Wheat crackers: whole wheat on the label, high glycemic index in the blood

Putting whole wheat into a cracker does less to blood sugar than the word on the box suggests. In a randomized crossover test in 11 healthy adults, crackers made with 30 percent whole wheat flour scored a glycemic index of 77 against 90 for a standard cracker, both in the high range, from a single meal each. Only the version made with 30 percent sunflower seed flour came out low, at 53. A second small trial in 10 healthy adults put whole-wheat crackers at 78, while crackers baked from barley flour enriched with beta-glucan scored 49. The one longer trial used crackers as the comparison snack. Over 8 weeks, 73 first-year students without cardiometabolic disease ate either 2.7 oz (77.5 g) of Graham crackers or 2 oz (56.7 g) of almonds a day, and HDL cholesterol fell by 24.5 percent in the cracker group against 13.5 percent with almonds.

The numbers, per 3.5 oz (100 g)

As people eat it, per 3.5 oz (100 g)

How much is actually in it

• USDA survey data put wheat crackers at 441 calories, 750 mg sodium and 8.6 g fiber per 3.5 oz (100 g), so a 45 g bag holds about 340 mg sodium. — USDA FNDDS generic wheat crackers Evidence E source
  Per 100 g: energy 441 calories, sodium 750 mg, fiber 8.6 g, carbohydrate 70.1 g

What a real portion looks like

• In 44 young adults snacking freely during a 30-minute film, people ate about 28 crackers regardless of shape, but flat square crackers carried 15% more cheese dip than sticks. — 44 adults (13 men, mean age 23), four ad libitum snack sessions, 2 x 2 randomized crossover (n = 44) Evidence B source
  Cracker intake 28 regardless of shape; cheese intake 15% higher with flat squares (131 kJ, P = 0.016)
• Across 9,128 urban adults in eight Latin American countries, wheat crackers were among the main sources of energy from foods containing whole grains. — 9,128 participants, ELANS survey, two 24 h recalls (n = 9128) Evidence C source
  Total grain foods 318.6 g/d; foods with whole grains 14.7 g/d
• USDA dietary survey data count one wheat cracker as 3 g and a small single-serving bag as 45 g. — US dietary recall portion weights Evidence E source
  1 cracker 3 g; 1 bite size 1 g; small bag 45 g; large bag 85 g; 1 cup 50 g

What your body absorbs

• In a randomized crossover test in 11 healthy adults, crackers with 30% whole wheat flour still had a high glycemic index of 77, against 90 for standard crackers and 53 for sunflower-flour crackers. — 11 healthy adults (mean age 23.5, 7 women), cracker meals with 50 g available carbohydrate (n = 11) Evidence B source
  GI 90 control, 77 with 30% whole wheat, 53 with 30% sunflower seed flour; only sunflower lowered glucose peak

What cooking and storage change

• In 10 healthy adults, whole-wheat crackers had a glycemic index of 78 while crackers made from beta-glucan-enriched barley flour scored 49. — 10 healthy volunteers, portions with 40 g available carbohydrate, random order on separate days (n = 10) Evidence B source
  GI 78 whole-wheat crackers vs 49 barley crackers; whole-wheat cookies 81, barley cookies 34

What it does to your health

• In an 8-week trial in 73 first-year students, a daily Graham cracker snack led to a larger HDL cholesterol fall than an almond snack (24.5% vs 13.5%). — 73 college students without cardiometabolic disorders, 77.5 g/day Graham crackers or 56.7 g/day almonds, 8 weeks (n = 73) Evidence B source
  HDL decline 24.5% crackers vs 13.5% almonds (p < 0.05); almonds 13% lower 2-h glucose AUC; both lowered fasting glucose and LDL
• A meta-analysis of prospective cohorts linked each extra 90 g a day of whole grains, across 8 cohorts, to 14% lower hypertension risk. — prospective cohort studies on whole grain intake: 9 for high vs low, 8 for per 90 g/d Evidence C source
  Whole grain RR 0.86 (0.82-0.90) per 90 g/d; high vs low RR 0.74 (0.59-0.93)

What people believe that the data does not support

• The only US-authorized cancer claim open to crackers covers fiber-containing grain products within a low-fat diet, and says only that such diets may reduce risk of some cancers. — US food labeling rule Evidence E source
  Authorized model claim; limited to grain products that contain dietary fiber

The bottom line

The USDA survey record gives wheat crackers 441 calories, 750 mg sodium, 8.6 g fiber and 70.1 g carbohydrate per 3.5 oz (100 g), from one generic entry, while 12 cracker records in the older USDA table range from 2 to 1214 mg sodium per 3.5 oz (100 g). One cracker weighs about 3 g and a small single-serving bag 45 g, which on the generic figure is roughly 340 mg sodium. The label of the box you hold is the number that counts. Shape did not change how much people ate. In a lab snack session with a cheese dip, 44 young adults ate about 28 crackers whatever form the crackers took. The broader whole grain research is observational and never singles crackers out. A meta-analysis of prospective cohorts linked each extra 90 g a day of whole grains, across 8 cohorts, to a lower risk of high blood pressure (RR 0.86, 95% CI 0.82 to 0.90). A survey of 9,128 urban adults in eight Latin American countries named wheat crackers among the main sources of energy from whole grain foods. In the United States a cracker may carry only one cancer claim, that low fat diets rich in fiber-containing grain products, fruits and vegetables may reduce the risk of some types of cancer. That wording is a labeling rule and says nothing measured about crackers. We have no card on who should be careful with wheat crackers. We did not find a study on crackers in celiac disease or wheat allergy, on acrylamide in crackers, or on children and pregnancy, so this page cannot tell those readers anything either way. That silence is a gap in the evidence we collected, not a finding that crackers are safe for them.

Sources

1. whcr-daily-r6-09 · food composition data
   Crackers, wheat; Sodium, Na 750 mg per 100 g; Energy 441 kcal per 100 g; Fiber, total dietary 8.6 g per 100 g; Carbohydrate, by difference 70.14 g per 100 g
   USDA FNDDS, Crackers, wheat, food code 54338000 (FDC 2708184) · checked 2026-09-30
2. whcr-daily-r6-04 · RCT (crossover)
   Cracker intake (28 (sem 1) crackers) of cracker-cheese combinations was not influenced by cracker shape.
   Br J Nutr, 2020 · checked 2026-09-30
3. whcr-daily-r6-06 · cross-sectional
   Major contributors to energy provided from foods containing whole grains were oatmeal, masa harina, whole-wheat bread, corn chips, and wheat crackers.
   Eur J Nutr, 2022 · checked 2026-09-30
4. whcr-daily-r6-08 · food portion data
   Crackers, wheat; FNDDS 54338000; 1 cracker 3 g; 1 miniature/bite size 1 g; 1 small or medium single serving bag 45 g; 1 large single serving bag 85 g; 1 cup, NFS 50 g
   USDA FNDDS, Crackers, wheat, food code 54338000 (FDC 2708184) · checked 2026-09-30
5. whcr-daily-r6-01 · RCT (crossover)
   The SFC crackers provided low GI and GL values (GI: 53 on the glucose scale, GL: 6 per serving), whereas the WWC and CC crackers provided high GI (GI: 77 and 90 on the glucose scale, respectively) and medium GL values (11 and 12 per serving, respectively).
   Eur J Clin Nutr, 2024 · checked 2026-09-30
6. whcr-daily-r6-02 · RCT (crossover)
   Individual GI values were 78, 81, 49 and 34 for whole-wheat crackers (WWCr), whole-wheat cookies (WWc), barley crackers (BCr) and barley cookies (Bc) respectively.
   J Am Coll Nutr, 2006 · checked 2026-09-30
7. whcr-daily-r6-03 · RCT
   Almond snacking resulted in a smaller decline in HDL cholesterol over 8 weeks (13.5% vs. 24.5%, p < 0.05), 13% lower 2-h glucose area under the curve (AUC), 34% lower insulin resistance index (IRI) and 82% higher Matsuda index (p < 0.05) during the OGTT, despite similar body mass gains over 8 weeks compared with the cracker group.
   Nutrients, 2018 · checked 2026-09-30
8. whcr-daily-r6-05 · meta-analysis (cohorts)
   The summary RR (95% CI) for high vs. low whole grain intake was 0.74 (0.59-0.93, I2 = 97%, pheterogeneity<0.001, n = 9) and per 90 g/d was 0.86 (0.82-0.90, I2 = 63%, pheterogeneity=0.008, n = 8).
   Sci Rep, 2025 · checked 2026-09-30
9. whcr-daily-r6-07 · regulatory text
   (1) Low fat diets rich in fiber-containing grain products, fruits, and vegetables may reduce the risk of some types of cancer, a disease associated with many factors.
   21 CFR 101.76, Health claims: fiber-containing grain products, fruits, and vegetables and cancer · checked 2026-09-30