Watermelon eaters in US survey had better diets
What it found
In a large US survey, adults and children who ate watermelon took in more fiber, magnesium, potassium and vitamin A, and less added sugar and saturated fat, than those who did not.
Their overall diet quality scores were also higher.
What they found
Studies in people
Diet quality scores
Children and adults who ate watermelon had higher total Healthy Eating Index 2015 scores than non-eaters, by 6.6 points in children and 7.3 points in adults. They also scored higher on some parts of the index not related to fruit, such as saturated fat and added sugars.
Nutrient intake in children
Child watermelon eaters took in more dietary fiber, magnesium, potassium, vitamin A, vitamin C, vitamin K, lycopene and other carotenoids than non-eaters. They also took in less added sugars and saturated fat.
Nutrient intake in adults
Adult watermelon eaters took in more carbohydrates, dietary fiber, magnesium, potassium, vitamin A, vitamin C, lycopene and other carotenoids than non-eaters. They took in less added sugars, total fat, saturated fat and polyunsaturated fat.
Lycopene and carotenoids
Watermelon eaters had much higher intake of lycopene, beta-carotene, beta-cryptoxanthin, and lutein plus zeaxanthin than non-eaters. The authors note watermelon has over ten times more beta-carotene and six times more beta-cryptoxanthin than other commonly eaten fruits.
Other findings
How much watermelon
On the day they were surveyed, child watermelon eaters ate an average of 232 grams and adult eaters 286 grams. Their usual intake was 125 grams a day for children and 161 grams a day for adults.
What the authors conclude
“Consumption of watermelon should be encouraged to help improve US children and adult diet quality and nutrient intake.”
Also in their conclusions
- They say watermelon intake was associated with higher nutrient intake and provided high levels of lycopene, beta-carotene, and beta-cryptoxanthin.
- They conclude that "Consumption of watermelon should be encouraged to help improve US children and adult diet quality and nutrient intake."
How it was done
The authors say previous studies found links between watermelon and nutrient intake, but few looked at raw watermelon or used large samples. They wanted to test this in a sample representative of the US population.
They used data from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) cycles 2003 to 2018, covering 56,133 people aged 2 and older. They compared people who reported eating raw watermelon or 100% watermelon juice on their first 24-hour recall with those who did not.
What it can’t tell you
- This was an observational survey, so it cannot show that eating watermelon causes better diet quality or nutrient intake.
- People who eat watermelon may differ in other ways that affect their diets, and the survey relied on people remembering what they ate.
Who paid
- Conflicts
- V.L.F.III and K.F. are employees of Nutrition Impact, LLC, a food and nutrition consulting firm which analyses NHANES data for numerous food and beverage companies and related entities. Nutrition Impact has a contract with the National Watermelon Promotion Board and has received travel expenses and an honorarium to present findings of the study to the Board.
The paper
- Title
- Watermelon Intake Is Associated with Increased Nutrient Intake and Higher Diet Quality in Adults and Children, NHANES 2003-2018
- Type
- Study
- Evidence
- Studies in people
- Summarised from
- Full text
- Licence
- CC BY. Words in quotation marks are the authors’; the rest is our summary.
- Cite
- Fulgoni K, Fulgoni VL (2022). Watermelon Intake Is Associated with Increased Nutrient Intake and Higher Diet Quality in Adults and Children, NHANES 2003-2018. Nutrients. doi:10.3390/nu14224883Free full textPubMed 36432573DOI
Summary written 30 Sep 2026. Check it against the paper before it changes what you eat. How we summarise papers · Report an error