Sunday, October 30, 2022

Bread: Nutritional value

Bread is a nutritious food. It is starchy food that contains other vital nutrients. It is recommended to eat six slices of bread a day. Although breads may appear similar, their ingredients vary widely and the nutrient profile can vary widely across different types of bread. Breads made mostly from whole-grain flours provide more benefits to the body than breads made of enriched, refined, wheat flour.

Typically prepared from a dough made of flour and water, bread is available in many varieties, including sourdough, sweet bread, soda bread and more. Of the four ingredients, flour is the only variable, and the nutritional value of that will change according to the extraction rate or by addition during milling.

The nutritional value of bread can be increased by such addition as fat, milk, sugars, malt fruit and nuts. Even though the nutritional composition of bread varies with the type of bread, bread is an energy dense product due to the carbohydrate content in the form of starch.

Whole wheat bread is a good source of vitamins and minerals, including several B vitamins, manganese, folate, selenium, zinc, magnesium, calcium, iron, and vitamin D. These come from the whole wheat grain.

Bread is particularly important as an energy for food, providing 20-30% of the total energy requirements of the people. It has 70 calories in an average slice. In some tests overweight people have succeeded in shedding pounds on diets of 1,200 to 1,500 calories of which almost half were from bread.

In term of protein, bread has an approximate protein content of 8%. About 20% of the protein intake of the people is provided by the bread baker. It is the cheapest source of protein. Getting enough protein in the diet can help:
*Reduce appetite
*Increase muscle mass
*Maintain bone health

Bread is also providing the amount of dietary fiber and does not contain cholesterol. Some ‘high fiber’ breads may contain purified cellulose or more nutritious whole grains. Low carbohydrate breads may be regular white bread thinly sliced to reduce carbohydrates per serving, or may contain soy flour, barley flour, or flaxseed to reduce starch content.

When consuming fiber, it can help:
*Feel fuller
*Manage blood sugar

Weight loss experts generally recommend consuming foods with fiber in order trying to lose weight. Fiber can help feeling more satisfied after eating less, which can be useful if for trying to create the calorie deficit needed for weight loss.

Whole grains breads provided the kind of dietary fiber that reportedly helps prevent such intestinal problems as constipation, diverticulosis and cancer of the colon.
Bread: Nutritional value

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