Mac and Cheese Nutrition Analysis
General Nutrition (per 1 cup serving, ~250 g)
\u2022 Calories: ~320\u2013500 kcal (varies by recipe\/brand)
\u2022 Fat: 14\u201322 g
\u2022 Carbohydrates: 34\u201352 g
\u2022 Protein: 14\u201319 g
\u2022 Sodium: ~1100 mg (very high)
Fats
Mac and cheese fat comes mainly from cheese and butter. These dairy fats contain
several fatty acids:
Fatty Acid Carbons Saturation Type Omega
# Essential?
Oleic acid (C18:1) 18 Unsaturated Monounsaturated Omega-
9
Not
essential
Palmitic acid (C16:0) 16 Saturated Saturated N\/A Not
essential
Stearic acid (C18:0) 18 Saturated Saturated N\/A Not
essential
Myristic acid (C14:0) 14 Saturated Saturated N\/A Not
essential
Linoleic acid (C18:2) 18 Unsaturated Polyunsaturated Omega-
6 Essential
Alpha-linolenic acid
(C18:3) 18 Unsaturated Polyunsaturated Omega-
3 Essential
Most common fatty acid: Oleic acid (C18:1, omega-9). Text-based drawing of oleic
acid:
CH3-(CH2)7-CH=CH-(CH2)7-COOH<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Carbohydrates
\u2022 Main source: Pasta noodles (semolina\/white flour).
\u2022 Sugars: Small amounts of lactose from milk\/cheese (~5 g per serving).
\u2022 Starches: Pasta provides ~30\u201340 g starch per serving.
\u2022 Fiber: Low (~2 g per serving).
Protein
\u2022 Main contributors: Cheese and milk.
\u2022 Protein content: ~14\u201319 g per serving.
\u2022 Amino acids: Cheese provides all essential amino acids, especially lysine, leucine,
and valine. Mac and cheese are a moderate protein source but not lean due to high
fat.
Vitamins & Minerals
\u2022 Excellent sources (>20% DV):
o Calcium: ~250 mg (19% DV)
\u2022 Good sources (10\u201319% DV):
o Iron: ~10% DV
o Vitamin A: Present in cheese\/butter (~10\u201315% DV)
o Vitamin B12: Found in dairy (~15% DV)
\u2022 Other nutrients: Sodium is very high (~50% DV per serving), which is a health
concern.
Summary
\u2022 Fats: Rich in oleic, palmitic, stearic, and myristic acids; contain essential linoleic
(omega-6) and alpha-linolenic (omega-3).
\u2022 Carbs: Pasta provides starch; small lactose sugars; low fiber.
\u2022 Protein: Cheese\/milk give ~15 g protein, with essential amino acids.
\u2022 Vitamins\/Minerals: Excellent calcium source; good in iron, vitamin A, and B12; but
very high sodium.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Mac and Cheese Nutrition AnalysisGeneral Nutrition (per 1 cup serving, ~250 g)\u2022 Calories: ~320\u2013500 kcal (varies by recipe\/brand)\u2022 Fat: 14\u201322 g\u2022 Carbohydrates: 34\u201352 g\u2022 Protein: 14\u201319 g\u2022 Sodium: ~1100 mg (very high)FatsMac and cheese fat comes mainly from cheese and butter. These dairy fats containseveral fatty acids:Fatty Acid Carbons Saturation Type Omega# Essential?Oleic acid (C18:1) … Continue reading Favorite Food Write up- Biomolecules<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":30259,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","wds_primary_category":0},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites.wp.odu.edu\/haydenneider\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/361"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites.wp.odu.edu\/haydenneider\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites.wp.odu.edu\/haydenneider\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites.wp.odu.edu\/haydenneider\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/30259"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites.wp.odu.edu\/haydenneider\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=361"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/sites.wp.odu.edu\/haydenneider\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/361\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":362,"href":"https:\/\/sites.wp.odu.edu\/haydenneider\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/361\/revisions\/362"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites.wp.odu.edu\/haydenneider\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=361"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites.wp.odu.edu\/haydenneider\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=361"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites.wp.odu.edu\/haydenneider\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=361"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}