Are Gluten-Free Foods REALLY More Fattening? (2024)

As the popularity of the gluten-free diet as a weight-loss tool grows, some dietitians have pushed back, saying that gluten-free foods tend to be higher in calories, carbohydrates, and fat (and therefore less suitable for weight loss) than regular, wheat-based foods. But is that assertion really true?

Gluten Free: Calories, Carbs, and Fat

Generally speaking, no, it's not true that gluten-free foods are higher in calories, carbs, and fat. When compared head to head, common gluten-free products such as bread, snacks, cookies, and cakes actually have roughly the same number of calories, fat, and carbs as their gluten-containing counterparts. Some have less, and some have more.

However, note that a study showed that people on a gluten-free diet consumed more calories, carbs, and fat and less protein and fiber than those not on gluten-free diet. When on a gluten-free diet, you still must be aware of the nutritional content of what you are eating.

As with any type of product (say, chocolate chip cookies), there's going to be a great deal of variation between brands and types. As a result, buyer beware, and always read the labels.

But if you choose commonly available brands of gluten-free foods—and, most importantly, don't eat any more of them than you would if they were gluten-filled — you shouldn't be consuming any more calories than you would have if you stayed on a conventional diet.

Here's how the various products break down in calories, fat, carbs, and fiber, with specific examples of each. When possible, gluten-filled and gluten-free products from the same brand (i.e., Betty Crocker) are listed in order to make the comparisons as valid as possible.

Bread

Bread likely is the most common replacement gluten-free product purchased, so its calorie count is especially important. My research shows that gluten-free breadmay be slightly more calorie-dense than its gluten-containing counterparts—in the range of 20 to 30 calories for a two-slice sandwich—but it shouldn't be enough to concern you unless you spend your entire day eating sandwiches.

Below are three popular gluten-free breadscompared to similar gluten-based breads.

Canyon Bakehouse 7-Grain Bread

A 34-gram serving (one slice) of Canyon Bakehouse 7-Grain Bread contains:

• 90 calories
• 1.5 grams of fat
• 17 grams of carbohydrate
• Less than 1 gram of fiber

Compare that to two slices (38 grams) of Pepperidge Farm Light Style 7 Grain Bread (a wheat-based bread), which contains:

• 90 calories
• Less than 1 gram of fat
• 18 grams of carbohydrates
• 2 grams of fiber

The Canyon Bakehouse product has the same number of calories but more fat and less fiber.

Udi's Gluten-Free White Sandwich Bread

About 24 grams (one slice) of Udi's Gluten-Free White Sandwich Bread contains:

• 70 calories
• 2 grams of fat
• 12 grams of carbs
• Less than 1 gram of fiber

Meanwhile, one slice of gluten-filled Pepperidge Farm White Sandwich Bread (about 23 grams) contains:

• 65 calories
• 1.25 grams of fat
• 12 grams of carbs
• Less than 1 gram of fiber

The Udi's product is similar to the Pepperidge Farm product except that it has more fat.

Rudi's Gluten-Free Cinnamon Raisin Bread

A 37-gram slice of Rudi's Gluten-Free Cinnamon Raisin Bread contains:

• 90 calories
• 2 grams of fat
• 19 grams of carbs
• 2 grams of fiber

Meanwhile, a 32-gram slice of the wheat-based Sun-Maid Cinnamon Swirl Raisin Bread contains:

• 100 calories
• 1.5 grams of fat
• 18 grams carbs
• 1 gram of fiber

The gluten-free variety contains 10 fewer calories and 0.5 extra grams of fat per slice, but it also has more fiber.

Cereal

Many commonly available kinds of cereal are gluten-free—think Chex and Post Fruity and Cocoa Pebbles. Therefore, the calories in a bowl of naturally gluten-free cereal will be the same regardless of whether you're following the gluten-free diet or not.

Here's how the gluten-containing and gluten-free versions of two common cereals compare.

Nature's Path Whole O's vs. Nestle's Cheerios

Cheerios are technically considered gluten-free because they're made with oats. However, oats are often contaminated with gluten through contact with other grains, so Cheerios may contain some gluten.

Nature's Path Whole-O's is similar to Cheerios but is gluten-free and doesn't contain oats. Per cup (40 grams), it contains:

• 160 calories
• 2 grams fat
• 33 grams carbs
• 4 grams fiber

A 40-gram serving of Cheerios occupies 1.5 cups of volume. It contains:

• 140 calories
• 2.5 grams of fat
• 29 grams of carbs
• 4 grams fiber

That's a difference of 20 calories and 0.5 grams of fat per 40-gram serving, with the Cheerios occupying more space. It will depend on whether you are measuring your serving by weight or by volume.

Nature's Path Crispy Rice vs. Kellogg's Original Rice Krispies

Nature's Path Crispy Rice Cereal is an alternative to the now-discontinued gluten-free version of Kellogg's Rice Krispies.

A 1-cup (40-gram) serving of Nature's Path Crispy Rice contains:

• 150 calories
• 2 grams of fat
• 32 grams of carbs
• 3 grams of fiber

A 1.5 cup (40-gram) serving of regular Rice Krispies contains:

• 150 calories
• O grams fat
• 36 grams of carbs
• Less than 1 gram of fiber

In this case, the gluten-free cereal has a bit more fat and a bit more fiber than its competitor. Note that regular Rice Krispies does not contain wheat but does contain malt flavoring, which comes from the gluten-containing grain barley.

Snack Foods

Some snack foods—potato chips, for example—are naturally gluten-free. Other snack food choices, such as pretzels and crackers, come in both gluten-filled and gluten-free versions. Here's a rundown of the calories, fat, and carbs in common snack products.

Pretzel Sticks: Glutino vs. Snyder's vs. Rold Gold

Per 30 grams (32 pretzels), Glutino brand gluten-free pretzel sticks contain:

• 110 calories
• 2 grams of fat
• 21 grams of carbohydrate
• 0 grams fiber

Per 28 grams (32 pretzels), Snyder's of Hanover gluten-free pretzel sticks contain:

• 120 calories
• 3 grams fat
• 24 grams of carbohydrates
• 1 gram fiber
  

Per 28 grams (1 ounce, 53 pretzels), Rold Gold pretzel sticks (a gluten-containing Frito-Lay product) contain:

• 110 calories
• Less than 1 gram fat
• 23 grams of carbs
• 1 gram of fiber

Per 28 grams (1 ounce, 26 sticks), Snyder's of Hanover regular, wheat-based pretzel sticks contain:

• 110 calories
• Less than 1 gram fat
• 23 grams of carbs
• 1 gram of fiber

Gluten-free pretzelscontain more fat than regular pretzels, but the carbohydrates are comparable.

Schar Gluten-Free Table Crackers vs. Nabisco Original Premium Saltines

Schar Gluten-Free Table Crackers are similar to saltines. About six crackers (35 grams) contain:

• 160 calories
• 4.5 grams of fat
• 29 grams of carbs
• 2 grams of fiber

About 30 grams (10 cracker squares) of typical saltine crackers (which contain gluten) have:

• 125 calories
• 2.6 grams of fat
• 22 grams of carbs
• 0.8 grams of fiber

In this case, the gluten-free crackers have more fat and fiber than the typical saltine.

Cake Mix

As it turns out, the calories in chocolate cake mix don't vary much at all between the gluten-free and gluten-filled versions.

King Arthur vs. Betty Crocker

When prepared, 45 grams of King Arthur Flour Gluten-Free Chocolate cake mix contains:

• 280 calories
• 14 grams of fat
• 36 grams of carbs
• 2 grams of fiber

About 47 grams of Betty Crocker Gluten-Free Devil's Food cake mix contains:

• 260 calories
• 10 grams of fat
• 39 grams of carbs
• 2 grams of fiber

The same amount of Betty Crocker Supermoist Devil's Food cake mix (the gluten-filled variety) contains:

• 290 calories
• 14 grams of fat
• 35 grams of carbs
• 1 gram of fiber

In this case, the mixes are remarkably similar, although the King Arthur gluten-free mix contains a bit more fiber.

Cookies and Cookie Mixes

Like gluten-free bread, store-bought gluten-free cookies tend to contain a few more calories than their gluten-filled counterparts, but you'll only notice a real difference if you eat the entire bag in one sitting (not recommended regardless of what diet you're following).

Gluten-free cookie mixes, however, stack up pretty favorably calorie-wise when compared to their gluten-containing counterparts.

Cookies: Aleia's vs. Pamela's vs. Chips Ahoy

Aleia's Gluten-Free Chocolate Chip Cookies ( 1 cookie, 16 grams) contain:

• 70 calories
• 3 grams of fat
• 10 grams of carbs
• 1 gram of fiber

One cookie (18 grams) of Pamela's Chunky Chocolate Chip Cookies (gluten-free to less than 5 parts per million) contains:

• 90 calories
• 4.5 grams of fat
• 11 grams of carbs
• Less than 1 gram of fiber

One cookie (11 grams) of gluten-filled Chips Ahoy chocolate chip cookies contains:

• 53 calories
• 2.7 grams of fat
• 7.3 grams of carbs
• Less than 1 gram of fiber

Watch your cookie size, but the fat and carbs are similar.

Cookie Mixes: Bob's Red Mill vs. Betty Crocker

A 25-gram serving of Bob's Red Mill Gluten-Free Chocolate Chip cookie mix contains:

• 100 calories
• 1.5 grams of fat
• 21 grams of carbs
• 0 grams of fiber

A 25-gram serving of Betty Crocker Gluten-Free Chocolate Chip cookie mix contains:

• 110 calories
• 3 grams of fat
• 19 grams of carbs
• 0 grams of fiber

A 28-gram serving of Betty Crocker Chocolate Chip cookie mix (the mainstream wheat-based mix) contains:

• 120 calories
• 2.5 grams of fat
• 22 grams of carbs
• Less than 1 gram of fiber

Other Nutritional Concerns

Even if calories are roughly equivalent between gluten-filled and gluten-free products, other nutritional aspects may be less than equal.

For example, many gluten-filled products are made with enriched white flour (which contains iron and several important B vitamins, such as folic acid, niacin, and riboflavin), while gluten-free product manufacturers are much less likely to use vitamin-enriched flour.

Since most gluten-free products aren't fortified or enriched with vitamins and minerals right now, you'll still need to keep an eye on your nutritional intake to make sure you're getting enough important nutrients while following the gluten-free diet.

A Word From Verywell

When it comes down to it, you shouldn't worry too much about calories, fat, and carbs in gluten-free food. Some are higher and some are lower than their gluten-filled counterparts, but if you eat a variety of foods, the differences should even out.