Purine content of Clams
across 5 measured preparations · median 193 mg · spans fairly high to extremely high
Across the 5 clams measurements in this database, purine content runs from 149 to 343 mg per 100 g, with a median of 193 mg — a high-purine food.
Avoid or strictly limit — significant gout flare risk.
On this page (5)
Lower-purine seafood
Why the numbers vary
The seafood measured here run from 7.7 mg to 1399.7 mg per 100 g, so the category is a poor guide on its own — which specific food, and prepared how, decides almost everything.
Preparation matters more than the food's name. Blood clam (cooked) measures 343 mg, while Razor clam measures 149 mg — a difference of 2.3 times. Drying and grilling remove water and concentrate what is left; boiling can move purines into water that is then poured away.
Every form of clams measured (5)
Highest first, each with the preparation that was measured.
Questions about clams and purines
Is clams high in purines?
Median 193 mg per 100 g, clams falls in the high band (150–200 mg per 100 g) on the six-level scale used across this site. Individual measurements range from 149 to 343 mg.
How many purines are in a serving of clams?
It depends entirely which preparation. Compared at the same 150 g: about 224 mg for razor clam, about 515 mg for blood clam (cooked). That upper figure is a like-for-like comparison rather than a serving — dried and concentrated foods are normally used by the spoonful, so their per-100 g value is the fairer read. The table on this page lists both for every preparation measured.
Does cooking change the purine content of clams?
Substantially. In this database Blood clam (cooked) measures 343 mg while Razor clam measures 149 mg per 100 g. Drying and grilling concentrate purines by removing water; boiling can leach some into the cooking liquid.
Where does this clams purine value come from?
Dietary Guideline for Adults with Hyperuricaemia and Gout (2024 Edition). Values are total purines in milligrams per 100 g of the food as described, and nothing is estimated or averaged across sources.
How does clams compare with other seafood?
The median for seafood in this database is 136 mg per 100 g, with a range of 7.7 to 1399.7 mg. Clams is above that median.
Source
- Dietary Guideline for Adults with Hyperuricaemia and Gout (2024 Edition) — National Health Commission of China, appendix 1. Issued February 2024.
Reference information only. Purine values describe foods, not people: they cannot tell you what is safe for you to eat, and nothing here diagnoses or treats gout. Talk to your doctor or dietitian about your own diet and medication.