Soursop: what is it and what to know about soursop capsules

Short answer: Soursop is the tropical fruit of Annona muricata, also called graviola or guanabana. In the EU, only the fruit may be used in food supplements; the leaves, seeds, peel and roots are unauthorised novel foods. With our soursop capsules you take 1 capsule a day, and they are not intended for children, pregnant women, breastfeeding women or people with Parkinson's or another neurological condition.

Last updated: 5 November 2026 · Written by Florian Fermin

In Suriname and the Caribbean, soursop is everyday food: eaten fresh, as juice or as ice cream. As a supplement it is a different story: there are capsules with fruit extract and with leaf extract, and there are still open questions about safety. Here you can read what soursop is, what is in the capsules, what the EU allows, what research does and does not show, and who should avoid it. At GOYU we sell soursop capsules made with fruit extract ourselves. Whenever we mention our own product, we say so.

What is soursop?

Soursop is the fruit of the soursop tree (Annona muricata), a small evergreen tree from the Caribbean and Central America. The fruit has a dark green skin with soft spines and white, juicy flesh with a sweet and sour taste.

According to the European Commission's Novel Food Catalogue, the tree grows to about 4 metres and the egg-shaped fruit can reach 30 centimetres in length. A single fruit can contain up to 200 seeds, and the flesh is eaten raw or made into juice, nectar and sorbet (Afssa, 2010). Soursop is related to cherimoya and sugar apple: they are all species of the genus Annona.

Because the fruit is eaten in many countries, it has many names:

Soursop capsules, tablets or extract: what is the difference?

The key difference is not the format but the plant part: fruit or leaf. That also decides whether a product may be sold in the EU.

With an extract you will often see a ratio such as 10:1. That means 10 grams of raw material were used for 1 gram of extract. An extract is therefore more concentrated than ground fruit, including the substances you would rather not get too much of.

What is in GOYU soursop capsules?

Our Soursop Extract Capsules 500 mg contain 500 mg of 10:1 extract of the fruit flesh of Annona muricata per capsule, in a plant-based HPMC capsule. Each pack contains 60 capsules.

There are no fillers, only the extract and the capsule. Based on the 10:1 ratio, the extract in one capsule comes from about 5 grams of fruit flesh. The acetogenin content, the substances you will read more about below, is not stated on the label.

How many soursop capsules per day?

Take 1 soursop capsule a day with water, preferably with or just after a meal. Do not take more, and according to our product page do not use them for more than four weeks in a row.

Why so careful? There is no officially established safe daily amount for soursop. Researchers who assessed the safety of soursop supplements in 2020 for the European EU-FORA programme concluded that the available data are not sufficient to set such a safe amount (Raclariu-Manolica et al., 2020).

• Preferably do not combine soursop capsules with other soursop products, such as juice, tea or a second supplement.
• Take a break after four weeks. How long that break should be is not on the label; if in doubt, talk to your doctor.
• A pack of 60 capsules lasts 60 days at 1 capsule a day.

Soursop leaf or fruit: what is allowed in the EU?

In the EU, only the fruit of soursop may be used in foods and food supplements. Seeds, peel, leaves and roots are listed in the Novel Food Catalogue as novel food that is not (yet) authorised (European Commission, POL-NF-00134).

In the EU, a novel food is a food that was not consumed to a significant degree before 15 May 1997. Without European authorisation it may not be sold. We explain the concept in more detail in our article on what novel food means.

The French government database for food supplements, Compl'Alim, also only allows the fruit of Annona muricata. It adds an extra condition: when a fruit preparation is used, the acetogenin content of the finished product must be known and a specific hazard analysis is required (Compl'Alim).

Do you see soursop leaf capsules or graviola leaf tea online? These may not be sold as food or supplements in the EU.

What does research say about soursop?

There is a lot of laboratory and animal research on soursop, but little research in humans. No health claims have been approved for soursop in the EU. That is why we make no statements about what soursop does for you.

A 2015 review summarised the research on Annona muricata. More than 100 acetogenins have been isolated from the leaves, bark, seeds, roots and fruit. The authors also write that clinical research in humans has been clearly neglected (Moghadamtousi et al., 2015).

Many of the stories you read online about soursop are about leaf or seed extracts, often tested on cells or in animals. You cannot translate those results to a capsule with fruit extract. No research has been carried out with our own product.

Is soursop safe? What you need to know about annonacin

There are still questions about the safety of soursop supplements. Soursop naturally contains annonacin, an acetogenin that was harmful to nerve cells in cell and animal studies. Whether soursop in normal amounts is a risk for humans has not been established.

The questions started in Guadeloupe. There, atypical parkinsonism was a strikingly frequent diagnosis among people with parkinsonian symptoms. In a case-control study of 87 patients, people with atypical parkinsonism ate and drank more fruit and herbal tea from Annona species than patients with classic Parkinson's and than controls (Caparros-Lefebvre & Elbaz, 1999). An observational study like this shows an association, not a cause.

The French food agency Afssa (now ANSES) assessed the data in 2010. Its conclusion: the harmfulness of annonacin to nerve cells has been shown in cell and animal studies, but it is not possible to say that the cases in Guadeloupe are caused by eating Annona. Afssa could not recommend specific amounts and wrote that soursop preparations deserve particular attention, because harmful substances can be carried over during extraction. Because of the potential risk to the nervous system, Afssa called for more research on annonacin and advised setting up systematic monitoring of adverse effects after the use of soursop and soursop extracts (Afssa, 2010).

Afssa noted that the animal experiments, in which annonacin was given by infusion, are hard to translate to people who eat soursop, because the substance then enters through the gut. At the same time, Champy and colleagues estimated that someone who eats one fruit or drinks one can of nectar every day for a year takes in about as much annonacin in total as the amount that caused brain lesions in rats given annonacin by infusion (Champy et al., 2005). The EU-FORA researchers saw indications that some soursop preparations can be harmful to nerve cells (Raclariu-Manolica et al., 2020). So a risk at ordinary amounts has not been shown, but it has not been ruled out either. Our advice: stick to the daily dose on the label and the maximum duration of use on the product page, and count other soursop products too.

Who should not use soursop capsules?

Soursop capsules are for adults only. Our warnings for soursop capsules:

• Children: do not use. For adults only.
• Pregnant or breastfeeding: do not use.
• Parkinson's or another neurological condition: do not use.
• Medication, for example for blood pressure or blood sugar, or a medical condition: talk to your doctor first.
• Duration of use: no more than four weeks in a row.

If you notice anything unusual while using them, stop and talk to your GP.

What to look for when buying soursop capsules

Look at the plant part first, then the amount per day and the warnings. A good label tells you all three.

1. Fruit, not leaf. In the EU only the fruit is allowed. If the label says leaf or seed, the product should not be on sale here.
2. Extraction ratio and milligrams per capsule. A 10:1 extract is more concentrated than ground fruit. Work out what you take per day.
3. Warnings. Children, pregnancy, breastfeeding, neurological conditions and a maximum duration of use should be on the label or product page.
4. Acetogenins. Ask the seller whether the acetogenin content is known. In France this is a condition for fruit preparations.
5. Seller in the EU. A European address on the label means someone in the EU is responsible for the product.
6. Lab tests. Ask about analyses, for example for heavy metals and microbiology. Our products are independently tested for quality and purity.

You can find our capsules with fruit extract on the page buy soursop. Other plants, herbs and fruits in capsules or powder are in herbs & superfoods.

Summary in 3 points

• Soursop (graviola) is the fruit of Annona muricata; in the EU only the fruit is allowed in supplements, not the leaf.
• With our soursop capsules you take 1 capsule a day, for no more than four weeks in a row, and you do not combine them with other soursop products.
• There are still questions about annonacin: not for children, not during pregnancy or breastfeeding and not with Parkinson's or another neurological condition.

Frequently asked questions

What is soursop called in other languages?

In Dutch soursop is called zuurzak. In German the fruit is called Stachelannone, in French corossol, in Spanish guanábana and in Portuguese graviola. The Latin name is Annona muricata.

How many soursop capsules can you take per day?

With our soursop capsules you take 1 capsule a day with water. Do not use them for more than four weeks in a row and never take more than the label says.

Can you buy soursop leaf capsules or graviola tea in the EU?

No. The leaf of Annona muricata is an unauthorised novel food in the EU and may not be sold as food or as a supplement. Only the fruit is allowed.

Does soursop work?

No health claims have been approved for soursop in the EU. Most research has been done on cells and in animals, often with leaf or seed extracts. That is why we make no statements about effects.

Are GOYU soursop capsules vegan?

Yes. The extract is plant-based and the capsule is made of HPMC, so they are suitable for vegetarians and vegans.

Sources

1. European Commission. Novel Food Catalogue, Annona muricata L. (POL-NF-00134): fruit not novel; seeds, peel, leaves and roots unauthorised novel food. Accessed 5 November 2026. ec.europa.eu
2. Compl'Alim (French government). Annona muricata L.: status, permitted plant parts and note on acetogenins. Accessed 5 November 2026. compl-alim.beta.gouv.fr
3. Afssa. Opinion on the risks associated with the consumption of soursop and its preparations, request 2008-SA-0171, 28 April 2010. anses.fr
4. Raclariu-Manolica AC, Bakhiya N, Hirsch-Ernst KI. Risk assessment of Annona muricata in food supplements (EU-FORA report, carried out at the German BfR). EFSA Journal. 2020;18(S1):e181112. doi:10.2903/j.efsa.2020.e181112
5. Champy P, Melot A, et al. Annonacin content of the fruit, nectar and leaf tea of Annona muricata. Mov Disord. 2005;20(12):1629-1633. PubMed 16078200
6. Caparros-Lefebvre D, Elbaz A. Case-control study of atypical parkinsonism and consumption of tropical plants in Guadeloupe (87 patients). Lancet. 1999;354(9175):281-286. PubMed 10440304
7. Moghadamtousi SZ, Fadaeinasab M, Nikzad S, et al. Review of the traditional uses, acetogenins and research on Annona muricata. Int J Mol Sci. 2015;16(7):15625-15658. PubMed 26184167
8. GOYU, label and product page of Soursop Extract Capsules 500 mg (composition, use and warnings), accessed 5 November 2026.

You can find our soursop capsules on the page buy soursop.

This article is for information only and is not medical advice. Food supplements are not a substitute for a varied and balanced diet and a healthy lifestyle. If in doubt, if you are pregnant or if you take medication, talk to your GP or pharmacist.