing from added sugar, as our guide to whether fruit is bad for fatty liver explains. But grapes are easy to eat quickly, so the portion is what counts.
There’s also no sign that grapes do anything special for the liver. A 2024 UK study of 121,064 adults, which linked apples and tea to a lower risk of fatty liver, found no such link for grapes. People who ate the most grapes actually had slightly more liver fat on MRI scans. That’s one observational finding and doesn’t show grapes cause harm, but it doesn’t suggest a benefit either.
Grapes vs Raisins vs Grape Juice: Which Has the Most Sugar?
Drying and juicing both concentrate grape sugar. Here’s how they compare per common serving:
| Grape form (serving) | Calories | Sugar | Fiber |
|---|---|---|---|
| Grapes, ½ cup (about 15 grapes, 76 g) | 52 | 11.8 g | 0.7 g |
| Grapes, 1 cup (about 30 grapes, 151 g) | 104 | 23.4 g | 1.4 g |
| Raisins, mini box, 0.5 oz (14 g) | 42 | 9.1 g | 0.6 g |
| Raisins, small box, 1.5 oz (43 g) | 129 | 28.0 g | 1.9 g |
| Grape juice, unsweetened, ½ cup (4 fl oz) | 76 | 18.0 g | 0.3 g |
| Grape juice, unsweetened, 1 cup (8 fl oz) | 152 | 35.9 g | 0.5 g |
Source: USDA FoodData Central (SR Legacy). None of these contain added sugar.
A few things stand out:
- Raisins are about four times as sugar-dense as grapes. Gram for gram, raisins have 65 g of sugar per 100 g versus 15.5 g for fresh grapes, because drying removes the water that fills you up.
- A cup of grape juice has more sugar than 1½ cups of grapes, with almost no fiber, and you can drink it in a minute.
- 100 calories looks very different in each form: about a cup of grapes, a scant ¼ cup of raisins, or about 5 ounces of grape juice.
Whole fruit is more filling than juice with the same calories, as a study on apples showed (see are apples good for fatty liver). Sweet drinks are the form of sugar liver guidelines single out most, which we cover in is soda bad for fatty liver.
Does Resveratrol Help Fatty Liver?
Resveratrol is a plant compound found in grape skins, red wine and peanuts. It drew attention after animal studies found it prevented diet-induced fatty liver and insulin resistance. In people, the results have been disappointing and mixed:
- A 2020 meta-analysis in Nutrients pooled seven randomized trials with 302 people with fatty liver. The trials used 500 to 3,000 mg of resveratrol a day for 8 weeks to 6 months. Resveratrol didn’t improve the measures analyzed, and the one significant change was an increase in ALT, a liver enzyme. The authors concluded the evidence is insufficient to confirm it works.
- An Australian trial gave 20 men with fatty liver either 3,000 mg of resveratrol or a placebo daily for 8 weeks. Resveratrol didn’t reduce liver fat or insulin resistance, and liver enzymes rose in the resveratrol group compared with placebo through week 6.
- A German trial of 112 adults with overweight or obesity and insulin resistance found 12 weeks of resveratrol didn’t lower liver fat compared with placebo.
A few smaller trials have reported better liver enzymes or blood sugar, which is why researchers still call the question open. But taken together, the trials are small and short, and resveratrol is not a proven treatment for fatty liver. If you’re thinking about a supplement, talk to your doctor or pharmacist first, since supplements can interact with medicines.
Can You Get Resveratrol From Grapes?
Not in amounts anywhere near what trials used. The Phenol-Explorer database, which compiles food analyses, lists:
| Food | Average resveratrol |
|---|---|
| Dark grapes, 1 cup (151 g) | about 0.2 mg |
| Green grapes, 1 cup (151 g) | about 0.03 mg |
| Red wine, 5 fl oz glass | about 0.4 mg |
Source: Phenol-Explorer database averages, converted to common servings.
At the average value, reaching even the lowest trial dose of 500 mg would take more than 2,000 cups of dark grapes a day. Even using the highest grape values measured, it would take more than 500 cups. So eat grapes because you like them, not for resveratrol.
Is Red Wine a Good Way to Get Resveratrol?
No. At about 0.4 mg per glass, you’d need more than 1,000 glasses of red wine to reach the lowest trial dose. In the same UK study, red wine wasn’t linked to a lower risk of fatty liver.
Alcohol itself works against a fatty liver. The AASLD says people with clinically significant fibrosis (F2 or higher, which includes cirrhosis) “should abstain from alcohol use completely,” and wine gets no exception. Read more in is alcohol safe with fatty liver.
How to Eat Grapes With Fatty Liver
- Measure a portion. Half a cup to a cup (about 15 to 30 grapes) is one fruit serving. Put them in a bowl instead of eating from the bag.
- Freeze them. Frozen grapes take longer to eat and make a cold, sweet snack.
- Pair with protein or fat. A few grapes with a small piece of cheese or a handful of nuts, or halved grapes in a chicken salad, make them part of a meal.
- Use raisins as a garnish. A tablespoon (about 9 g) on oatmeal or a salad adds about 6 g of sugar.
- Keep juice small. If you drink grape juice, choose 100% juice, have a small glass with food, or mix it half and half with sparkling water.
- Rotate your fruit. Berries, citrus, apples and pears give you more fiber for the sugar, so let grapes be one fruit among several.
The Bottom Line
Grapes are fine for fatty liver in normal portions. A cup has about 23 g of natural sugar and little fiber, so measure them, and treat raisins and grape juice as small extras because they pack more sugar into less food.
Resveratrol isn’t a reason to eat grapes or drink wine. Trials of resveratrol supplements in fatty liver have been small and mostly disappointing, the doses tested are hundreds to thousands of times what food provides, and alcohol harms the liver you’re trying to protect. Focus on the overall pattern in our fatty liver diet guide instead.
Sources
- Jakubczyk K, et al. Effects of resveratrol supplementation in patients with non-alcoholic fatty liver disease: a meta-analysis (Nutrients, 2020)
- Chachay VS, et al. Resveratrol does not benefit patients with nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (Clinical Gastroenterology and Hepatology, 2014)
- Kantartzis K, et al. Effects of resveratrol supplementation on liver fat content in overweight and insulin-resistant subjects: a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled clinical trial (Diabetes, Obesity and Metabolism, 2018)
- Bell W, et al. A flavonoid-rich diet is associated with lower risk and improved imaging biomarkers of nonalcoholic fatty liver disease: a prospective cohort study (American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 2024)
- Phenol-Explorer: foods containing resveratrol
This article is for informational purposes only and is not medical advice. Talk to your doctor or hepatologist about your specific situation.
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Frequently Asked Questions
Are red grapes better than green grapes for fatty liver?
Not in any way that matters much. USDA lists red and green seedless grapes together, at about 104 calories and 23 g of sugar per cup. Dark grapes do contain more resveratrol than green ones, about 0.15 mg versus 0.02 mg per 100 g in the Phenol-Explorer database, but both amounts are far below the doses tested in trials. Choose whichever color you enjoy.
Are raisins good for fatty liver?
Raisins are fine as a small topping, not as a snack by the handful. Drying concentrates the sugar: a small 1.5-ounce box has about 28 g of sugar, more than a medium apple, with less than 2 g of fiber. A tablespoon of raisins adds about 6 g of sugar to oatmeal or a salad, which is an easy amount to fit into a fatty liver diet.
Should I take a resveratrol supplement for fatty liver?
Not without talking to your doctor, and there's little reason to. A 2020 meta-analysis of seven trials in 302 people with fatty liver found resveratrol didn't improve any of the measures studied; the only significant change was a rise in the liver enzyme ALT. One trial using 3,000 mg a day saw liver enzymes increase. Supplements can also interact with medicines, so check with your doctor or pharmacist first.
Is grape juice good for fatty liver?
It's best kept small. A cup of unsweetened grape juice has about 152 calories, 36 g of sugar and half a gram of fiber, which is more sugar than a cup and a half of whole grapes in a drink that's much less filling. If you like it, have a 4-ounce glass with a meal or mix it with sparkling water, and skip grape drinks and cocktails, which can contain added sugar.