Fitness

B(re)aking bread
The debate on which is healthier, brown or white bread, has been on since 2,000 years, from the time of Hippocrates

The aroma of fresh bread is truly irresistible. Bread consumption over the years has been on the increase both in urban and rural settings. In fact, the number of varieties which one sees these days is mind-boggling. There are eateries specialising only in bread making. What is it about bread that makes it such an all-time favourite through generations all over the world; for many even a craving!

Unleavened bread like chapattis was the first bread. The inventions of leavened bread are attributed to the ancient Egyptians. It became a staple of the standard European/American diet. Leavened bread is prepared with yeast or baking soda to make the dough rise before baking.

Usually, bread is named after the grain from which the flour or meal is derived. There are also a variety of flavours and seasonings added. These could range from garlic, cheese, onion, rosemary, dill, sundried tomatoes, pesto, olives, sesame and poppy seeds. Many varieties available also indicate the ethnic diversity of bread: buns, rolls, bagels, baguettes, focaccia, multi-grain, sourdough and whole wheat/brown are a few of the varieties popular in India.

A diversity of flours, including oats, soybean, barley, millets, ragi etc. can also be added to whole wheat flour to make different kinds of breads.

In the US, many bakers may use powdered cellulose to bake bread. It is a non-calorie filler used to lower calories of the bread. In India, breads are being made with alternate flours, other than maida, to lower their glycemic index. Wheat flour is ideal for leavened bread because wheat contains gluten, a protein that becomes sticky when mixed with water. Dough made from wheat flour is elastic enough to rise, as bubbles of carbon dioxide become trapped, thus creating light-textured bread. In contrast, breads made with only low-gluten flours will tend to be heavy (dense).

Most of the time, bread (depending on the ingredients used) is much less fattening than high-sodium/fat foods such as processed meats, cheese and fried foods. However, slathering butter, margarine, or mayonnaise on a slice of bread doubles its calories.

However, bread itself can be fattening or not also depends on its glycemic index (ability of food to raise blood glucose). Breads made with more refined flour have a high glycemic index, as compared to multi-grain breads or those made with wheat, atta or other coarse grains. People, who are diabetic or obese and are on controlled carbohydrate diets, must avoid breads made with refined flour because of its high glycemic index. At times, these people are even told avoid bread altogether by their dieticians.

Hippocrates: The father of medicine advised his health patrons and patients to follow the practice of their servants and eat whole wheat bread "for its sanitary on the bowel."

White bread is prepared from bleached flour (maida), which is highly refined (purified). Milling and bleaching removes or partially removes the germ (nutrient-rich part of grain) and the bran (fibre-rich part) leaving behind mainly the starch-rich endosperm. This leads to loss of more than 22 important nutrients such as fibre, vitamins, and minerals. In advanced countries of the world, flour is so widely used that some bakeries follow flour enrichment and replace four vitamins namely: thiamine niacin, riboflavin, and iron. Other nutrients, such as Vitamin B6, zinc, manganese, and folic acid, are not added. Since in these countries, white bread contains nearly half a gram of fibre a slice, some bakeries increase the fibre content by adding dates, raisins, bran or purified powdered cellulose. Crystalline cellulose may not provide the same fibre benefits in the body as the natural cellulose that occurs in the bran of whole wheat bread.

Whole-grain breads provide two or three gm of fibre per slice. Bread labelled "whole wheat" must contain 100 per cent whole wheat as the first listed ingredient. Bread simply labelled as "wheat" or "cracked wheat" often contains white flour (may be maida) as the major ingredient; the brown colour of such bread may be due to caramel or artificial colouring. Bread labelled "multigrain" may simply mean that the bread contains mainly refined wheat flour with small amounts of oatmeal, rye, or whole wheat. The label should indicate whether caramel colouring has been added to give the bread a more wholesome (brown colour) appearance.

The colour and texture of bread are also indicators of whether the bread is genuinely whole wheat/whole grain:

• Firstly, anything darker than the colour of roti is sure to be coloured artificially.

• Secondly, anyone, who has even the slightest of idea about bread baking, would know that baking a soft, light loaf of bread with whole-wheat bread is nearly impossible. Therefore, if the brown or whole-wheat bread chosen is soft and light it is unlikely to be significantly whole wheat.

• Also ask for "whole wheat" not brown if you want an atta bread and not refined flour (maida) with colour.

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