White whole wheat flour vs whole wheat flour

Eating foods made from flour -- wheat grains crushed into a fine powder -- contributes to your grain intake for the day, helping you reach the six 1/2-cup servings of grains recommended daily by the U.S. Department of Agriculture. However, not all flours are created equal: White flour is made from heavily refined and processed wheat grains, while whole-wheat flour is made from grains that have not undergone heavy processing. Whole-wheat and white flours differ in their nutritional value.

Fiber Content

One of the primary nutritional differences between whole-wheat and white flour is the food’s fiber content. Dietary fiber has a number of health benefits -- it prevents constipation, lowers blood cholesterol and might help you lose weight, according to Colorado State University.

The refining process associated with making white flour separates the fiber-rich brain from the rest of the grain, so white flour typically contains less fiber than its whole-grain counterpart. For example, 1/2 cup of white flour contains 1.3 grams of fiber, while an equal serving of whole-wheat flour contains 6.4 grams. As a result, selecting foods that contain wheat flour helps you reach your dietary fiber intake goal -- 28 grams daily if you follow a 2,000-calorie diet, according to Colorado State University.

Effect on Blood Sugar

Any carbohydrate-containing food -- including those containing either whole-wheat and white flour -- has some effect on your blood sugar. After you eat a meal, your body breaks the carbohydrates from your food into glucose, a simple sugar. This glucose then enters your bloodstream, so it can circulate throughout your body and provide fuel to your cells. The glycemic index, or GI, of a food serves as a measure of how quickly this process occurs.

High-GI foods lead to rapid blood sugar spikes and subsequent crashes that leave you hungry and irritable shortly after eating. Low-GI foods absorb more slowly to prevent blood sugar spikes and crashes, so you’re satisfied for longer after your meal. Bread made with 100 percent whole-wheat flour has a GI of 51, according to Harvard Medical School, while bread made with white wheat flour has a GI of 71. If you seek to regulate your blood sugar after a meal, choose foods made with whole-wheat flour.

Vitamin Content

Whole-wheat flour provides a nutritional advantage over some white flours due to its vitamin content. Whole-wheat flour contains several vitamins, including folate, riboflavin and vitamins B-1, B-3 and B-5. Some types of white flour contain lower levels of these vitamins, since the processing involved in making white flour destroys the grains’ vitamin content -- for example, 1/2 cup of whole-wheat flour contains 3 milligrams of niacin, while an equivalent portion of white flour contains only 0.8 milligrams.

To combat this, some food manufacturers enrich their white flour with vitamins to replace the nutrients lost during processing. As a result, whole-grain flour often contains higher levels of vitamins than unenriched white flour but roughly compares to vitamin-enriched white flour. Check the nutrition label to determine if a bag of white flour has added vitamins, and compare different brands of flour to maximize your vitamin intake.

Eat More Whole-Wheat Flour

Making a few easy substitutions in your diet helps you reap the nutritional benefit of whole-wheat flour without sacrificing the foods you love. When you bake at home, try using a mix of whole-wheat and white flours for cookies, muffins and cakes, and opt for 100-percent whole-wheat flour to make homemade bread.

At the grocery store, check your bread labels to select loaves made with 100 percent whole wheat -- this bread is made using whole-wheat flour, whereas those labeled simply "whole-wheat" might contain a mix of whole wheat and white flours. In the pasta isle, skip the white pasta and opt for noodles made from a mix of white and whole-wheat flour. Pasta made with 100-percent whole wheat feels gummy after cooking thanks to the pasta's fiber content, so choosing pasta made using some whole-wheat flour boosts the nutritional content of your meal without sacrificing texture.

Wheat flour is the most common flour used in baking. There are different types of wheat flour, and they're distinguished by the amount of gluten they contain.

Wheat Flour Basics

Gluten is the wheat's natural protein, and it's what gives baked goods their structure. When the dough is kneaded, these glutens develop and become elastic. Flours made from hard, high-protein varieties of wheat are called strong flours. They have a higher gluten content. Flours made from softer, low-protein wheat are called weak flours and are lower in gluten.

All-Purpose Flour

All-purpose flour is formulated to have a medium gluten content of around 12 percent or so. This makes it a good middle-of-the-road flour that can be used for a whole range of baking, from crusty bread to cookies to fine cakes and pastries. Even though all-purpose flour is a good general flour, most professional bakers don't use all-purpose flour. Most professional bakers use either bread flour, cake flour, or pastry flour, depending on what they are baking.

One sifted cup of all-purpose flour should weigh around 4.5 ounces or 125 grams.

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Bread Flour

Bread flour is a strong flour, meaning that it has a relatively high gluten content—usually around 13 to 14 percent. A handful of bread flour will feel coarse and will look slightly off-white. Bread flour is used for making crusty bread and rolls, pizza doughs, and similar products.

One cup of bread flour will weigh around 5 ounces or 140 grams.

Cake Flour

Cake flour is made from soft wheat and has a lower gluten content—around 7.5 to 9 percent. Its grains are visibly finer than bread flour, and it is much whiter in color. Its fine, soft texture makes it preferable for tender cakes and pastries.

One sifted cup of cake flour will weigh around 3.5 ounces or 99 grams.

Pastry Flour

Pastry flour is slightly stronger than cake flour, at around 9 to 10 percent gluten. It can be used for biscuits, muffins, cookies, pie doughs, and softer yeast doughs. It has a slightly more off-white color than cake flour.

One sifted cup of pastry flour will weigh just over 3.5 ounces or around 101 grams.

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Self-Rising Flour

Self-rising flour is peculiar. It's ordinary all-purpose flour that has baking powder and salt added to it. Intended as a convenience, it's anything but—the main problem is that there's no way to control how much baking powder it contains. Also, when stored in your pantry, the baking powder in the flour will quickly lose its effectiveness as a rising agent. Unless you have no other options, this type of flour is probably best avoided.

Whole Wheat Flour

Whole wheat flour comes in two varieties: 100 percent whole wheat flour and white whole wheat flour. One hundred percent whole wheat flour is made from hulled red wheat grain. It provides more fiber and other nutrients than all-purpose flour. Generally speaking, it makes for heavier bread and baked goods and has a shorter shelf life than all-purpose flour. Whole wheat flour is often mixed with all-purpose flour for a lighter texture and better rising. White whole wheat flour is made from hulled white spring wheat, it has a milder taste and lighter color compared to 100 percent whole wheat flour. 

One cup of whole wheat flour will weigh 4 ounces or around 113 grams. 

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