Ever wonder how your favorite foods stack up against each other in terms of nutrition?
We compared the nutritional contents of
barley
versus
whey protein powder
(100g each)
below using 2020 USDA and NIH data[1].
For a quick recap of significant nutrients and differences in barley and whey protein powder:
Both barley and whey protein powder are high in calories. is very similar to barley for calories - barley has 352 calories per 100 grams and whey protein powder has 352 calories.
For macronutrient ratios, barley is much lighter in protein, much heavier in carbs and similar to whey protein powder for fat. Barley has a macronutrient ratio of 11:86:3 and for whey protein powder, 89:7:4 for protein, carbohydrates and fat from calories.
Macro Ratios from Calories:
| Barley | Whey Protein Powder | |
|---|---|---|
| Protein | 11% | 89% |
| Carbohydrates | 86% | 7% |
| Fat | 3% | 4% |
| Alcohol | ~ | ~ |
Barley is high in carbohydrates and whey protein powder has 92% less carbohydrates than barley - barley has 77.7g of total carbs per 100 grams and whey protein powder has 6.3g of carbohydrates.
Both barley and whey protein powder are high in dietary fiber. Barley has 403% more dietary fiber than whey protein powder - barley has 15.6g of dietary fiber per 100 grams and whey protein powder has 3.1g of dietary fiber.
Barley and whey protein powder contain similar amounts of sugar - barley has 0.8g of sugar per 100 grams and whey protein powder does not contain significant amounts.
Both barley and whey protein powder are high in protein. Whey protein powder has 688% more protein than barley - barley has 9.9g of protein per 100 grams and whey protein powder has 78.1g of protein.
Both barley and whey protein powder are low in saturated fat - barley has 0.24g of saturated fat per 100 grams and whey protein powder has 0.78g of saturated fat.
Barley has less cholesterol than whey protein powder - whey protein powder has 16mg of cholesterol per 100 grams and barley does not contain significant amounts.
Barley and whey protein powder contain similar amounts of Vitamin A - barley has 1ug of Vitamin A per 100 grams and whey protein powder does not contain significant amounts.
Barley and whey protein powder contain similar amounts of Vitamin E - barley has 0.02mg of Vitamin E per 100 grams and whey protein powder does not contain significant amounts.
Barley and whey protein powder contain similar amounts of Vitamin K - barley has 2.2ug of Vitamin K per 100 grams and whey protein powder does not contain significant amounts.
Whey protein powder has more thiamin, riboflavin, Vitamin B6 and Vitamin B12, however, barley contains more niacin and pantothenic acid. Both barley and whey protein powder contain significant amounts of folate.
| Barley | Whey Protein Powder | |
|---|---|---|
| Thiamin | 0.191 MG | 0.609 MG |
| Riboflavin | 0.114 MG | 2.017 MG |
| Niacin | 4.604 MG | 1.136 MG |
| Pantothenic acid | 0.282 MG | ~ |
| Vitamin B6 | 0.26 MG | 0.607 MG |
| Folate | 23 UG | 33 UG |
| Vitamin B12 | ~ | 2.45 UG |
Whey protein powder is an excellent source of calcium and it has 15 times more calcium than barley - barley has 29mg of calcium per 100 grams and whey protein powder has 469mg of calcium.
Barley is a great source of iron and it has 121% more iron than whey protein powder - barley has 2.5mg of iron per 100 grams and whey protein powder has 1.1mg of iron.
Both barley and whey protein powder are high in potassium. Whey protein powder has 79% more potassium than barley - barley has 280mg of potassium per 100 grams and whey protein powder has 500mg of potassium.
For omega-3 fatty acids, both barley and whey protein powder contain significant amounts of alpha linoleic acid (ALA).
| Barley | Whey Protein Powder | |
|---|---|---|
| alpha linoleic acid | 0.055 G | 0.034 G |
| Total | 0.055 G | 0.034 G |
Comparing omega-6 fatty acids, both barley and whey protein powder contain significant amounts of linoleic acid.
| Barley | Whey Protein Powder | |
|---|---|---|
| linoleic acid | 0.505 G | 0.264 G |
| Total | 0.505 G | 0.264 G |
The comparison below is by common portions, e.g. cups, packages. You can also see a more concrete comparison by weight at equal weight (by grams) comparison.
Note: The specific food items compared are: Barley (Barley, pearled, raw) and Whey Protein Powder (Protein powder, whey based, NFS) .
Barley g
()
|
Daily Values (%) |
Whey Protein Powder g
()
|
|||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| KCAL % |
|
5% | calories | 5% |
|
KCAL % | |
| G % |
|
5% | carbohydrates | 5% |
|
G % | |
| G % |
|
5% | dietary fiber | 5% |
|
G % | |
| G | 5% | sugar | 5% | G | |||
| G % |
|
5% | total fat | 5% |
|
G % | |
| G % |
|
5% | saturated fat | 5% |
|
G % | |
| G | 5% | monounsaturated fat | 5% | G | |||
| G | 5% | polyunsaturated fat | 5% | G | |||
| G | 5% | trans fat | 5% | G | |||
| MG | 5% | cholesterol | 5% | MG | |||
| MG % |
|
5% | sodium | 5% |
|
MG % | |
| 5% | Vitamins and Minerals | 5% | |||||
| UG % |
|
5% | Vitamin A | 5% |
|
UG % | |
| MG % |
|
5% | Vitamin C | 5% |
|
MG % | |
| IU % |
|
5% | Vitamin D | 5% |
|
IU % | |
| MG % |
|
5% | calcium | 5% |
|
MG % | |
| MG % |
|
5% | iron | 5% |
|
MG % | |
| MG % |
|
5% | magnesium | 5% |
|
MG % | |
| MG % |
|
5% | potassium | 5% |
|
MG % | |
| MG % |
|
5% | thiamin (Vit B1) | 5% |
|
MG % | |
| MG % |
|
5% | riboflavin (Vit B2) | 5% |
|
MG % | |
| MG % |
|
5% | niacin (Vit B3) | 5% |
|
MG % | |
| MG % |
|
5% | Vitamin B6 | 5% |
|
MG % | |
| MG % |
|
5% | pantothenic acid (Vit B5) | 5% |
|
MG % | |
| UG % |
|
5% | folate (Vit B9) | 5% |
|
UG % | |
| UG % |
|
5% | Vitamin B12 | 5% |
|
UG % | |
| MG % |
|
5% | Vitamin E | 5% |
|
MG % | |
| UG % |
|
5% | Vitamin K | 5% |
|
UG % | |
| G % |
|
5% | protein | 5% |
|
G % | |
| UG % |
|
5% | biotin (Vit B7) | 5% |
|
UG % | |
| MG % |
|
5% | choline | 5% |
|
MG % | |
| MG % |
|
5% | chlorine | 5% |
|
MG % | |
| UG % |
|
5% | chromium | 5% |
|
UG % | |
| MG % |
|
5% | copper | 5% |
|
MG % | |
| UG % |
|
5% | fluoride | 5% |
|
UG % | |
| UG % |
|
5% | iodine | 5% |
|
UG % | |
| MG % |
|
5% | manganese | 5% |
|
MG % | |
| UG % |
|
5% | molybdenum | 5% |
|
UG % | |
| MG % |
|
5% | phosphorus | 5% |
|
MG % | |
| UG % |
|
5% | selenium | 5% |
|
UG % | |
| MG % |
|
5% | zinc | 5% |
|
MG % | |
| G | 5% | Water | 5% | G | |||
| G | 5% | Starch | 5% | G | |||
| G | 5% | Alcohol | 5% | G | |||