Fresh Bing Cherries Nutritional Information

Bing cherries are a cultivar of sweet cherry common in the Pacific Northwest of the United States. The fruit is named after the Manchurian foreman of the Oregon nursery where it was first developed. Cherries are a good source of dietary fiber and vitamin C. Cherries are also rich in antioxidant nutrients that relieve inflammatory diseases like arthritis and, possibly, cancer and cardiovascular disease.

Calories

Fresh Bing cherries are a low-calorie food, with under 100 calories in a 1-cup serving. According to Nutrition Data, which gets its facts from the USDA, 1 cup of cherries without pits yields about 154 g of edible material containing 97 calories. With the pits, 1 cup of cherries yields about 138 g of edible material containing just 87 calories.

Carbohydrates

Other than water, cherries consist almost entirely of carbohydrates; 91 percent of the calories in Bing cherries come from carbs, the most abundant of which is sugar. A 1-cup serving of cherries without pits contains 20 g of sugar. There are also 3 g of dietary fiber, more than 10 percent of your recommended daily intake. In all, the 1-cup serving has 25 g of total carbohydrate.

Fat and Protein

Bing cherries do not contain any significant amount of saturated fat, trans fat or cholesterol. Nevertheless, fat accounts for about 3 percent of the total calories in Bing cherries, according to the USDA. This means there are about 3 calories from fat in a 154 g, 1-cup serving. Bing cherries are also a negligible source of protein. A 1-cup serving without pits, containing 154 g of edible material, contains only 2 g of protein.

Vitamins and Minerals

Cherries are a good source of vitamin C, with about 18 percent of your total recommended daily intake present in a 1-cup serving without pits. Bing cherries also contain small amounts of vitamin A, calcium and iron, with about 2 to 3 percent of your daily intake of these nutrients.

Antioxidants

A study published in the "Journal of Food Science" found Bing cherries among the foods richest in anthocyanins, a type of antioxidant. Other studies, in which subjects ate 45 pitted fresh Bing cherries, have moved scientists closer to understanding the anti-inflammatory effects long associated with cherries. Anthocyanins are the pigments that give fruits like Bing cherries their red color and are believed to reduce the risk of heart disease and certain types of cancers. The antioxidants in Bing cherries also make them a powerful way to fight gout and possibly other forms of arthritis.