11 Of The Unhealthiest Whole Wheat Breads You Should Leave At The Store

Whole wheat bread is made from flour that contains all parts of the wheat grain: The fibrous bran, the nutritious germ, and the starchy endosperm. Each of these parts has its own nutrients, and the inclusion of all three ensures that a whole wheat loaf is usually more nutrient-dense than other loaves that are made with refined flour. While whole wheat bread is generally healthier than its refined counterparts, not every commercially available loaf is as healthy as some customers might expect. In this article, we prove this point by highlighting a selection of whole wheat breads that are surprisingly unhealthy.

We measured whole wheat bread's healthiness on three criteria: If they contained low amounts of fiber, if they contained added sugars, and if they contained large amounts of sodium. We focused on these three nutrients because each poses a distinct and enduring challenge in many people's diets. For example, research conducted by the United States Department of Agriculture's Agricultural Research Service found that 95% of Americans fail to eat the recommended amount of fiber. The opposite is true of both added sugars and sodium, which the majority of Americans consistently eat too much of.

Underconsuming fiber and overconsuming added sugars and sodium has a slew of negative impacts on the body, increasing the chances of people suffering from cardiovascular disease and many other ailments. As a sneaky food that can be loaded with salt and sugar, knowledge concerning the nutritional profile of these supposedly healthy breads is incredibly important.

Upon initial inspection, Kroger's Private Selection 100% Whole Wheat Bread has a lot going for it. The packaging boasts that each serving contains 26 grams of whole grains and that no high fructose corn syrup is used to make the bread. Unfortunately, this is where the good news ends. Each serving of this whole wheat bread — a single slice that weighs 45 grams — contains 270 milligrams of sodium. This amounts to 13% of an adult's recommended daily intake value. To put this number into better perspective, 270 milligrams of sodium is 10 milligrams more than is found in a medium serving of McDonald's french fries; a lot of sodium for a single slice of whole wheat bread to contain.

To make matters worse, a single slice of Private Selection 100% Whole Wheat Bread also contains 3 grams of added sugars. While this might not sound like a lot, 3 grams is 6% of an adult's daily value, meaning a couple of slices can eat up a fair chunk of your recommended allowance. It's not all doom and gloom, however. Unlike several other breads mentioned in this article, this whole wheat bread does boast a respectable fiber content with each 45-gram slice of bread containing 4 grams of fiber.

Pepperidge Farm, a nationally available brand that's owned by Campbell Soup Company, produces a huge variety of breads, some of which have received some pretty dismal reviews. However, the brand's 100% whole wheat loaf is not so badly thought of. This specific product is slow-baked and does not contain flavors or colors from artificial sources. As with many other whole wheat loaves, Pepperidge Farm 100% Whole Wheat is sweetened to offset the bitter flavor of whole wheat flour and encourage the bread to rapidly rise. In this instance, the bread is sweetened with sugar and molasses, not high fructose corn syrup. Be that as it may, the sheer amount of added sugars present in one serving of Pepperidge Farm 100% Whole Wheat is concerning.

A single 49-gram slice of this bread contains 4 grams of added sugars, accounting for 8% of an adult's daily value. This is the joint most of any bread featured in this article and is especially concerning given that this product, unlike other breads which contain this much added sugar, is not marketed as a sweetened honey bread.

Aside from its alarming added sugar content, this bread also contains a lot of sodium with each slice carrying 180 milligrams. At 8% of an adult's daily value, this is not an amount to be overlooked. As with the Private Selection loaf, though, this bread does offset some of its healthy credentials thanks to each slice containing 4 grams of fiber.

Wonder Bread is a brand with a long history of producing many bread products, from sliced loaves to its recently launched Hawaiian rolls. Unfortunately, the brand has a less-than-stellar reputation when it comes to nutrition, thanks to the company's history of selling nutrient-deficient white loaves. Wonder 100% Small Whole Wheat Bread is by no means as unhealthy as these old products, but it still leaves something to be desired.

The main concern is that a single serving of the whole wheat bread — which is a small, 25-gram slice — contains 105 milligrams of sodium. While only 5% of an adult's daily value, this amount is still large, especially considering the serving size is so small. If we measure the sodium content on a gram-by-gram basis, this bread actually contains more sodium than many other breads featured in this article including Pepperidge Farm 100% Whole Wheat.

This bread has a passable fiber content with each slice containing 2 grams, equal to 7% of an adult's daily value. Happily, Wonder 100% Small Whole Wheat Bread also contains no added sugars.

Sara Lee 100% Whole Wheat Bread is another product which is quick to highlight its supposedly healthy nature. The product's packaging clearly states that it does not contain high fructose corn syrup, artificial colors, or artificial flavors. What's more, customers enjoy 13 grams of whole grains in each 26-gram slice they consume.

This small serving size does little to disguise the bread's main nutritional downfall; its high sodium content. Every 26-gram slice contains 110 milligrams of sodium, which is 4% of an adult's daily value. On a gram-by-gram basis, Sara Lee's product actually contains more sodium than the Pepperidge Farm product, and approximately the same amount as Wonder's whole wheat loaf. Needless to say, this is not good company to keep.

Unlike the previously mentioned Wonder loaf, Sara Lee's product also contains a small amount of added sugar, with each slice containing less than 1 gram. Add to this a low fiber content of 2 grams per slice and it's not hard to see why this product has ended up on our list.

Nature's Own is a brand that's readily available in most major grocery stores and it's known to make some pretty good dinner rolls. This, along with the wide range of products that the brand offers, makes Nature's Own a familiar sight in many American homes. Unfortunately, many of these products, including the brand's 100% Whole Wheat Bread Loaf, are not a great choice for health-conscious shoppers.

As with many other breads mentioned in this article, the sodium content of Nature's Own 100% Whole Wheat Bread Loaf is of most concern. Each small serving, a single 26-gram slice, contains 110 milligrams of sodium, giving this bread the exact same gram-by-gram sodium content as Sara Lee's 100% Whole Wheat Bread. The similarities do not stop there. As with the previously mentioned Sara Lee bread, Nature's Own loaf also contains 2 grams of fiber and just under 1 gram of added sugars per slice. As such, the same conclusion applies; this is a bread that offers little in a nutritional sense and those customers seeking a healthy option are best off avoiding it.

Whole wheat and honey is a popular combination that's used by many bread brands including Walmart's own private label, Great Value. As with other whole wheat honey breads, this loaf uses honey — and sugar — to offset the bitter flavor of whole wheat flour, meaning the loaf is sweet and moreish. However, from a nutritional standpoint, this combination results in bread that is not as healthy as it initially seems.

Unsurprisingly, the most concerning aspect of Great Value 100% Whole Wheat & Honey Bread Loaf is its added sugar content. Each 45-gram slice contains 4 grams of added sugars which is equal to 8% of an adult's daily value. This is an alarming amount for a single slice of bread to contain and should definitely give potential customers a cause for concern. To make matters worse, this serving also sees customers consuming 180 milligrams of sodium, 8% of an adult's daily value.

There's a positive here, and it is a significant one. Each slice of Great Value 100% Whole Wheat & Honey Bread Loaf contains an impressive 4 grams of fiber. This is 14% of an adult's daily value, meaning those who eat this bread regularly will go some way in reaching their daily recommended intake of that nutrient.

Sara Lee Honey Whole Wheat Bread is the second product from Sara Lee to feature in this article. Unfortunately, its nutritional profile is even more disappointing than that of the previously mentioned Sara Lee 100% Whole Wheat Bread. Given that this product is a honey bread, you'd be forgiven for assuming that it is in the added sugars content where this loaf proves unhealthier. This isn't the case; this honey whole wheat bread only contains one gram of added sugars in each 26-gram slice. In reality, it's both the sodium and fiber contents that are of much greater concern.

Although marketed as a whole wheat bread, the largest ingredient by weight in Sara Lee Honey Whole Wheat Bread is actually enriched wheat flour. This is refined flour that has had some of the stripped nutrients added back into it. Whole wheat flour is sixth on the ingredient list, indicating that it is only a supplementary ingredient. This shows in the bread's nutritional profile; one slice contains only a single gram of fiber. This paltry amount is not only incredibly low for whole wheat breads but actually puts it on par with many white bread loaves.

The sodium content is also of concern with a single 26-gram serving of this bread containing 140 milligrams of sodium. On a gram-by-gram basis, this is a significant amount of sodium.

In recent years, products made from sprouted grain have ballooned in popularity. A large proportion of this popularity is because people think these products are healthier; some research suggests that the nutrients in sprouted grains are more readily available, making them easier for our bodies to digest and absorb. However, this does not mean all products made with sprouted grains are de facto healthy, as Silver Hills Bakery Organic Soft Wheat Sprouted Wheat Bread indicates.

This bread is made from a mixture of three different flours: Organic sprouted whole wheat flour, organic wheat flour, and cultured wheat flour. While providing the benefits of sprouted grains, this mixture leaves a lot to be desired on the fiber front, with each 40-gram slice only containing 2 grams of fiber. This is a disappointing amount when you compare it to competing whole wheat bread products, many of which contain more than double that amount per similarly-sized portion.

A single slice of Silver Hills Bakery Organic Soft Wheat Sprouted Wheat Bread also contains 190 milligrams of sodium and 2 grams of added sugars. The high content of both these nutrients illustrates the point that this bread is far from the healthiest option around.

Country Hearth 100% Whole Wheat Bread claims to be heart-healthy thanks to the 15 grams of whole grain that is present in every 28-gram slice. While this may be true, the brand is not so forthright in mentioning some of the unhealthy aspects of the product, notably its sodium content. One slice contains 160 milligrams of sodium, making 7% of an adult's daily value. This means that on a gram-by-gram basis, Country Hearth 100% Whole Wheat Bread contains one of the highest sodium contents of any bread in this article.

Further concerns come in the form of sugar, specifically brown sugar which is added to the bread to improve its flavor. While customers might like the taste, many will struggle to justify the resulting amount of added sugars, which stands at 2 grams for each 28-gram slice. As a final kicker, Country Hearth 100% Whole Wheat Bread is not particularly high in fiber with each slice only containing 2 grams.

Oroweat does not use high fructose corn syrup, artificial preservatives, or bleached flour in any of its products. For this, the brand should be celebrated. However, some of the company's products, including Whole Grain 100% Whole Wheat Bread, still have a few drawbacks. The main issue with this particular whole wheat loaf is that it contains a lot of sodium, with each 43-gram slice boasting a sodium content of 180 milligrams, equal to 8% of an adult's daily value.

Of equal concern is the bread's level of added sugars, which stands at 3 grams per slice thanks to the inclusion of both sugar and honey. Accounting for 6% of an adult's daily value, this stands as one of the largest amounts of added sugars of any bread mentioned in this article. Oroweat Whole Grain 100% Whole Wheat Bread slightly redeems itself by having a passable fiber content of 3 grams per slice. We have no doubt, however, that this bread is more than deserving of its spot in this article.

The final bread comes from Bimbo, a brand that's known for its fluffy white name-brand bread and for creating bread that's stocked by many grocery stores' private labels, including Aldi. While some may not be aware of it, Bimbo also produces a range of whole wheat breads led by its flagship product, 100% Whole Wheat Bread. Unfortunately for Bimbo, this bread has anything but a stellar reputation when it comes to nutrition, and for good reason; a single serving, which in this case is two slices or bread weighing a combined 50 grams, contains 230 milligrams of sodium. This amounts to 10% of an adult's daily value and is one of the highest per-serving amounts mentioned in this article. Further compounding matters is the level of added sugars which stands at 2 grams per serving.

Happily, Bimbo 100% Whole Wheat Bread does contain a respectable amount of fiber — 3 grams per serving to be exact. However, this is considerably less than many of its competitors and will do little to convince customers that this product is anything but unhealthy.