How does white bread stack up to wheat and whole-grain bread? Poorly.

While most of us are willing to deny ourselves the occasional candy bar, bowl of ice cream or even a can of soda, there are some foods that feel like everyday staples in the standard American diet. These include milk, rice, chips, cereal, beans, noodles, fruits and vegetables and protein sources like eggs, beef, pork or chicken. 

Bread is also near the top of the list with "white bread being the most popular," says Kristina Cooke, a licensed nutritionist and registered dietitian with the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics. Indeed, analysis shows that the global market for packaged white bread is just north of a staggering $161 billion. 

Here's why white bread is so sought after, how it differs from other types of bread and why it seriously lacks nutritious value. 

What is white bread? 

White bread is a kind of bread that's known for having a long-lasting shelf life, being light in color, soft-textured, inexpensive, tasty and "pairing well with just about every type of sandwich," says Leslie Bonci, a registered sports dietitian and founder of Active Eating Advice.

White bread differs from wheat and whole-grain bread because it's been refined so it only contains one of the three key parts all grains originally possess. Whole grains keep the bran, germ and endosperm part of the grain, but white bread has the bran and germ processed out, "leaving only the nutrient-poor endosperm," says Katherine Tallmadge, a nutrition author and registered dietitian at Personalized Nutrition.

This matters because wheat germ and bran contain important nutrients like protein, fiber, minerals and key vitamins. 

Is white bread bad for you? 

Because of this, white bread doesn't have a lot to offer nutritionally. Its nutritional value is so low, in fact, that it's often required to be fortified with nutrients like iron and B vitamins. "But such fortification isn't nearly enough justification to make white bread healthy for you," says Tallmadge.

She says this is because, as an ultra-processed food, consuming a lot of white bread could increase your risk of developing any disease caused by inflammation and oxidation such as heart disease or type 2 diabetes. White bread also often contains additives like sugar and salt – substances most of us are already eating too much of. 

Research shows that consuming two or more slices of white bread per day is also associated with becoming overweight or obese. This probably has more to do with the butter we spread on a piece of toast or the cheese and mayo we top on it, though, because a slice of white bread only contains about 74 calories.

On the flip side, white bread is a good source of carbohydrates – about 13 grams in a single slice. "This makes it a good source of energy," says Cooke. This is why runners and other athletes often "carb load" with white bread and other refined grains shortly before a race or similar competition.  

White bread also has the benefit of having small amounts of calcium, magnesium, phosphorus, selenium and potassium, per the U.S. Department of Agriculture. 

Does white bread have fiber? 

Dietary fiber is an important nutrient that can improve digestive health, help you feel fuller for longer, aid with blood sugar regulation, lower your cholesterol levels and has been shown to reduce the risk of colon cancer and cardiovascular disease.  

While whole grains are "a major source of fiber," says Tallmadge, white bread is not, due to the most fibrous parts of the grain – the bran and the germ – being processed out. In fact, a slice of white bread has only a little more than 1/2 a gram of fiber. For comparison, a slice of whole wheat bread contains nearly two grams of fiber. 

This low fiber content means white bread "is virtually pure glucose," Tallmadge says – which is why it's likely to cause blood sugar spikes. The high-fiber content of whole-grain breads, on the other hand, not only helps prevent spikes from happening but also provides a host of important nutrients your body needs.

This is why nutritionists and doctors consistently recommend wheat and whole-grain bread over their refined white counterpart. For some groups of people, even the occasional slice of white bread is discouraged. "For those who are looking to lose weight, people with diabetes, and those with Celiac disease or gluten intolerance," says Cooke, "I would not recommend eating white bread."

Source: USA Today