Passion Fruit (Passiflora edulis): Benefits, Dosage, Side Effects & Evidence

Q: What is Passion Fruit used for?

Passion Fruit is most often taken for Exceptionally high soluble and insoluble fiber (about 10 g per 100 g) supporting satiety and bowel regularity, Purple peel extract lowered blood pressure in small short-term RCTs (effect sizes implausibly large; not the edible pulp), Yellow peel flour and seed piceatannol may improve insulin sensitivity and glycemic markers (mixed RCTs), Purple peel extract reduced asthma symptoms (wheeze, cough, dyspnea) in one small RCT. Fiber-dense tropical fruit with bioactive peel and seeds

Q: Does Passion Fruit work — what does the evidence say?

Preliminary evidence. Early or small human trials; promising but not yet conclusive. Passion fruit pulp is a low-calorie, strikingly fiber-dense tropical fruit (about 10 g fiber per 100 g) that also supplies vitamin C, potassium, provitamin A carotenoids and polyphenols. Critically, most published human trials test the INEDIBLE peel (rind) flour or extract, or the seeds, rather than the edible pulp, so those benefits do not translate directly to eating the fruit. Small randomized trials of purple passion-fruit peel extract reported large drops in blood pressure and reduced asthma symptoms, but these were short (4 weeks), single-center, small, and led by overlapping investigator groups, and the reported BP reductions (about 31/25 mmHg) are implausibly large for a food supplement — so confidence is low. Yellow passion-fruit peel flour (~30-36 g/day) improved insulin resistance and HbA1c in one trial but showed no glycemic effect in a later randomized trial, so evidence is genuinely mixed. Seed-derived piceatannol (20 mg/day) improved insulin and blood pressure only in overweight men within a small 8-week study, and a separate trial found 5 mg/day improved skin moisture in women. No large prospective cohort or meta-analysis links passion-fruit consumption to hard health outcomes. Overall the human evidence is preliminary and largely about extracts, while the pulp's fiber and micronutrient density remain its best-supported nutritional value.

Q: How many studies support Passion Fruit?

NutriDex cites 9 sources for Passion Fruit, graded "Preliminary".

Peh, Daryl

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Passion Fruit

Passiflora edulis

Fiber-dense tropical fruit with bioactive peel and seeds

Preliminary evidence 🍎Fruits

✚ Updated 7 Jun 2026 · How we grade evidence

Evidence tier

Preliminary

Research weight

Citations

9 verified / 9

Classification

Fruits

❝

What the evidence says. Early or small human trials; promising but not yet conclusive.

Nutrition per serving 2 medium fruits, pulp (36 g)

Water 26.2 g73%
Sugars 4 g11%
Fibre 3.7 g10%
Other carbs 0.7 g2%
Protein 0.8 g2%
Fat 0.3 g1%

What's in one serving, by weight — average composition (USDA).

One serving as % of the adult daily requirement (FDA Daily Values). The bold outer ring = 100% of a day's needs.

35 kcal0.8 g protein3.7 g fiber0.25 g fat

Nutrient	Per serving	% daily value
Fiber	3.7 g	13%
Vitamin C	11 mg	12%
Vitamin A (RAE)	23 mcg	3%
Potassium	125 mg	3%
Magnesium	10 mg	2%
Iron	0.58 mg	3%
Phosphorus	25 mg	2%
Niacin (B3)	0.54 mg	3%

Composition data: USDA FoodData Central ↗

What is Passion Fruit?

Passion Fruit (Passiflora edulis) is a fruit used for exceptionally high soluble and insoluble fiber (about 10 g per 100 g) supporting satiety and bowel regularity. NutriDex grades the human evidence as Preliminary. Passion fruit pulp is a low-calorie, strikingly fiber-dense tropical fruit (about 10 g fiber per 100 g) that also supplies vitamin C, potassium, provitamin A carotenoids and polyphenols. Critically, most published human trials test the INEDIBLE peel (rind) flour or extract, or the seeds, rather than the edible pulp, so those benefits do not translate directly to eating the fruit. Small randomized trials of purple passion-fruit peel extract reported large drops in blood pressure and reduced asthma symptoms, but these were short (4 weeks), single-center, small, and led by overlapping investigator groups, and the reported BP reductions (about 31/25 mmHg) are implausibly large for a food supplement — so confidence is low. Yellow passion-fruit peel flour (~30-36 g/day) improved insulin resistance and HbA1c in one trial but showed no glycemic effect in a later randomized trial, so evidence is genuinely mixed. Seed-derived piceatannol (20 mg/day) improved insulin and blood pressure only in overweight men within a small 8-week study, and a separate trial found 5 mg/day improved skin moisture in women. No large prospective cohort or meta-analysis links passion-fruit consumption to hard health outcomes. Overall the human evidence is preliminary and largely about extracts, while the pulp's fiber and micronutrient density remain its best-supported nutritional value.

Purported Benefits

✓Exceptionally high soluble and insoluble fiber (about 10 g per 100 g) supporting satiety and bowel regularity

✓Purple peel extract lowered blood pressure in small short-term RCTs (effect sizes implausibly large; not the edible pulp)

✓Yellow peel flour and seed piceatannol may improve insulin sensitivity and glycemic markers (mixed RCTs)

✓Purple peel extract reduced asthma symptoms (wheeze, cough, dyspnea) in one small RCT

✓Seed piceatannol improved insulin and blood pressure in overweight men (subgroup) and skin moisture in women

✓Rich in antioxidant polyphenols (anthocyanins, flavonols, seed stilbenes) and carotenoids

Dosing & Compounds

Typical Dose

Pulp of 2-3 fruits (~36-55 g edible) as a whole-food serving. Studied benefits use the INEDIBLE peel (rind) flour/extract (150-400 mg/day extract, or ~36 g/day flour) or seed piceatannol (5-20 mg/day) — not the pulp itself.

Active Compounds

Soluble fiber / pectin (viscous gel-forming polysaccharides)Anthocyanins (cyanidin-3-O-glucoside)Flavonols (quercetin and kaempferol glycosides)Stilbenes (piceatannol and its dimer scirpusin B — seed-concentrated)Carotenoids (beta-carotene, provitamin A)Vitamin C (ascorbic acid)Edulilic acid (a Passiflora cyclic acid glucoside)Cyanogenic glycosides (trace, in seeds/unripe rind)Potassium and magnesium

Safety & Cautions

Generally safe as a food. Seeds and unripe rind contain trace cyanogenic glycosides, so eating large quantities of raw peel or seeds is not advised. People with latex allergy may cross-react (latex-fruit syndrome). The blood-pressure-lowering peel extracts could theoretically add to antihypertensive medication effects, and clinical drug-interaction data are limited. Peel-extract and piceatannol benefits come from concentrated, unregulated supplements rather than the pulp. A high fiber load may cause gas or GI discomfort in sensitive individuals. Educational only — always check with your doctor or pharmacist before combining Passion Fruit with any medicine.

Key Studies

Randomized controlled trial Kitada 2017 ✓ PubMed

8-week placebo-controlled RCT (n=39): seed piceatannol 20 mg/day lowered serum insulin, HOMA-IR, systolic/diastolic BP and heart rate only in overweight men; no effect in other subgroups.

Randomized controlled trial de Araujo 2017 ✓ Source

8-week open randomized clinical trial (n=54): yellow passion-fruit rind flour (36 g/day) showed NO significant difference in capillary/fasting glucose or HbA1c vs control in type 2 diabetes.

Randomized controlled trial Maluf 2018 ✓ Source

8-week randomized, placebo-controlled, double-blind trial (n=32 women): passion-fruit seed extract providing 5 mg/day piceatannol significantly increased skin moisture vs placebo.

Controlled clinical trial de Queiroz 2012 ✓ PubMed

Controlled trial (n=43): 30 g/day yellow passion-fruit peel flour for 2 months reduced fasting glucose, HbA1c (P=.032) and HOMA-IR (P=.005) in type 2 diabetics.

Randomized controlled trial Naga Raju 2013 ✓ Source

16-week double-blind RCT (n=41): purple passion-fruit peel extract 220 mg/day significantly reduced systolic BP and fasting blood glucose in type 2 diabetic subjects vs placebo.

Randomized controlled trial Zibadi 2007 ✓ Full text

4-week randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled human arm: purple passion-fruit peel extract 400 mg/day lowered systolic and diastolic BP by ~30.9 and ~24.6 mmHg vs placebo in hypertensives. Effect size is implausibly large; treat with caution.

Randomized controlled trial Watson 2008 ✓ PubMed

4-week double-blind RCT: purple passion-fruit peel extract 150 mg/day significantly reduced wheeze, cough and shortness of breath in adults with asthma vs placebo (P<.05).

Analytical / mechanistic study Sano 2011 ✓ PubMed

Isolated and identified scirpusin B (a dimer of piceatannol) as the second major polyphenol in passion-fruit seeds; both stilbenes showed potent antioxidant and endothelium-dependent vasorelaxant activity in rat aorta.

Animal mechanistic study Lewis 2013 ✓ PubMed

Passion-fruit peel extract and its components (anthocyanin fraction, edulilic acid) reduced hemodynamic parameters in spontaneously hypertensive rats after acute dosing; GABA did not.

NutriDex

Passion Fruit

Nutrition per serving 2 medium fruits, pulp (36 g)

What is Passion Fruit?

Purported Benefits

Dosing & Compounds

Safety & Cautions

Key Studies

Common questions about Passion Fruit

What is Passion Fruit used for?

Does Passion Fruit work — what does the evidence say?

What is the typical dose of Passion Fruit?

Is Passion Fruit safe? Any cautions or side effects?

How many studies support Passion Fruit?