The Health Benefits of Gizzards
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The Health Benefits of Gizzards

The Health Benefits of Gizzards
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By
Andra Picincu, CN, CPT
Updated on July 31, 2025
by
Search for “chicken intestine benefits” or “organ meat benefits” online and you’ll see the word “gizzard” mentioned on health and nutrition blogs. This term refers to a tiny muscle that helps birds digest seeds and other foods.

The gizzard is part of the bird’s stomach and helps with food breakdown. All birds, including ducks, lambs, chickens, and turkeys, have a gizzard.

Along with chicken liver, hearts, and kidneys, gizzards are used in a variety of dishes, from soups and stews to homemade snacks. Read on to learn more about their potential benefits — and who should avoid them.

Gizzard Nutritional Value

The nutritional value of gizzards depends on how you cook them. One cup of chopped or diced chicken gizzard, cooked and simmered, contains:

  • Calories 223
  • Protein 44.1g
  • Total fat 3.89g
  • Carbs 0

Are Gizzards Really Healthy?

Rich in protein and minerals, gizzards can be a healthy addition to most diets. ‌For example, one cup of chicken gizzard boasts slightly more than the recommended daily amount of selenium without exceeding upper intake levels. Selenium could be beneficial in protecting against the following conditions:

  • Cardiovascular disease
  • Cancer
  • Alzheimer’s disease and cognitive decline
  • HIV
  • Thyroid disease
Gizzards also feature a lot of protein — almost the entire recommended daily allowance for 2,000-calorie diets. High-protein diets may help induce weight loss.

Gizzards also contain ‌vitamin B12‌, which plays a key role in brain function and supports the production of red blood cells. One cup of chopped or diced chicken gizzard contains 1.5 micrograms of B12 — more than half of the daily recommended amount.

Who Should Avoid Gizzards?

Gizzards are considered an organ meat. Organ meats contain purines‌ and can trigger gout.

Regularly eating organ meat could also potentially increase the risk of fatty liver disease and bladder cancer, but more studies are needed to draw a definitive conclusion.

The Takeaway

  • Gizzards are an organ meat. All birds have gizzards.
  • When eaten in moderation, gizzards can be a good source of protein and minerals.
  • Gizzards are high in purines and should be avoided by people living with gout.

Resources We Love

EDITORIAL SOURCES
Everyday Health follows strict sourcing guidelines to ensure the accuracy of its content, outlined in our editorial policy. We use only trustworthy sources, including peer-reviewed studies, board-certified medical experts, patients with lived experience, and information from top institutions.
Resources
  1. Gizzard. Encyclopedia Britannica.
  2. Chicken, Gizzard, All Classes, Cooked, Simmered. U.S. Department of Agriculture. April 1, 2019.
  3. Selenium: Fact Sheet for Health Professionals. National Institutes of Health. April 15, 2024.
  4. Are You Getting Too Much Protein? Mayo Clinic. November 27, 2024.
  5. Moon J et al. Clinical Evidence and Mechanisms of High-Protein Diet-Induced Weight Loss. Journal of Obesity & Metabolic Syndrome. July 23, 2020.
  6. Vitamin B12: Fact Sheet for Health Professionals. National Institutes of Health. July 2, 2025.
  7. The Pros and Cons of Eating Organ Meat. Cleveland Clinic. August 4, 2022.
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Kayli Anderson, RDN

Medical Reviewer
Member of American College of Lifestyle Medicine

Kayli Anderson has over a decade of experience in nutrition, culinary education, and lifestyle medicine. She believes that eating well should be simple, pleasurable, and sustainable. Anderson has worked with clients from all walks of life, but she currently specializes in nutrition therapy and lifestyle medicine for women. She’s the founder of PlantBasedMavens.com, a hub for women to get evidence-based, practical, and woman-centered guidance on nutrition and cooking, hormone health, fertility, pregnancy, movement, mental well-being, nontoxic living, and more.

Anderson is board-certified in lifestyle medicine and serves as lead faculty of the American College of Lifestyle Medicine’s (ACLM) "Food as Medicine" course. She is past chair of the ACLM's registered dietitian member interest group, secretary of the women's health member interest group, and nutrition faculty for many of ACLM's other course offerings. She is the coauthor of the Plant-Based Nutrition Quick Start Guide and works with many of the leading organizations in nutrition and lifestyle medicine to develop nutrition content, recipes, and educational programs.

Anderson frequently speaks on the topics of women’s health and plant-based nutrition and has coauthored two lifestyle medicine textbooks, including the first one on women’s health, Improving Women's Health Across the Lifespan.

She received a master's degree in nutrition and physical performance and is certified as an exercise physiologist and intuitive eating counselor. She's a student of herbal medicine and women's integrative and functional medicine. She lives with her husband in the Colorado Rocky Mountains, where you’ll find her out on a trail or in her garden.

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Andra Picincu, CN, CPT

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