One whole sandwich clocks in at a whopping 4,110 mg of sodium. The recommended amount of sodium per day, according to the American Heart Association is 2,300 mg, with an ideal number of 1,500 mg for most adults. That means that sandwich alone has close to two days’ worth of recommended sodium. Yikes! Once you reach the ripe old age of 50, your nutritional needs change.
While you should always be watching what you’re eating, it’s especially important to be on top of your nutrition. At this point in your life, sodium, saturated fat, and protein levels should be a focus. If you’re looking for a quick lunch at Panera Bread and don’t want to leave it up to chance to see what’s in what, we’ve done the legwork for you.
Panera Bread has a full nutrition guide, which can be overwhelming considering there are approximately 600 items. To make it easier for you to pick the best or worst lunch, we’ve chosen ten items and compared the saturated fat and sodium levels side-by-side. Unfortunately, saturated fat and sodium are not always high in the same items, which makes choosing a healthy lunch at Panera difficult.
Nutrition checked September 22, 2026, against Panera Bread’s published nutrition guide (effective September 2, 2026). Figures cover the portions listed, not whole meals, and exclude drinks and extra sides unless named.
1. Half Sandwich and a Cup of Soup vs. a Whole Sandwich
The half and a cup still clears a day of sodium. The whole clears two.
The good news is that if you opt for half of the sandwich, you’ll be getting right around half of the calories, fat, and sodium. For example, the entire Toasted Italiano on Baguette clocks in at a whopping 1,330 calories, 20 grams of saturated fat and 4,110 mg of sodium. Half, on the other hand, would have 670 calories, 10 grams of saturated fat and 2,060 mg of sodium.
Add on the 1,050 mg of sodium in a cup of the Homestyle Chicken Noodle Soup, which adds another 120 calories, and you’ve got a total of 790 calories and 3,110 mg of sodium, which is still more than your recommended daily allowance for an entire day. Going for a smaller portion at restaurants is really just going for a smaller bad.
2. Chicken Caesar Salad vs. the Mac and Cheese
Neither one wins. The salad carries 320 mg more sodium than the mac and cheese.
Here’s another sneaky one: If you’re past the age of 50 and think you’re being smart and careful by passing up a mac and cheese bowl in favor of a chicken Caesar salad, which is healthier on a couple of counts, you’re missing the boat on sodium. A whole chicken Caesar salad has 2,620 mg of sodium, which is 320 mg more than the mac and cheese (2,300 mg).
Yes, the bowl of pasta has more calories (980) than the salad (670 calories) and has more saturated fat (32 grams), but those greens sure are deceiving.
3. Soup in a Bowl vs. Soup in a Bread Bowl
The bread adds 510 calories and 830 mg of sodium.
Think of Panera’s sourdough bread bowl as an add-on with huge nutrition implications because that’s exactly what it is. It’s by far the biggest add-on in terms of nutrition. A bowl of broccoli cheddar soup, for instance, has 420 calories and 1,520 mg of sodium. Order it served in a bread bowl and those numbers rise to 930 calories and 2,350 mg of sodium because the bowl itself has 650 calories and 1,340 mg of sodium.
It’s tempting to order your soup in a bread bowl to make your lunch a little more hearty but next time you’re tempted, remember that you’ll be taking in more than double the calories and a lot more sodium.
4. Broccoli Cheddar vs. Chicken Noodle
Chicken noodle, unless 50 mg of sodium matters more to you than 17.5 grams of saturated fat.
Next time you’re at Panera, it’s going to be hard for us to recommend one of these items over the other. Panera’s broccoli cheddar soup has 420 calories and 19 grams of saturated fat, which is most of your daily allotment in one bowl. Panera’s Homestyle Chicken Noodle Soup fares much better with 1.5 grams of saturated fat and only 180 calories.
The chicken noodle, however, has a slight disadvantage in terms of sodium. One bowl contains a whopping 1,570 mg of sodium, 50 more than the 1,520 mg in the broccoli cheddar. So, it’s a trade-off of fewer calories and fat for a little more sodium. Neither soup wins. It’s your call.
5. Mac and Cheese, Cup vs. Bowl
The cup is exactly half the bowl on every line.
Opt for the cup rather than the bowl. The latter has a whopping 980 calories, 32 grams of saturated fat which is basically most of your allotted fats for the entire day, and 2,300 mg of sodium. The former, on the other hand, is more of a side and is not going to use up your fat allotment for the day.
Every aspect of the bowl’s nutritional information is cut in half with a cup, which means that there are only 490 calories and 16 grams of saturated fat, which is still pretty hefty. However, you’ll be saving yourself tons of sodium with a cup with only 1,150 mg.
6. A Wrap vs. a Whole Salad
The wrap: more than twice the protein, for fewer calories.
Surprisingly, the wrap is a better option here. The Green Goddess Chicken Wrap has 460 calories and 32 grams of protein along with 14 grams of fiber, which is more than double the protein in a whole Caesar Salad, as the salad has 530 calories and only 14 grams of protein. It’s important for adults, especially after age 50, to get enough protein to maintain body protein because it becomes harder to do so with age.
Keep in mind, however, that the sodium content of this wrap is pretty high at 1,340 mg. Alternatively, the Turkey and Cheddar Wrap has 32 grams of protein for 460 calories, and its sodium level is 1,160 mg.
7. Green Goddess vs. Greek Dressing
Green Goddess saves 360 calories and 410 mg of sodium.
Greek dressing, a 2 cup serving, has a whopping 560 mg of sodium, which is over three times the amount of sodium in just a half cup of Green Goddess (150 mg). Think about the other nutrients when making a dressing selection at Panera. Two cups of Greek has 48 grams of fat and 440 calories.
Compare that to a half cup of Green Goddess with 6 grams of fat and 80 calories. Dressings can be overlooked when selecting your menu item but it makes a huge difference, especially when you’re over 50.
8. Egg and Cheese on Ciabatta vs. Sausage, Egg and Cheese on Croissant
The ciabatta: 14 fewer grams of saturated fat, for 6 grams less protein.
If you’re going to have a sandwich for breakfast, skip the Sausage, Egg and Cheese on Croissant. This one is particularly egregious, as it has an entire day’s recommended amount of saturated fat, 21 grams, in one breakfast. Instead, the Egg and Cheese on Artisan Ciabatta has only 430 calories, 7 grams of saturated fat, 680 mg of sodium and 20 grams of protein.
Although the Sausage, Egg and Cheese on Croissant has more protein, 26 grams, that’s only an increase of 6 grams for 620 calories, 990 mg of sodium and 21 grams of saturated fat, definitely not worth it.
9. Greek Yogurt Parfait vs. a Bagel With Cream Cheese
At 80 mg of sodium, the parfait is the cleanest thing on the menu.
Next time you’re at Panera and you’re torn between the Greek yogurt with berries and the cinnamon crunch bagel with cream cheese, think about this: The yogurt has 250 calories, 15 grams of protein and 80 mg of sodium, which happens to be the least of any substantial item on Panera’s entire menu. The bagel alone has 430 calories and 4 grams of saturated fat.
Add in one tub of plain cream cheese and you’ve bumped those figures up to 540 calories and 10 grams of saturated fat. Which item do you think you’ll feel better after eating?
10. The Kitchen Sink Cookie vs. Two Macaroons
One cookie carries more saturated fat than a cup of mac and cheese.
There’s more saturated fat in the Kitchen Sink cookie (26 grams) than in a cup of mac and cheese (16 grams). The cookie has 810 calories, and it also has a whopping 56 grams of sugar. You might want to skip it if you’re looking to cut down on fat; try two coconut macaroons with 370 calories combined and 16 grams of saturated fat instead.
Find Your Order and Keep It
Next time you’re at Panera, try to establish a go-to order. That way you won’t have to read the whole board each time you walk in. Some healthier options include a wrap or a soup and salad combo with a half salad and a cup of soup, and even a Greek yogurt parfait if you’re in the mood for something sweet.
At Panera it can be helpful to pay more attention to the sodium than calories. This is because sodium builds up more quickly among items. The saturated fat is more item-specific, meaning you’ll get saturated fat from specific foods like mac and cheese, cookies, and croissant breakfasts. As long as you steer clear of mac and cheese, cookies, and the croissant breakfasts you’ll be alright.
Cory Jones has spent 20 years in media and publishing and now leads the data and editorial operation behind The Greenest. He built and maintains the site’s Neighborhood Wellness Score — a proprietary dataset scoring food access, walkability, air quality, healthcare access, and health outcomes across 18,356 U.S. ZIP codes, drawing on CDC PLACES data, EPA air quality readings, and verified location intelligence. He turned 50 last year, is a huge fan of Rancho Gordo beans, and tries to work out more than he actually works out.
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