Nabisco: one brand, sodium from 174 to 882 mg per 3.5 oz (100 g)

In a double-blind randomized trial, 25 adults with overweight and belly fat ate about 2.4 oz (67.5 g) of crackers every afternoon for 70 days. Waist size, the main outcome, did not shrink, and blood cholesterol and triglycerides did not change. Both groups ate crackers, test or control, so the trial cannot tell you what crackers do compared with no snack. We found no study on any Nabisco product itself. What the USDA data show is that the brand name tells you little about the food. Across four legacy Nabisco records, sodium runs from 174 to 882 mg per 3.5 oz (100 g) and sugars from 8 to 43 g, one record per product and possibly older than today's recipes. Ritz crackers sit at the salty end, with 492 calories, 23.2 g fat and 882 mg sodium per 3.5 oz (100 g) in a single analytic record. One Ritz cracker weighs 3.3 g, which comes to about 16 calories and 29 mg sodium per cracker by arithmetic from the 100 g values.

The numbers, per 3.5 oz (100 g)

How much is actually in it

• Per 100 g, Nabisco Ritz Crackers provide 492 calories, 23.2 g fat, 8.1 g sugars and 882 mg sodium in the USDA reference record. — USDA SR Legacy record Nabisco, Nabisco Ritz Crackers (NDB 18621, FDC 173258) Evidence E source
  Per 100 g: energy 492 calories, protein 7.23 g, fat 23.21 g, saturated fat 5.45 g, carbohydrate 63.51 g, fiber 2.3 g, sugars 8.14 g, sodium 882 mg, iron 4.47 mg, thiamin 0.442 mg, vitamin K 50 ug
• Across four Nabisco products in USDA data, sodium ranges from 174 to 882 mg and sugars from 8 to 43 g per 3.5 oz (100 g), so the brand name says little about the nutrients. — USDA SR Legacy records for Ritz Crackers (FDC 173258), Grahams Crackers (175083), Oreo Crunchies cookie crumb topping (175084), Snackwell's Fat Free Devil's Food Cookie Cakes (167924) Evidence E source
  Per 100 g: sodium 882 / 659 / 528 / 174 mg; sugars 8.14 / 23.0 / 36.0 / 43.38 g; energy 492 / 424 / 476 / 305 calories (Ritz / Grahams / Oreo Crunchies / Snackwell's)

What a real portion looks like

• One Ritz cracker weighs 3.3 g in USDA data, which works out to about 16 calories and 29 mg sodium per cracker. — USDA SR Legacy portion for Nabisco Ritz Crackers (FDC 173258): 1 cracker Evidence E source
  1 cracker = 3.3 g; 492 calories x 0.033 = 16 calories; 882 mg x 0.033 = 29 mg sodium; a Grahams serving is 28 g (119 calories, 185 mg sodium)

What your body absorbs

• In a crossover trial in 12 adults, the vitamin D3 response to sponge cake was 26.6% higher than to a biscuit, and the biscuit peak came 1 hour later. — 12 healthy adults, single test meals of four model foods of similar composition (n = 12) Evidence B source
  Vitamin D3 response sponge cake higher than biscuit by 26.6% (p = 0.047); vitamin D3 and lutein peaks delayed by 1 h with biscuit matrix
• In a crossover trial in 20 people, swapping part of a wheat biscuit for kiwifruit cut the blood glucose response by 20 to 30%, and its peak by almost half when the fruit came 30 minutes earlier. — 20 subjects, 51.7 g available carbohydrate as wheat breakfast biscuit alone or partly exchanged for 200 g kiwifruit (n = 20) Evidence B source
  Glycemic iAUC reduced 20-30% in all exchanges; response amplitude reduced almost 50% when kiwifruit preceded the biscuit by 30 min; no loss of satiation

What cooking and storage change

• A meta-analysis of 28 articles found that baking lowers the mycotoxins deoxynivalenol and zearalenone in biscuits. — 28 articles (549 data points, 1983 to June 2017) on mycotoxins during cereal product processing (n = 28 articles) Evidence C source
  Cooking reduces DON and ZEN concentration in biscuit (direction only in abstract)

What it does to your health

• In a double-blind RCT, 25 adults with overweight ate about 2.4 oz (67.5 g) of crackers daily for 70 days, and neither PUFA-enriched nor control crackers reduced waist circumference or changed blood cholesterol. — 25 adults with overweight and abdominal adiposity, afternoon cracker snack daily for 70 days (n = 25) Evidence B source
  No reduction in waist circumference (primary endpoint not met), no change in cholesterol or triglycerides; satiety increased and hunger fell with both crackers
• Pooled cohort data from 17 studies with over 875,000 people link refined grain intake, including cookies and cakes, to no clear change in cardiovascular risk (HR 1.08). — 17 prospective cohort studies, more than 875,000 participants (n = >875,000) Evidence C source
  CVD HR 1.08 (95% CI 0.99-1.18); stroke HR 1.06 (0.92-1.23); heart failure HR 0.95 (0.77-1.16)

Safety, limits and interactions

• The FDA says more than 70% of the sodium people in the US eat comes from processed, packaged and prepared foods, against an average intake of about 3,400 mg a day and a 2,300 mg limit. — US population, ages 14 and older for the 2,300 mg limit Evidence E source
  Average intake about 3,400 mg/day versus limit 2,300 mg/day; over 70% of sodium from processed, packaged and prepared foods
• A scoping review of 75 studies found methylparaben in cookies outside the EU at up to 253,700 ng/g, far above EU levels. — 75 studies of paraben concentrations in foods worldwide, 14 food groups (n = 75 studies) Evidence C source
  Cookies outside EU: methylparaben 253,700 ng/g; EU maxima in dairy 302.82 ng/g

Who this works differently for

• In a 28-week RCT in 457 lead-exposed Moroccan children, biscuits fortified with about 8 mg iron improved iron status and lowered blood lead, with no gain in cognitive scores. — 457 lead-exposed Moroccan children, fortified biscuits 6 days a week at school for 28 weeks (n = 457) Evidence B source
  Endpoint blood lead 2.9 ug/dL (NaFeEDTA) and 3.3 ug/dL (FeSO4) versus 3.7 ug/dL placebo; iron improved iron status; no effect on cognition
• In 582 hemodialysis patients, eating savory snacks predicted more fluid overload, while cookies predicted less. — 582 patients from 37 Portuguese hemodialysis centers (n = 582) Evidence C source
  Savory snacks associated with greater hyperhydration; cookies with less (direction only in abstract)

What is still unknown

• A meta-analysis of 28 studies found acrylamide, formed during baking, was the most studied contaminant in cookies, bread and pasta, with a pooled level of 136.29 ug/kg, and commercial samples are missing for some regions. — 28 occurrence studies of processing contaminants in wheat-based foods (n = 28 studies) Evidence C source
  Pooled acrylamide 136.29 ug/kg, HMF 70.59 ug/kg, PAHs 0.11 ug/kg

The bottom line

The other three records spread the other way. Grahams crackers have 659 mg sodium and 23 g sugars per 3.5 oz (100 g), and a 0.99 oz (28 g) serving comes to about 119 calories and 185 mg sodium. Oreo Crunchies crumb topping has 528 mg sodium and 36 g sugars. Snackwell's Fat Free Devil's Food Cookie Cakes have the least sodium of the four, 174 mg, and the most sugar, 43.4 g per 3.5 oz (100 g). Read the label of the box in your hand. The FDA says more than 70% of the sodium people in the US eat comes from processed, packaged and prepared foods, which is where these products sit. The wider evidence on crackers and cookies is indirect. Pooled cohort data from 17 studies with more than 875,000 people found refined grain intake, cakes and cookies included, was not associated with cardiovascular risk (HR 1.08, 95% CI 0.99 to 1.18). That is observational, with high heterogeneity between studies and probable confounding noted by the authors. Meal tests on biscuits used foods made for the study. In 12 healthy adults, sponge cake gave a vitamin D3 response 26.6% higher than a model biscuit, and the biscuit's peak came an hour later. In 20 people, swapping part of a wheat breakfast biscuit for 7.1 oz (200 g) of kiwifruit cut the blood glucose response by 20 to 30%, and by almost half in amplitude when the fruit came 30 minutes first, with no loss of fullness. Baking both makes and breaks contaminants. A meta-analysis of 28 occurrence studies put the pooled acrylamide level in bread, cookies and pasta at 136.29 micrograms per kg, with no health outcome measured and no data on crackers or Nabisco specifically. Another meta-analysis of 28 articles found baking lowers the mycotoxins deoxynivalenol and zearalenone in biscuits, giving the direction without a size. Two cautions have some evidence behind them. A scoping review of 75 studies found methylparaben in cookies outside the EU, mostly in China and Saudi Arabia, at up to 253,700 ng per g, far above EU levels, with no US or Nabisco data and no link to health outcomes. In 582 patients from 37 Portuguese dialysis centers, eating savory snacks predicted more fluid overload while cookies predicted less, from observational data without effect sizes and without crackers separated from other savory snacks. If you are on dialysis, that is a question for your renal team. We have no card on allergens such as wheat in these products, so the label is the place to check.

Sources

1. nab-r5-01 · USDA SR Legacy composition, dataset
   Nabisco, Nabisco Ritz Crackers (SR Legacy NDB 18621, FDC 173258), per 100 g: energy 492 kcal; protein 7.23 g; total fat 23.21 g; saturated fat 5.45 g; carbohydrate 63.51 g; fiber 2.3 g; sugars 8.14 g; sodium 882 mg; iron 4.47 mg; thiamin 0.442 mg; vitamin K 50 ug
   USDA SR Legacy 2019, NDB 18621, FDC 173258 · checked 2026-09-29
2. nab-r5-02 · USDA SR Legacy composition, dataset
   Per 100 g, SR Legacy: Ritz Crackers (FDC 173258) sodium 882 mg, sugars 8.14 g, 492 kcal; Grahams Crackers (FDC 175083) sodium 659 mg, sugars 23.0 g, 424 kcal; Oreo Crunchies Cookie Crumb Topping (FDC 175084) sodium 528 mg, sugars 36.0 g, 476 kcal; Snackwell's Fat Free Devil's Food Cookie Cakes (FDC 167924) sodium 174 mg, sugars 43.38 g, 305 kcal
   USDA SR Legacy 2019, FDC 173258, 175083, 175084, 167924 · checked 2026-09-29
3. nab-r5-03 · USDA SR Legacy portion weight, dataset
   Nabisco Ritz Crackers (FDC 173258): portion 1 cracker 3.3 g; Nabisco Grahams Crackers (FDC 175083): portion 1 serving 28 g
   USDA SR Legacy 2019, FDC 173258 and 175083 portions · checked 2026-09-29
4. nab-r5-05 · RCT (crossover)
   Twelve healthy subjects are enrolled in a randomized, open label, crossover postprandial trial. Four different model foods are tested: custard, pudding, sponge cake, and biscuit. ... Sponge cake vitamin D3 response is higher than biscuit response (+26.6%, p = 0.047). No difference between the model foods are observed regarding lutein responses. Triglyceride responses peak at 3 h for all conditions, while vitamin D3 and lutein peaks are delayed by 1 h with the biscuit matrix compared to other model foods.
   Mol Nutr Food Res, 2020 · checked 2026-09-29
5. nab-r5-06 · RCT (crossover)
   In all exchanges, KF reduced the glycaemic response (iAUC) by 20-30% with no loss of total satiation. ... Glycaemic response amplitudes were reduced almost 50% compared with 74 g WB when KF ingestion preceded WB ingestion by 30 min, and less when the KF was ingested with or 30 min after the cereal.
   Nutrients, 2023 · checked 2026-09-29
6. nab-r5-08 · meta-analysis (processing data)
   A total of twenty and eight articles (549 data) collected from 1983 through June 2017 were included. ... Cooking reduces the concentration of DON and ZEN in the biscuit.
   Food Chem, 2018 · checked 2026-09-29
7. nab-r5-04 · RCT
   They were randomly assigned into two groups: a control group consuming control crackers made with oleic acid-enriched eggs and a test group receiving test crackers. Each group consumed a serving of the respective crackers (± 67.5 g) as an afternoon snack every day for 70 days. ... There was no change in circulating cholesterol or triglyceride levels. ... However, the primary endpoint was not met as there was no reduction in waist circumference.
   Clin Nutr ESPEN, 2026 · checked 2026-09-29
8. nab-r5-09 · meta-analysis of cohorts
   Meta-analyses of hazard ratios (HR) and 95% confidence intervals (CI) obtained from 17 prospective cohort studies (>875,000 participants) indicated that refined grain intake was not associated with risk of CVD (HR = 1.08, 95% CI, 0.99-1.18, I2 = 70%; 9 cohorts), stroke (HR = 1.06, 95% CI 0.92-1.23, I2 = 70%; 9 cohorts), or heart failure (HR = 0.95, 95% CI 0.77-1.16, I2 = 10%; 5 cohorts). ... The lack of association between refined grain intake and CVD risk was observed in meta-analyses of studies that restricted analyses to only staple grain foods (e.g., bread, cereal, pasta, white rice), as well as for meta-analyses of studies that included both staple and indulgent grain foods (e.g., cakes, cookies, doughnuts, brownies, muffins, pastries).
   Trends Cardiovasc Med, 2024 · checked 2026-09-29
9. nab-r5-10 · agency position
   The majority of sodium people in the U.S. consume, more than 70 percent, comes from processed, packaged and prepared foods, not from table salt added to food when cooking or eating at home.
   US FDA, Sodium Reduction in the Food Supply, 2024 · checked 2026-09-29
10. nab-r5-11 · scoping review
    Outside of the EU, especially in China and Saudi Arabia, higher concentrations were reported in processed condiments (methylparaben: 495700.00 ng g-1), vegetables (ethylparaben: 312600.00 ng g-1) and cookies (methylparaben: 253700.00 ng g-1), with levels far exceeding those found in the EU.
    Food Chem, 2025 · checked 2026-09-29
11. nab-r5-12 · RCT
    In this 2 × 2 factorial, double-blind placebo-controlled trial, 457 lead-exposed Moroccan children were stratified by school and grade and randomly assigned to consume biscuits (6 d/wk at school) containing 1) ∼8 mg Fe as FeSO4, 2) ∼8 mg Fe as NaFeEDTA that contained ∼41 mg EDTA, 3) ∼41 mg EDTA as sodium EDTA (Na2EDTA), or 4) placebo for 28 wk. ... Iron fortification improved iron status, but there were no positive effects of iron or EDTA on cognitive test scores.
    Am J Clin Nutr, 2016 · checked 2026-09-29
12. nab-r5-13 · cohort
    This observational, longitudinal study includes 582 patients from 37 Portuguese HD centers. ... Consumption of bacon, savory snacks, carrots, bell peppers, cherries, and soup predicted greater hyperhydration, while rice, cookies, and grapes show the opposite effect, regardless of age, sex, diabetes, and HD duration.
    Clin Nutr ESPEN, 2026 · checked 2026-09-29
13. nab-r5-07 · meta-analysis (occurrence data)
    Most studies (69.7%) evaluated acrylamide in bread, cookies, and pasta, while PAHs (26.2%) were determined mainly in wheat grains and pasta. HMF was the least determined contaminant (4.1%), with only four studies on cookies included in the meta-analysis. The highest concentration was for acrylamide (136.29 µg·kg-1) followed by HMF (70.59 µg·kg-1) and PAHs (0.11 µg·kg-1). Acrylamide is the main processing contaminant researched, and no studies on the subject have been found in commercial samples in some regions of the world.
    Crit Rev Food Sci Nutr, 2023 · checked 2026-09-29