Top 10 Foods Highest in Cystine (Cysteine)

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Top 10 Foods Highest in Cystine (Cysteine)

Cystine is the oxidized dimer form of the amino acid cysteine, and is considered nutritionally equivalent to cysteine. (3)

Among its many functions, cystine helps create anti-oxidants in the body (1), and can help with hair health. However, none of these claims are well established. (2)

High cystine foods include pork, beef, chicken, fish, lentils, oatmeal, eggs, low-fat yogurt, sunflower seeds, and cheese. (4) The reference dietary intake (RDI) for cystine is 4.1mg per kilogram of body weight or 1.9mg per pound. A person weighing 70kg (~154 pounds) should consume 287mg of cystine per day. (5)

Below is a list of the top 10 foods highest in cystine with the %RDI calculated for someone weighing 70kg (154lbs). For more high cystine foods see the extended list of cystine-rich foods.

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A printable list of high cystine foods including pork, beef, chicken, fish, lentils, oatmeal, eggs, low-fat yogurt, sunflower seeds, and cheese.

More Cystine Rich Foods

FoodServingCystine
1. Beef Liver 1 slice 135% RDI
(388mg)
2. Somen Noodles per cup 69% RDI
(199mg)
3. Teff per cup 61% RDI
(174mg)
4. Couscous per cup 59% RDI
(168mg)
5. Firm Tofu per cup 50% RDI
(144mg)
6. Crab Cakes per cake 50% RDI
(143mg)
7. Lima Beans per cup cooked 49% RDI
(141mg)
8. Carrots per cup chopped 21% RDI
(60mg)
9. Shiitake Mushrooms per cup cooked 14% RDI
(39mg)
10. Almond Butter per tblsp 13% RDI
(39mg)

Use the ranking tool links below to select foods and create your own food list to share or print.


View more nutrients with the nutrient ranking tool, or see ratios with the nutrient ratio tool.

Data Sources and References

  1. Mechanisms underlying the cardioprotective effect of L-cysteine. Mol Cell Biochem. 2005 Sep;277(1-2):27-31.
  2. Effects of the Usage of l-Cysteine (l-Cys) on Human Health Molecules. 2018 Mar; 23(3): 575. Published online 2018 Mar 3. doi: 10.3390/molecules23030575
  3. Biochemical and Functional Evaluation of the Intramolecular Disulfide Bonds in the Zinc-Chelating Antimicrobial Protein Human S100A7 (Psoriasin). Biochemistry. 2017 Oct 31;56(43):5726-5738. doi: 10.1021/acs.biochem.7b00781. Epub 2017 Oct 19
  4. U.S. Agricultural Research Service Food Data Central
  5. World Health Organization (WHO) Technical Report Series – Protein And Amino Acid Requirements In Human Nutrition ISBN 978 92 4 120935 9
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