Barley vs. Wheat — Health Impact and Nutrition Comparison

Historical Background

Wheat, Triticum aestivum, originated from the Levant. The cultivation of wheat dates back almost 10000 years. It is the second most-consumed grain after rice. The plant’s stalk is long, with spiky kernels in clusters.

Barley, Hordeum vulgare, is the fourth most popularly consumed grain cereal after rice, wheat, and maize. It was domesticated and cultivated in the Near East during the Bronze Age in Mesopotamia about 11000 years ago.

Consumption

Wheat is a staple food; it is used to make bread, biscuits, crackers, pasta, bulgur, cookies, noodles, and other breakfast products, and, to a lesser extent, for beverages and animal food.

Barley is mainly used in beer brewing and the production of other alcoholic beverages. It is also largely used as livestock fodder.

Both wheat and barley are used for direct cooking.

There are two forms of produced and edible barley – hulled and pearled. Hulled barley is minimally processed; the bran and germ are intact, and only the edible outer shell is removed, saving most of its nutrients in this way. Pearled barley is polished and has no bran.

Barley is easy to cook like rice, and wheat needs some preparation before cooking - it should be milled into flour or broken and pre-boiled into bulgur, which unfortunately diminishes wheat’s nutrient content. So, below we will reveal the nutritional content comparison of wheat and barley.

Fiber and protein

Wheat is 0.5g higher in dietary fiber and more than two times in protein than barley. 

Wheat is especially richer in insoluble fiber, while barley is higher in soluble fiber. 

Among all proteins found in wheat and barley, gluten is worth mentioning. Gluten is a common name for some proteins in cereal, which ensures the shape and chewy texture of foods like glue. The gluten protein in barley is hordein, and the gluten found in wheat is gliadin. There are some gluten-related disorders, which we will discuss later.

Minerals

Let’s look at the mineral content of wheat and barley. From the viewpoint of minerals, barley is the winner because it is radically higher in selenium, inconsiderably higher in phosphorus, and slightly higher in copper, zinc, magnesium, and manganese. 

On the other hand, wheat contains less sodium.

Mineral Comparison

Mineral comparison score is based on the number of minerals by which one or the other food is richer. The "coverage" charts below show how much of the daily needs can be covered by 300 grams of the food.

Barley

2

Wheat

8

Contains more CalciumCalcium	+22.2%
Contains less SodiumSodium	-62.5%

Contains more MagnesiumMagnesium	+118.2%
Contains more PotassiumPotassium	+76.3%
Contains more IronIron	+32.3%
Contains more CopperCopper	+97.1%
Contains more ZincZinc	+124.4%
Contains more PhosphorusPhosphorus	+172.2%
Contains more ManganeseManganese	+297.7%
Contains more SeleniumSelenium	+270.9%

Vitamins

What about vitamin comparison? Barley is considerably higher in vitamins B1, B2, B3, B6, A, and folate. It also has four times more vitamin A. So, in this context, barley is the titleholder.

Vitamin Comparison

Vitamin comparison score is based on the number of vitamins by which one or the other food is richer. The "coverage" charts below show how much of the daily needs can be covered by 300 grams of the food.

Barley

7

Wheat

3

Contains more Vitamin AVitamin A	+75%
Contains more Vitamin B2Vitamin B2	+106.7%
Contains more Vitamin B5Vitamin B5	+∞%
Contains more Vitamin B6Vitamin B6	+64.3%
Contains more Vitamin KVitamin K	+∞%
Contains more FolateFolate	+45.5%
Contains more CholineCholine	+∞%

Contains more Vitamin EVitamin E	+2300%
Contains more Vitamin B1Vitamin B1	+14.5%
Contains more Vitamin B3Vitamin B3	+11.7%

~equal in Vitamin C ~mg

~equal in Vitamin D ~µg

~equal in Vitamin B12 ~0µg

Health benefits

Barley is higher in selenium – the essential element for our health. Higher selenium status is essential for human reproduction function. It has antiviral, antioxidant, and anti-inflammatory effects and reduces the risk of autoimmune thyroid disease and different types of cancer (1). What is more, a high intake of selenium-rich foods may increase the risk of type 2 diabetes.

Barley is also higher in copper, which contributes to the formation of red blood cells and body tissues and the proper function of the endocrine and cardiovascular systems. It is also involved in the pigmentation of hair and skin (2).

All B vitamins are concentrated in the bran or germ of wheat and barley, so most of these are lost during processing. B vitamins contribute to the metabolism and nervous system function, providing us with essential energy and nourishing our skin and blood vessels (3).

Barley is higher in dietary fiber. Dietary fiber decreases the risk of type 2 diabetes, prevents constipation, contributes to weight loss, shortens intestinal transit time, reduces the risk of colorectal and breast cancer, and reduces cholesterol and the risk of coronary heart disease (4, 5). According to one study, a high intake of food rich in dietary fiber prevents gallstone disease and the need for cholecystectomy (6). Besides fiber, wheat is a great source of phytochemicals that may have beneficial effects on health: for example, lignans have antitumor activity on colon cancer cells (10).

Downsides and Risks

References

1. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/22381456/
2. https://foodstruct.com/list/foods-high-in-copper-cu
3. Nutritional Contents and Medicinal Properties of Wheat: A Review
4. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4998136/
5. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/28252255/
6. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/25020181/
7. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3292448/
8. Effects of wheat germ agglutinin on human gastrointestinal epithelium
9. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6393371/
10. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/15735100/