Ever wonder how your favorite foods stack up against each other in terms of nutrition?
We compared the nutritional contents of
cheddar cheese
versus
chicken leg
(100g each)
below using 2020 USDA and NIH data[1].
For a quick recap of significant nutrients and differences in cheddar cheese and chicken leg:
Both chicken leg and cheddar cheese are high in calories. Cheddar cheese has 88% more calories than chicken leg - chicken leg has 214 calories per 100 grams and cheddar cheese has 403 calories.
For macronutrient ratios, cheddar cheese is lighter in protein, heavier in fat and similar to chicken leg for carbs. Cheddar cheese has a macronutrient ratio of 23:3:74 and for chicken leg, 31:0:69 for protein, carbohydrates and fat from calories.
Macro Ratios from Calories:
| Cheddar Cheese | Chicken Leg | |
|---|---|---|
| Protein | 23% | 31% |
| Carbohydrates | 3% | ~ |
| Fat | 74% | 69% |
| Alcohol | ~ | ~ |
Both chicken leg and cheddar cheese are low in carbohydrates - chicken leg has 0.17g of total carbs per 100 grams and cheddar cheese has 3.4g of carbohydrates.
Cheddar cheese and chicken leg contain similar amounts of sugar - cheddar cheese has 0.48g of sugar per 100 grams and chicken leg does not contain significant amounts.
Both chicken leg and cheddar cheese are high in protein. Cheddar cheese has 40% more protein than chicken leg - chicken leg has 16.4g of protein per 100 grams and cheddar cheese has 22.9g of protein.
Cheddar cheese is high in saturated fat and chicken leg has 77% less saturated fat than cheddar cheese - chicken leg has 4.4g of saturated fat per 100 grams and cheddar cheese has 18.9g of saturated fat.
Both chicken leg and cheddar cheese are low in trans fat - chicken leg has 0.06g of trans fat per 100 grams and cheddar cheese does not contain significant amounts.
Chicken leg and cheddar cheese contain similar amounts of cholesterol - chicken leg has 93mg of cholesterol per 100 grams and cheddar cheese has 99mg of cholesterol.
Chicken leg and cheddar cheese contain similar amounts of Vitamin C - chicken leg has 0.2mg of Vitamin C per 100 grams and cheddar cheese does not contain significant amounts.
Cheddar cheese is an excellent source of Vitamin A and it has 11 times more Vitamin A than chicken leg - chicken leg has 28ug of Vitamin A per 100 grams and cheddar cheese has 337ug of Vitamin A.
Cheddar cheese has 11 times more Vitamin D than chicken leg - chicken leg has 2iu of Vitamin D per 100 grams and cheddar cheese has 24iu of Vitamin D.
Chicken leg and cheddar cheese contain similar amounts of Vitamin E - chicken leg has 0.22mg of Vitamin E per 100 grams and cheddar cheese has 0.71mg of Vitamin E.
Chicken leg and cheddar cheese contain similar amounts of Vitamin K - chicken leg has 2.3ug of Vitamin K per 100 grams and cheddar cheese has 2.4ug of Vitamin K.
Chicken leg has more thiamin, niacin, pantothenic acid and Vitamin B6, however, cheddar cheese contains more riboflavin and folate. Both cheddar cheese and chicken leg contain significant amounts of Vitamin B12.
| Cheddar Cheese | Chicken Leg | |
|---|---|---|
| Thiamin | 0.029 MG | 0.073 MG |
| Riboflavin | 0.428 MG | 0.141 MG |
| Niacin | 0.059 MG | 4.733 MG |
| Pantothenic acid | 0.41 MG | 0.994 MG |
| Vitamin B6 | 0.066 MG | 0.318 MG |
| Folate | 27 UG | 4 UG |
| Vitamin B12 | 1.1 UG | 0.56 UG |
Cheddar cheese is an excellent source of calcium and it has 77 times more calcium than chicken leg - chicken leg has 9mg of calcium per 100 grams and cheddar cheese has 710mg of calcium.
Chicken leg has 393% more iron than cheddar cheese - chicken leg has 0.69mg of iron per 100 grams and cheddar cheese has 0.14mg of iron.
Chicken leg is a great source of potassium and it has 167% more potassium than cheddar cheese - chicken leg has 203mg of potassium per 100 grams and cheddar cheese has 76mg of potassium.
Carotenoids are micronutrients commonly found in plants and some animal products. An example is beta-carotene, the notable carotenoid which is a popular source of Vitamin A.[4][5]
For specific types of carotenoids, cheddar cheese has more beta-carotene than chicken leg per 100 grams, however, chicken leg contains more lutein + zeaxanthin than cheddar cheese per 100 grams.
| Cheddar Cheese | Chicken Leg | |
|---|---|---|
| beta-carotene | 85 UG | ~ |
| lutein + zeaxanthin | ~ | 91 UG |
For omega-3 fatty acids, both cheddar cheese and chicken leg contain significant amounts of alpha linoleic acid (ALA) and DPA.
| Cheddar Cheese | Chicken Leg | |
|---|---|---|
| alpha linoleic acid | 0.114 G | 0.155 G |
| DHA | 0.001 G | 0.01 G |
| EPA | 0.01 G | 0.004 G |
| DPA | 0.017 G | 0.012 G |
| Total | 0.142 G | 0.181 G |
Comparing omega-6 fatty acids, chicken leg has more linoleic acid than cheddar cheese per 100 grams.
| Cheddar Cheese | Chicken Leg | |
|---|---|---|
| other omega 6 | 0.007 G | 0.016 G |
| linoleic acid | 1.171 G | 2.987 G |
| Total | 1.178 G | 3.003 G |
The comparison below is by common portions, e.g. cups, packages. You can also see a more concrete comparison by weight at equal weight (by grams) comparison.
Note: The specific food items compared are: Cheddar Cheese (Cheese, cheddar) and Chicken Leg (Chicken, broilers or fryers, leg, meat and skin, raw) .
Cheddar Cheese g
()
|
Daily Values (%) |
Chicken Leg g
()
|
|||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| KCAL % |
|
5% | calories | 5% |
|
KCAL % | |
| G % |
|
5% | carbohydrates | 5% |
|
G % | |
| G % |
|
5% | dietary fiber | 5% |
|
G % | |
| G | 5% | sugar | 5% | G | |||
| G % |
|
5% | total fat | 5% |
|
G % | |
| G % |
|
5% | saturated fat | 5% |
|
G % | |
| G | 5% | monounsaturated fat | 5% | G | |||
| G | 5% | polyunsaturated fat | 5% | G | |||
| G | 5% | trans fat | 5% | G | |||
| MG | 5% | cholesterol | 5% | MG | |||
| MG % |
|
5% | sodium | 5% |
|
MG % | |
| 5% | Vitamins and Minerals | 5% | |||||
| UG % |
|
5% | Vitamin A | 5% |
|
UG % | |
| MG % |
|
5% | Vitamin C | 5% |
|
MG % | |
| IU % |
|
5% | Vitamin D | 5% |
|
IU % | |
| MG % |
|
5% | calcium | 5% |
|
MG % | |
| MG % |
|
5% | iron | 5% |
|
MG % | |
| MG % |
|
5% | magnesium | 5% |
|
MG % | |
| MG % |
|
5% | potassium | 5% |
|
MG % | |
| MG % |
|
5% | thiamin (Vit B1) | 5% |
|
MG % | |
| MG % |
|
5% | riboflavin (Vit B2) | 5% |
|
MG % | |
| MG % |
|
5% | niacin (Vit B3) | 5% |
|
MG % | |
| MG % |
|
5% | Vitamin B6 | 5% |
|
MG % | |
| MG % |
|
5% | pantothenic acid (Vit B5) | 5% |
|
MG % | |
| UG % |
|
5% | folate (Vit B9) | 5% |
|
UG % | |
| UG % |
|
5% | Vitamin B12 | 5% |
|
UG % | |
| MG % |
|
5% | Vitamin E | 5% |
|
MG % | |
| UG % |
|
5% | Vitamin K | 5% |
|
UG % | |
| G % |
|
5% | protein | 5% |
|
G % | |
| UG % |
|
5% | biotin (Vit B7) | 5% |
|
UG % | |
| MG % |
|
5% | choline | 5% |
|
MG % | |
| MG % |
|
5% | chlorine | 5% |
|
MG % | |
| UG % |
|
5% | chromium | 5% |
|
UG % | |
| MG % |
|
5% | copper | 5% |
|
MG % | |
| UG % |
|
5% | fluoride | 5% |
|
UG % | |
| UG % |
|
5% | iodine | 5% |
|
UG % | |
| MG % |
|
5% | manganese | 5% |
|
MG % | |
| UG % |
|
5% | molybdenum | 5% |
|
UG % | |
| MG % |
|
5% | phosphorus | 5% |
|
MG % | |
| UG % |
|
5% | selenium | 5% |
|
UG % | |
| MG % |
|
5% | zinc | 5% |
|
MG % | |
| G | 5% | Water | 5% | G | |||
| G | 5% | Starch | 5% | G | |||
| G | 5% | Alcohol | 5% | G | |||