Crackers are a classic snack food loved by many people, and when it comes to comparing options, Wheat Thins VS Triscuits is an irresistibly debatable topic.
If you are a fan of crackers and are in the market for these classic favorites, you will apparently want to pick “healthy crackers” that feel substantial. That said, when it comes to buying crackers, the trick to choosing the best, healthy option is looking at the ingredients label then comparing what each cracker contains.
Well, while crackers generally get a bad rap because they tend to come with overly-processed ingredients, both Wheat Thins and Triscuits are considered healthy because they are made from whole grain wheat. But do they offer the same nutritional benefits?
This post will compare Wheat Thins VS Triscuits to help you make an informed decision when shopping.
In Short, the nutritional difference between Wheat Thins VS Triscuits is that Triscuits contain less calories per serving, less carbohydrates, no added sugar, more protein, more iron, more potassium, and less sodium than Wheat Thins do.
Wheat Thins
First introduced by Nabisco, Wheat Thins are one of the well-known crackers made from whole grain wheat.
They are advertised to contain 0.3 grams of fat, 11.5 calories, and 14.3 mg of sodium per cracker.
The original Wheat Thins crackers are made using Canola oil, sugar, malt syrup, salt, refiners syrup, calcium phosphate, and baking soda.
While they’re a decent option for those looking for healthy crackers, they also contain 5 grams of sugar per serving. As such, they may not be the healthiest cracker on the market despite the name.
Triscuits
Triscuits are one of the healthiest crackers, containing only three simple ingredients: whole grain wheat flour, soybean oil, and salt. Precisely, they contain 0.75 grams of fat, 20 calories, and 30 milligrams of sodium.
Because they contain whole grains, Triscuits make for a nutritious cracker option for any occasion.
Wheat Thins VS Triscuits: Nutrition Facts
Crackers provide a great way to get a serving of whole grains into your diet. They can also be a part of a healthy diet as they encourage you to eat other healthy and nutritious foods as toppings. Let’s have a look at how the two stack up nutritionally.
A single 31g serving of Wheat Thins contains:
- Calories: 140
- Fat: 5 g
- Carbohydrate: 22 g
- Fiber: 3 g
- Protein: 2 g
- Sodium: 200 mg
- Potassium: 90 mg
- Iron: 0.9 mg
On the other hand, a single serving of Triscuits contains:
- Calories: 120
- Fat: 3.5 g
- Carbohydrate: 20 g
- Fiber: 3 g
- Protein: 3 g
- Sodium: 160 mg
- Potassium: 116 mg
- Iron: 1.4 mg
That said, compared to most other crackers, both Wheat Thins and Triscuits are healthier alternatives. However, because they have varied ingredients, it is rather obvious that they offer varied nutritional benefits as well.
Here are the key differences between these coveted snack products:
1. Triscuits Have Less Calories Per Serving
One of the essential principles for maintaining an ideal body weight is calorie density. That’s why dieticians recommend low-calorie intake.
Talking about these crackers in particular, Triscuit classic crackers offer 120 calories per serving (28 grams), whereas Wheat Thins have 140 calories per serving (31 grams). This makes Triscuits a better option for folks who want to lose weight or generally stay healthy.
Combining Triscuits with other nutritious toppings can help ensure your body functions normally, potentially boosting your mood while ensuring wellbeing. Further, considering that Triscuits crackers are low-carb with zero sugar, adding them to your diet can help improve sugar levels.
2. Triscuits Have Less Carbohydrate Per Serving
People pursue different diets for different reasons, but if your goal is losing weight or living a healthier lifestyle, you may seek to opt for a low-carb, high-protein diet. Thankfully, Triscuits have fewer carbohydrates per serving.
With Triscuit crackers, you get 19.9 grams of carbs per serving, while Wheat Thins have 22 grams total carbs per serving. For people looking to shed some pounds, Triscuits is a better option.
3. Wheat Thins Have Added Sugar (Triscuits Have None!)
High sugar concentration in food may be healthy or unhealthy depending on your body’s wellbeing status. If you need more sugars, you can consume foods with higher amounts of sugar. However, if you’re looking to keep your sugar consumption at bay, added sugars won’t do you any good.
Most of the available snack crackers, like Wheat Thins, have a certain percentage of added sugars. On the contrary, Triscuits do not have any sugar or sweetener – they are mainly made of whole-grain wheat.
Because high sugar consumption can be detrimental to your diet plans, Triscuits are the best cracker snack to buy for most people.
4. Triscuits Have More Protein
If protein is important for you then then the Wheat Thins VS Triscuits dilemma just got a little easier.
Protein is an essential nutrient when it comes to building body tissue. It is also useful in enhancing the body’s wellbeing and repairing damaged body tissues.
Triscuits are known to contain a higher protein value than Wheat Thins. Precisely, if you serve a full packet (28 grams) of Triscuits, you will be consuming 3 grams of protein.
This translates to about 13% of the nutritional value you will gain when you eat this whole Triscuit serving. On the other hand, a serving of Wheat Thins contains only 2 grams of proteins.
5. Triscuits Have More Iron
Iron is an essential mineral in the body because it is helpful in the hemoglobin production process.
That said, the composition of iron in Triscuits is relatively higher than in Wheat Thins. For instance, a serving of Wheat thins will provide 4 percent of dietary allowance for iron.
In contrast, only 10 Triscuits crackers are enough to give you the same amount (4%) of the daily iron allowance. This makes Triscuits an ideal option for those seeking to boost their consumption of plant-based iron.
6. Wheat Thins Have More Sodium And Less Potassium
Wheat Thins might not be the best cracker option on the market if you’re seeking to reduce sodium intake. A single 16-cracker serving of Wheat Thins has about 200 milligrams of sodium sodium. A similar serving size of Triscuits, on the other hand, contains 90 mg of potassium.
Considering that the ideal sodium to potassium intake ratio should be roughly 1:3, Wheat Thins deliver a less than perfect ratio. In fact, almost the inverse.
In Conclusion
Wheat Thins and Triscuits are both baked snacks, but their different composition makes them very different despite having whole grain wheat flour as their main ingredient.
Triscuits provide less carbs, fewer calories, and more proteins, which is a good balance for maintaining ideal body weight. On the other hand, Wheat Thins have additional sugar and poor sodium to potassium ratio, which can be detrimental.
As such, it is safe to say that the matchup between Wheat Thins VS Triscuits — nutritionally-speaking anyway — skews heavily towards that latter.