Amino acids in fruit: small protein amounts still contain them

A selected protein comparison

USDA SR Legacy reports 2.55 g protein per 100 g raw guava, 2 g for avocado, 1.4 g for apricot and 1.09 g for banana. Proteins are chains of amino acids. These quantities explain why fruit can contribute amino acids while usually serving a different dietary role from a concentrated protein food. [1][2]

Individual amino-acid rankings can differ

The same records list leucine at 0.171 g per 100 g for guava and 0.143 g for avocado. But lysine is 0.072 g for guava versus 0.132 g for avocado. Guava’s higher total protein does not imply a higher amount of every amino acid. This selected set is not an exhaustive ranking of all fruits. [1]

A hypothetical fruit portion

A 150 g portion of guava supplies about 3.825 g reference protein and 0.257 g leucine. The same weight of banana gives 1.635 g protein and 0.102 g leucine. These are composition estimates, not a muscle-growth prescription or a reason to replace a varied protein intake with fruit. [1]

Hypothetical example — compare specified portions using historical reference data
Raw fruit, 100 g	Protein	Leucine	Lysine
Guava	2.55 g	0.171 g	0.072 g
Avocado	2 g	0.143 g	0.132 g
Apricot	1.4 g	0.077 g	0.097 g
Banana	1.09 g	0.068 g	0.05 g

Amino acids in fruit: small protein amounts still contain them — original article outline diagram — Original editorial diagram of this article’s sections; no product photograph or clinical finding is depicted.

Sources for this article

USDA FoodData Central — SR Legacy April 2018 composition and portion tables
Source consulted: 2026-09-20. This is a reference resource, not a claim that we conducted the studies or tested a product.
3.4 Proteins - Biology 2e | OpenStax
Source consulted: 2026-09-20. This is a reference resource, not a claim that we conducted the studies or tested a product.