Healthy food faceoff: Which of these pack the biggest nutritional punch?

Many of us read nutrition labels to choose foods that are lower in added sugar, sodium and saturated fat. Health Canada’s front-of-package “high in” symbols, which have been mandatory since January, make this an easy task.

But when choosing between two healthy foods, you can’t always tell which one packs the most nutritional heft. This is especially true for fresh fruits and vegetables, which don’t have nutrition labels.

When considering two similar healthy foods, does one have a nutritional edge? Here are five head-to-head comparisons.

Cottage cheese versus plain Greek yogurt

These two dairy products have similar macronutrient profiles. Each half a cup provides about 90 calories, 12 grams of protein and 2.5 grams of fat.

Both are also decent sources of calcium. Depending on the brand, one half-cup of 2 per cent cottage cheese supplies 125 or 175 milligrams of the mineral.

The same amount of plain 2 per cent Greek yogurt typically contains 125 milligrams of calcium, but some brands can have as much as 300 mg. (Different processing and straining methods affect how much calcium remains.)

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Where cottage cheese and Greek yogurt differ is when it comes to sodium.

A half-cup of cottage cheese has 280 to 380 mg of sodium. If your usual portion of cottage cheese is one cup, you could be consuming as much as half a day’s worth of the mineral. On the other hand, one half-cup of plain 2 per cent Greek yogurt has 35 to 55 mg of sodium. (Adults need 1500 mg of sodium each day.)

Cottage cheese and Greek yogurt are both nutrient-dense choices. If you’re minding your daily sodium intake, though, consider opting for the latter more often.

Butternut squash versus acorn squash

There’s no clear winner here. Each winter squash brings different nutritional strengths to your plate.

If you’re wanting to get the most fibre, magnesium and potassium, acorn squash is the winner. One cup of its baked cubes delivers an impressive 9 g of fibre, 88 mg of magnesium and 896 mg of potassium. (Women and men need 2,600 and 3,400 mg of potassium a day, respectively).

Butternut squash is no slouch, either, offering 6.5 g of fibre, 60 mg of magnesium and 582 mg of potassium in each cup. But where it really shines is in its beta-carotene content. One cup cooked supplies 9.4 mg of beta carotene, while acorn has considerably less, about 1.2 mg a cup.

Research suggests that consuming 3 to 6 mg of beta-carotene daily is associated with a lower risk of chronic disease, such as type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease.

Peanut butter versus almond butter

You can’t go wrong with either choice.

Both are excellent sources of heart-healthy monounsaturated fats (the type that’s predominant in olive and avocado oil). And each delivers 7 g of protein in two tablespoons.

Almond butter, though, has the nutritional edge when it comes to fibre, calcium, magnesium and potassium. A two-tablespoon serving provides 3.3 g fibre, 110 mg of calcium, 90 mg of magnesium and 240 mg of potassium.

What’s more, almond butter is an exceptional source of immune-supportive vitamin E. Adults need 15 mg of the nutrient each day, and two tablespoons of the nut butter deliver 7.7 mg.

Apples versus pears

Call this one a near tie. Both fall fruits contain similar amounts of vitamins and minerals, including vitamin C and potassium. They also provide an assortment of protective phytochemicals.

Pears have a modest edge when it comes to fibre, however. One large pear serves up 7 g of fibre. A similar sized apple provides 5 g – still a respectable amount. Both fruits also contain pectin, a soluble fibre that can help lower LDL cholesterol in the bloodstream.

White sourdough bread versus whole-grain bread

From a nutritional perspective, 100 per cent whole-grain bread is the clear winner.

Whole-grain flour retains the bran, nutrient-rich germ and starchy endosperm parts of the grain kernel. When whole grains are processed into refined white flour, most or all of the bran and germ are stripped away.

As a result, 100-per-cent whole-grain breads provide more gut-friendly fibre, B vitamins, minerals such as iron, calcium and magnesium and protective plant compounds than breads made with white flour.

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A 2024 study, for example, found that levels of major minerals, including calcium, magnesium, potassium and phosphorus, were reduced by up to 72 per cent in refined flour and breads compared with original whole-wheat kernels.

This doesn’t mean that traditional sourdough bread made through natural fermentation with yeasts and bacteria is not without nutritional benefits.

The fermentation process may increase the availability of certain minerals by breaking down some phytates, which are natural plant compounds that bind to minerals. It can also partially break down gluten proteins, making sourdough easier for some people to digest (although it will still not be gluten free).

To get the best of both worlds, look for a 100-per-cent whole-grain sourdough bread at your local artisan bakery.

Leslie Beck, a Toronto-based private practice dietitian, is director of food and nutrition at Medcan.