Ever wonder how your favorite foods stack up against each other in terms of nutrition?
We compared the nutritional contents of
cooked
pork
versus
whey protein powder
(100g each)
below using 2020 USDA and NIH data[1].
For a quick recap of significant nutrients and differences in pork and whey protein powder:
Both pork and whey protein powder are high in calories. Whey protein powder has 19% more calories than pork - pork has 297 calories per 100 grams and whey protein powder has 352 calories.
For macronutrient ratios, pork is much lighter in protein, lighter in carbs and much heavier in fat compared to whey protein powder per calorie. Pork has a macronutrient ratio of 36:0:65 and for whey protein powder, 89:7:4 for protein, carbohydrates and fat from calories.
Macro Ratios from Calories:
| Pork | Whey Protein Powder | |
|---|---|---|
| Protein | 36% | 89% |
| Carbohydrates | ~ | 7% |
| Fat | 65% | 4% |
| Alcohol | ~ | ~ |
Pork has less carbohydrates than whey protein powder - whey protein powder has 6.3g of total carbs per 100 grams and pork does not contain significant amounts.
Whey protein powder is an excellent source of dietary fiber and it has more dietary fiber than pork - whey protein powder has 3.1g of dietary fiber per 100 grams and pork does not contain significant amounts.
Both pork and whey protein powder are high in protein. Whey protein powder has 204% more protein than pork - pork has 25.7g of protein per 100 grams and whey protein powder has 78.1g of protein.
Pork is high in saturated fat and whey protein powder has 90% less saturated fat than pork - pork has 7.7g of saturated fat per 100 grams and whey protein powder has 0.78g of saturated fat.
Whey protein powder has 4.8 times less cholesterol than pork - pork has 94mg of cholesterol per 100 grams and whey protein powder has 16mg of cholesterol.
Pork has more Vitamin C than whey protein powder - pork has 0.7mg of Vitamin C per 100 grams and whey protein powder does not contain significant amounts.
Pork and whey protein powder contain similar amounts of Vitamin A - pork has 2ug of Vitamin A per 100 grams and whey protein powder does not contain significant amounts.
Pork has more Vitamin D than whey protein powder - pork has 21iu of Vitamin D per 100 grams and whey protein powder does not contain significant amounts.
Pork and whey protein powder contain similar amounts of Vitamin E - pork has 0.21mg of Vitamin E per 100 grams and whey protein powder does not contain significant amounts.
Whey protein powder has more riboflavin, folate and Vitamin B12, however, pork contains more niacin and pantothenic acid. Both pork and whey protein powder contain significant amounts of thiamin and Vitamin B6.
| Pork | Whey Protein Powder | |
|---|---|---|
| Thiamin | 0.706 MG | 0.609 MG |
| Riboflavin | 0.22 MG | 2.017 MG |
| Niacin | 4.206 MG | 1.136 MG |
| Pantothenic acid | 0.52 MG | ~ |
| Vitamin B6 | 0.391 MG | 0.607 MG |
| Folate | 6 UG | 33 UG |
| Vitamin B12 | 0.54 UG | 2.45 UG |
Whey protein powder is an excellent source of calcium and it has 20 times more calcium than pork - pork has 22mg of calcium per 100 grams and whey protein powder has 469mg of calcium.
Pork and whey protein powder contain similar amounts of iron - pork has 1.3mg of iron per 100 grams and whey protein powder has 1.1mg of iron.
Both pork and whey protein powder are high in potassium. Whey protein powder has 38% more potassium than pork - pork has 362mg of potassium per 100 grams and whey protein powder has 500mg of potassium.
For omega-3 fatty acids, pork has more alpha linoleic acid (ALA) than whey protein powder per 100 grams.
| Pork | Whey Protein Powder | |
|---|---|---|
| alpha linoleic acid | 0.07 G | 0.034 G |
| Total | 0.07 G | 0.034 G |
Comparing omega-6 fatty acids, pork has more linoleic acid than whey protein powder per 100 grams.
| Pork | Whey Protein Powder | |
|---|---|---|
| linoleic acid | 1.64 G | 0.264 G |
| other omega 6 | 0.08 G | ~ |
| Total | 1.72 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: Pork (Pork, fresh, ground, cooked) and Whey Protein Powder (Protein powder, whey based, NFS) .
Cooked Pork 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 | |||