Wheatgerm
About Wheatgerm
Wheatgerm. The germ is the embryo inside the wheat kernel, removed during refining of white flour. It is concentrated in vitamin E, folate, thiamin, magnesium and zinc, and is sold as a loose powder or flake to be sprinkled on cereal, yoghurt or porridge, or stirred into baked goods.
A typical tablespoon (about 10g) of wheatgerm carries a useful share of daily vitamin E and folate. It is the part of the wheat grain that delivers the headline micronutrient content; wholemeal bread and flour retain it, while white flour has it removed.
Wheatgerm contains gluten and is not suitable for coeliac disease or for a strict gluten-free diet.
Wheatgerm in more detail
Wheatgerm is the embryo of the wheat kernel — the part that would become the plant — and it is removed during white flour milling for a purely commercial reason: it contains oil, and oil goes rancid. Taking the germ out is what gives white flour a shelf life measured in months rather than weeks.
What gets discarded is by a wide margin the most nutrient-dense part of the grain, and the panel on this page shows it starkly. That same oil content is also why wheatgerm you buy needs treating differently from flour: it oxidises, and stale wheatgerm tastes distinctly of old oil paint. Buy it in small quantities, keep it in the fridge or freezer, and smell it before using it.
Most wheatgerm sold is stabilised by heat-treating to deactivate the lipase enzymes that accelerate rancidity. That extends the shelf life considerably and costs a little of the vitamin E.
It is a supplement to a diet rather than a food in its own right — a couple of tablespoons stirred into yoghurt, porridge, a smoothie or a bread dough. Adding much more than that to bread weakens the structure, because wheatgerm contains glutathione, which interferes with gluten development.
Wheatgerm contains gluten and is not suitable for coeliacs.
Nutrients worth knowing about
This is the most nutrient-dense entry in the grains section, and the panel figures per 100 g show why: Manganese at 13.5 mg (about 964% of the adult reference intake), Phosphorus at 1,047 mg (190%), Vitamin B6 (Pyridoxine) at 2.58 mg (184%), Vitamin B1 (Thiamin) at 1.8 mg (180%), Zinc at 14 mg (147%), Vitamin B9 (Folate / Folic acid) at 277 µg (139%), Vitamin E at 16.2 mg (405%), Magnesium at 240 mg (80%), Vitamin B3 (Niacin) at 12.7 mg (75%), Copper at 0.82 mg (68%), Iron at 8.08 mg (55%), Vitamin B2 (Riboflavin) at 0.63 mg (48%) and Potassium at 1,045 mg (30%).
Two cautions on reading those numbers. They are per 100 g, and a realistic serving is 10–15 g, so divide accordingly. And wheatgerm is high in phytate, which meaningfully reduces absorption of the iron and zinc — the figures describe content, not uptake.
The macronutrients — 352 kcal, 27.3 g protein and 11.6 g fibre per 100 g — include an unusually high protein figure for a plant food.
Other grains and grain fractions
Micronutrients (per 100g, as-eaten)
| Nutrient | Amount | % adult reference intake |
|---|---|---|
| Minerals | ||
| Iron | 8.08 mg | 55% |
| Calcium | 45 mg | 6% |
| Magnesium | 240 mg | 80% |
| Potassium | 1045 mg | 30% |
| Sodium | 3 mg | 0% |
| Chloride | 107 mg | 4% |
| Phosphorus | 1047 mg | 190% |
| Zinc | 14 mg | 147% |
| Copper | 0.82 mg | 68% |
| Manganese | 13.5 mg | 964% |
| Iodine | Tr (trace) | . |
| Selenium | 18 ug | 24% |
| Vitamins | ||
| Vitamin A | 0 ug | 0% |
| Vitamin C | 0 mg | 0% |
| Vitamin D | 0 ug | 0% |
| Vitamin E | 16.2 mg | 405% |
| Vitamin K | not measured | . |
| Vitamin B1 (thiamin) | 1.8 mg | 180% |
| Vitamin B2 (riboflavin) | 0.63 mg | 48% |
| Vitamin B3 (niacin) | 12.7 mg | 75% |
| Vitamin B5 (pantothenic acid) | 2.6 mg | 37% |
| Vitamin B6 | 2.58 mg | 184% |
| Vitamin B7 (biotin) | 23.4 ug | 12% |
| Vitamin B9 (folate) | 277 ug | 139% |
| Vitamin B12 | 0 ug | 0% |
Source: CoFID 2021 (McCance and Widdowson, UK), code 11-907 (matched record: "Wheatgerm"). N = present but not quantified; Tr = trace; not measured = no value in the source.
What this food is a source of
High in by content (per 100g): Manganese (964%), Vitamin E (405%), Phosphorus (190%), Vitamin B6 (184%), Vitamin B1 (thiamin) (180%), Zinc (147%), Vitamin B9 (folate) (139%), Magnesium (80%), Vitamin B3 (niacin) (75%), Copper (68%), Iron (55%), Vitamin B2 (riboflavin) (48%), Vitamin B5 (pantothenic acid) (37%).
A source of by content (per 100g): Potassium (30%), Selenium (24%).
These figures are the amount in the food. How much the body absorbs can vary, see each nutrient's entry for detail.