Ever wonder how your favorite foods stack up against each other in terms of nutrition?
We compared the nutritional contents of
pasta
versus
red bell pepper
(100g each)
below using 2020 USDA and NIH data[1].
For a quick recap of significant nutrients and differences in pasta and red bell pepper:
Pasta is high in calories and red bell pepper has 93% less calories than pasta - pasta has 371 calories per 100 grams and red bell pepper has 26 calories.
For macronutrient ratios, pasta is lighter in fat and similar to red bell pepper for protein and carbs. Pasta has a macronutrient ratio of 14:82:4 and for red bell pepper, 13:79:8 for protein, carbohydrates and fat from calories.
Macro Ratios from Calories:
Pasta | Red Bell Pepper | |
---|---|---|
Protein | 14% | 13% |
Carbohydrates | 82% | 79% |
Fat | 4% | 8% |
Alcohol | ~ | ~ |
Pasta is high in carbohydrates and red bell pepper has 92% less carbohydrates than pasta - pasta has 74.7g of total carbs per 100 grams and red bell pepper has 6g of carbohydrates.
Both pasta and red bell pepper are high in dietary fiber. Pasta has 52% more dietary fiber than red bell pepper - pasta has 3.2g of dietary fiber per 100 grams and red bell pepper has 2.1g of dietary fiber.
Pasta and red bell pepper contain similar amounts of sugar - pasta has 2.7g of sugar per 100 grams and red bell pepper has 4.2g of sugar.
Pasta is an excellent source of protein and it has 12 times more protein than red bell pepper - pasta has 13g of protein per 100 grams and red bell pepper has 0.99g of protein.
Both pasta and red bell pepper are low in saturated fat - pasta has 0.28g of saturated fat per 100 grams and red bell pepper has 0.06g of saturated fat.
Red bell pepper is an excellent source of Vitamin C and it has more Vitamin C than pasta - red bell pepper has 127.7mg of Vitamin C per 100 grams and pasta does not contain significant amounts.
Red bell pepper is an excellent source of Vitamin A and it has more Vitamin A than pasta - red bell pepper has 157ug of Vitamin A per 100 grams and pasta does not contain significant amounts.
Red bell pepper has 13 times more Vitamin E than pasta - pasta has 0.11mg of Vitamin E per 100 grams and red bell pepper has 1.6mg of Vitamin E.
Pasta and red bell pepper contain similar amounts of Vitamin K - pasta has 0.1ug of Vitamin K per 100 grams and red bell pepper has 4.9ug of Vitamin K.
Pasta has more thiamin, riboflavin, niacin and folate. Both pasta and red bell pepper contain significant amounts of pantothenic acid and Vitamin B6.
Pasta | Red Bell Pepper | |
---|---|---|
Thiamin | 0.891 MG | 0.054 MG |
Riboflavin | 0.4 MG | 0.085 MG |
Niacin | 7.177 MG | 0.979 MG |
Pantothenic acid | 0.431 MG | 0.317 MG |
Vitamin B6 | 0.142 MG | 0.291 MG |
Folate | 237 UG | 46 UG |
Pasta has 200% more calcium than red bell pepper - pasta has 21mg of calcium per 100 grams and red bell pepper has 7mg of calcium.
Pasta is an excellent source of iron and it has 667% more iron than red bell pepper - pasta has 3.3mg of iron per 100 grams and red bell pepper has 0.43mg of iron.
Both pasta and red bell pepper are high in potassium. Pasta has a little more potassium (6%) than red bell pepper by weight - pasta has 223mg of potassium per 100 grams and red bell pepper has 211mg 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,
Pasta | Red Bell Pepper | |
---|---|---|
lutein + zeaxanthin | 18 UG | 51 UG |
beta-carotene | ~ | 1624 UG |
alpha-carotene | ~ | 20 UG |
For omega-3 fatty acids, red bell pepper has more alpha linoleic acid (ALA) than pasta per 100 grams.
Pasta | Red Bell Pepper | |
---|---|---|
alpha linoleic acid | 0.024 G | 0.056 G |
Total | 0.024 G | 0.056 G |
Comparing omega-6 fatty acids, pasta has more linoleic acid than red bell pepper per 100 grams.
Pasta | Red Bell Pepper | |
---|---|---|
linoleic acid | 0.54 G | 0.1 G |
Total | 0.54 G | 0.1 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: Pasta (Pasta, dry, enriched) and Red Bell Pepper (Peppers, sweet, red, raw) .
Pasta g
()
|
Daily Values (%) |
Red Bell Pepper 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 | |||