Which Nutrients Vary The Most?

Written by Daisy Whitbread
BSc (Hons) MSc DipION

Last Updated: April 21st, 2022

The nutrients in foods can vary depending on growing conditions, and other factors. For example, fruits grown in magnesium rich soil will likely have more magnesium that those not.

How much do nutrients vary in general? According to data from the U.S. Agricultural Research Service there is not a lot of deviation in nutrient content, with most nutrients not fluctuating more than 5%. Nutrients which do fluctuate the most include Omega 3 fatty acids (EPA, DHA), Vitamin D2, fluoride, Vitamin K1, and K2, and copper. All other nutrients only fluctuate by 5% or less. Below is a ranking of 82 nutrients, how much is in each food on average, what the average standard deviation is, and what the percent of fluctuation or standard deviation is. Subscribe to MyFoodData.com for more articles on what causes nutrients to fluctuate in foods.

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	Nutrient	Average per 100 grams	Average Standard Deviation per 100g	Percent Deviation
#1	EPA	0.02mg	0.01mg	50%
#2	Vitamin D2	1.17IU	0.33IU	28%
#3	DHA	0.04mg	0.01mg	25%
#4	Beta Cryptoxanthin	10.61Î¼g	0.91Î¼g	9%
#5	Floride	28.56Î¼g	2.53Î¼g	9%
#6	Vitamin K1	1.78Î¼g	0.13Î¼g	7%
#7	Glucose	1.46g	0.07g	5%
#8	Vitamin K2	2.73Î¼g	0.15Î¼g	5%
#9	Lutein and Zeaxanthin	193.77Î¼g	9.28Î¼g	5%
#10	Maltose	0.37g	0.02g	5%
#11	Linolenic Acid	0.20mg	0.01mg	5%
#12	Copper	0.20mg	0.01mg	5%
#13	Thiamin (B1)	0.22mg	0.01mg	5%
#14	Riboflavin (B2)	0.25mg	0.01mg	4%
#15	Alpha Carotene	31.51Î¼g	1.17Î¼g	4%

	Nutrient	Average per 100 grams	Average Standard Deviation per 100g	Percent Deviation
#16	Beta Carotene	221.35Î¼g	8.44Î¼g	4%
#17	ALA	0.28mg	0.01mg	4%
#18	Fructose	1.34g	0.05g	4%
#19	Manganese	0.66mg	0.02mg	3%
#20	Selenium	15.59Î¼g	0.39Î¼g	3%
#21	Vitamin B6	0.29mg	0.01mg	3%
#22	Vitamin C	9.21mg	0.24mg	3%
#23	Sucrose	2.91g	0.10g	3%
#24	Vitamin E	1.32mg	0.03mg	2%
#25	Magnesium	35.29mg	0.60mg	2%
#26	Potassium	279.43mg	4.42mg	2%
#27	Lycopene	157.07Î¼g	2.62Î¼g	2%
#28	Ash	1.78g	0.03g	2%
#29	Food Folate	24.62Î¼g	0.56Î¼g	2%
#30	Starch	17.16g	0.35g	2%
#31	Fat	10.55g	0.16g	2%
#32	Pantothenic Acid (B5)	0.65mg	0.01mg	2%
#33	Niacin (B3)	3.67mg	0.06mg	2%
#34	Iron	2.70mg	0.06mg	2%
#35	Calcium	76.62mg	1.71mg	2%
#36	Lactose	0.67mg	0.01mg	1%
#37	Phosphorus	165.19mg	2.14mg	1%
#38	Zinc	2.11mg	0.03mg	1%
#39	Caffeine	4.25mg	0.03mg	1%
#40	Folate (B9)	51.47Î¼g	0.68Î¼g	1%
#41	Dietary Fiber	2.19g	0.02g	1%
#42	Protein	11.35g	0.12g	1%
#43	Vitamin A	735.83IU	3.98IU	1%
#44	Sodium	312.56mg	3.85mg	1%
#45	Vitamin D3	0.98IU	0.01IU	1%
#46	Cholesterol	40.62mg	0.47mg	1%
#47	Vitamin B12	1.39Î¼g	0.02Î¼g	1%
#48	Vitamin K	15.63Î¼g	0.14Î¼g	1%
#49	Retinol	89.78Î¼g	1.17Î¼g	1%
#50	Cystine	0.18mg	0.00mg	0%

	Nutrient	Average per 100 grams	Average Standard Deviation per 100g	Percent Deviation
#51	Methionine	0.37mg	0.00mg	0%
#52	Lysine	1.17mg	0.00mg	0%
#53	Leucine	1.19mg	0.00mg	0%
#54	Tyrosine	0.51mg	0.00mg	0%
#55	Phenylalanine	0.63mg	0.00mg	0%
#56	Valine	0.75mg	0.00mg	0%
#57	Hydroxproline	0.16mg	0.00mg	0%
#58	Serine	0.64mg	0.00mg	0%
#59	Proline	0.78mg	0.00mg	0%
#60	Glycine	0.77mg	0.00mg	0%
#61	Glutamic Acid	2.51mg	0.00mg	0%
#62	Aspartic Acid	1.37mg	0.00mg	0%
#63	Alanine	0.84mg	0.00mg	0%
#64	Arginine	0.96mg	0.00mg	0%
#65	Isoleucine	0.67mg	0.00mg	0%
#66	Threonine	0.62mg	0.00mg	0%
#67	Histidine	0.46mg	0.00mg	0%
#68	Choline	43.61mg	0.06mg	0%
#69	Dietary Folate Equivalents	63.99Î¼g	0.00Î¼g	0%
#70	Folic Acid	22.97Î¼g	0.06Î¼g	0%
#71	Vitamin D	0.58IU	0.00IU	0%
#72	Water	54.12g	0.24g	0%
#73	Sugar	8.54g	0.04g	0%
#74	Galactose	0.03g	0.00g	0%
#75	Theobromine	7.71mg	0.03mg	0%
#76	Carbohydrates	22.12g	0.00g	0%
#77	Stearidonic Acid	0.01mg	0.00mg	0%
#78	Alcohol	0.18g	0.00g	0%
#79	DPA	0.01mg	0.00mg	0%
#80	Saturated Fat	3.58g	0.00g	0%
#81	Tryptophan	0.16mg	0.00mg	0%
#82	Retinol Equivalents	111.74Î¼g	0.52Î¼g	0%

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Data Sources and References

U.S. Agricultural Research Service Food Data Central

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