Grilled Chicken Breast: Nutrition and Health Benefits You Should Know
Grilled chicken breast is a common lean protein source that can be found in many restaurants, salad bars, and home-cooked meals nationwide. In addition to being a quick, easy, and tasty lunch and supper choice, it is also incredibly nutrient-dense and high in protein, B vitamins, and minerals. To what extent is grilled chicken breast healthy? Here is all the information you need to know about the nutritional values and healthful advantages of this delicious fowl dish.
Nutritional Information for Grilled Chicken Breast
Protein, choline, B vitamins (including riboflavin, niacin, pantothenic acid, vitamin B6, and vitamin B12), and minerals (such as phosphorus, potassium, zinc, and selenium) are all abundant in grilled chicken breast. According to statistics from the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), this is the nutritional breakdown of grilled chicken breast.
Three Ounces of Boneless, Skinless Grilled Chicken Breast
The Macronutrients
- There are 128 calories.
- 26 grams of protein (g)
- 0 g of total carbohydrates
- 2.7 g of fat
- 0.8 g of saturated fat
- 1.7 g of unsaturated fat
- 88 mg of cholesterol, or 29% of the daily value (DV)*
Micronutrients
- Vitamin B2 (riboflavin): 0.2 mg, 17% DV
- Vitamin B3 (niacin): 10 mg, 67% DV
- Vitamin B5 (pantothenic acid): 1.5 mg, 30% DV
- Vitamin B6: 77% DV, 1 mg
- Vitamin B12: 8% DV, or 0.18 mcg
- Iron: 5% DV, 0.4 mg
- Zinc: 0.8 mg, 8% DV
- Phosphorus: 219 mg, 31% DV
- Potassium: 332 mg, 11% DV
- Selenium: 44% DV, 24 mcg
- Choline: 94 mg, 19% DV
- Sodium: 44 mg, 2% DV
*Daily Value is calculated using the National Institutes of Health’s (NIH) average adult requirements for males and females without pre-existing conditions.
Benefits of Grilled Chicken Breast for Your Health
Grilled chicken breast offers several health advantages for various bodily systems, as evidenced by its remarkable nutritional breakdown.
Encourages the Growth and Repair of Healthy Tissue
Grilled chicken breast is a high-protein food that promotes the body’s normal tissue growth, development, and repair. Protein, one of the three necessary macronutrients, is the building block of almost all of the body’s main structures, including bones, cartilage, eyelashes, organs, DNA, and neurotransmitters. As a complete protein, chicken includes all nine necessary amino acids, allowing the body to benefit from everything that protein has to offer.
Encourages a Healthy Metabolic Process
There are several ways that chicken, especially grilled chicken breast, promotes a healthy metabolism. First of all, protein slows down digestion, which makes you feel more satisfied after eating and dulls your blood sugar reaction. For people who need to monitor their blood sugar levels more carefully, such as those with metabolic diseases like type 2 diabetes, this is advantageous. However, as everyone may gain from greater satiety and a good sense of fullness after meals, it’s also beneficial for people without metabolic issues. Additionally, by encouraging energy generation and nutritional absorption, the abundance of B vitamins in grilled chicken breast supports a healthy metabolism.
Enhances Mental Well-being
Grilled chicken breast is another food that contains the important amino acid tryptophan. In addition to being a crucial protein-building component, tryptophan aids in the brain’s production of melatonin and serotonin. Serotonin plays a key role in our mood as well as the treatment and prevention of mental health concerns like depression. Meanwhile, melatonin is integral for maintaining a healthy circadian rhythm and supporting better sleep.
Aids Thyroid Health and Function
As a super source of selenium, grilled chicken breast can also promote better thyroid health. Selenium is concentrated in our thyroid glands, and research has found that low selenium levels can increase our risk for several types of thyroid disorders.
Grilled Chicken Breast and Heart Health
Overall, if you’re looking to support your heart health, grilled chicken breast is a good low-saturated-fat food to choose from. For decades, health professionals have advised folks to stay away from saturated fats to help prevent heart disease. While it’s true that recent, emerging evidence is challenging these older conceptions about the link between saturated fat intake and chronic disease, we do know that saturated fat intake can negatively impact blood cholesterol levels, which we know can contribute to heart disease. Therefore, it’s still wise to practice moderation when it comes to saturated fat consumption—and lean proteins like grilled chicken breast can help you do just that.
There is a notable amount of dietary cholesterol in a three-ounce serving of grilled chicken, however, it can still fit within a heart-healthy lifestyle, especially if you’re mindful of other dietary cholesterol sources, too. In terms of its heart-health-related impacts, there’s a similar discourse surrounding cholesterol as there is around saturated fat intake. More evidence is beginning to show a weaker connection between dietary cholesterol intake and heart disease than previously thought, but other evidence still points to dietary cholesterol negatively impacting our circulating cholesterol levels, which can impact heart health. So, as with any food, it’s important to be judicious about your intake of this particular fat.
Who Should Avoid Grilled Chicken Breast?
While the health perks of grilled chicken breast are plenty, certain groups should or may want to avoid this particular animal protein. First and foremost, these include people with poultry allergies, as well as those following a vegan or plant-based diet. Additionally, anyone taking certain medications or who has certain chronic conditions, such as kidney disease, may need to moderate their protein intake to not overburden certain organ systems. Be sure to check with your doctor before enjoying grilled chicken breast if you think you may fit into this category.
Ways to Enjoy Grilled Chicken Breast
There are nearly endless ways to incorporate delicious and healthy grilled chicken breast into your everyday dietary rotation. It’s accessible, relatively affordable easy to cook, and mild in flavor which makes it a versatile protein that takes on a host of savory seasonings and marinades well. Instantly add satisfying, hearty protein to soups, salads, pasta, stir-fried grain bowls, and more with grilled chicken breast. Stuff it in sandwiches, quesadillas, tacos, wraps, and pita pockets with your favorite fixings. Toss it with mayo, mustard, celery, and spices for a quick, zesty chicken salad. Or make it the main event served alongside a grain and/or veggie side with a special rub, sauce, or marinade.
Grilled chicken breast is undeniably a healthy food, thanks to its lower saturated fat content and an impressive array of micronutrients. This lends it to supporting our health in a myriad of ways across the whole body, making it an excellent protein option for you and your loved ones.