Sourdough Bread - 2008/07/08 20:38Saw this article today and thought I'd pass it along... ---------------
Sourdough bread may enhance health more than whole wheat, says scientist Provided by: The Canadian Press Written by: Judy Creighton, THE CANADIAN PRESS Jul. 7, 2008
The type of toasted bread we eat for breakfast can affect how the body responds to lunch, a researcher at the University of Guelph has discovered. Prof. Terry Graham, a scientist who specializes in carbohydrates, has been looking into the health benefits of various types of bread.
"One of the surprising things in our work is that whole-wheat products turned out to have the least healthy responses of all, and this is not what we expected," he said in an interview.
Using white, whole wheat, whole wheat with barley and sourdough white breads, Graham and his team of researchers examined how subjects responded after eating the bread for breakfast and again just hours after eating a standard lunch.
The 10 male subjects, who were overweight and ranged between 50 and 60 years old, showed the most positive body responses after eating sourdough white bread. Those positive responses remained even after eating a second meal that didn't include bread.
"With the sourdough, the subjects' blood sugar levels were lower for a similar rise in blood insulin," says Graham, whose findings are being published in the British Journal of Nutrition.
"What was even more interesting was that this positive effect remained during their second meal and lasted hours after."
He says that it's likely that the fermentation of the sourdough changes the nature of the starches in the bread, creating a more beneficial bread. And while sourdough came out on top, the whole-wheat varieties used in the study came out on the bottom, even below white bread.
The whole-wheat bread caused blood sugar levels to spike and these high levels lasted until well after lunch.
Graham said the less positive blood responses sparked by the whole wheat are likely due to the fact that the milling process involved in making the whole-wheat bread used in the study is similar to that used for white bread.
"The parts of the grain like wheat germ and bran that have the health benefits are taken out to create white flour and then partially added back to make whole wheat," he says.
"Based on the findings of this study, as well as a followup study using whole grains rather than whole wheat, we are learning that the best way to get these nutrients is through whole grain, not whole wheat."
Graham says that he and his team assumed that standard white bread would be less beneficial "and everything would be better than that."
"In fact, the whole wheat and the wheat plus barley turned out to be the least healthy."
Graham cites recent literature mainly from Scandinavia suggesting that either the sourdough leavening or even taking organic acids and adding them to the dough itself could have some positive benefits in terms of metabolic response. "And so that was our logic for incorporating a sourdough design and to facilitate a comparison would be to use an identical bread recipe but use sourdough starter instead of the standard yeast," he says.
Sourdough bread is raised with a leaven of flour and water in which wild yeasts have been encouraged to grow by keeping it warm and allowing it to ferment over a period of days. During this time, it sours and develops a characteristic tangy flavour.
Graham says the research is ongoing to find out what it is about sourdough that does this.
"And secondly if sourdough is good, what about other types of bread such as whole grain?"
Linda Haynes, former owner and now a consultant at ACE Bakery in Toronto, says she is amazed at Graham's findings and says "it is exciting that sourdough could prove to be a health benefit."
Sourdough Bread - 2008/07/10 00:22Hi karen, I agree with Blair....who would ever have guessed! I love sourdough bread but have always felt like I was cheating when I eat it. Guess I'll have to reeducate myself now. Btw.......how goes it with your pregnancy? Are you having any difficulties keeping your bg normal? I've forgotten when your due date was. LINDA
Sourdough Bread - 2008/07/10 14:01It's funny, I've never actually HAD sourdough bread... but I'm going to try it out!
Now, on an entirely different note... thanks so much for inquiring about my pregnancy. Unfortunately, and I should have posted this sooner but there's been so much going on (you'll notice I haven't been on the forum as much), my last ultrasound showed that the baby no longer had a heartbeat.
Let me be clear, though, this loss was NOT AT ALL due to the fact that I am diabetic. That was stressed to me over and over again... what happened was chromosomal (did I spell that right) and the baby was not developing properly. It's actually fairly common, they were telling me.
So, while it was devastating, I realize that it was probably for the best and just not meant to be.
To answer your question about my BG levels, I was actually doing really well! It was just during the first trimester that I was getting some lows in the night... but other than that things were going great.
Now, I'm feeling much better and am starting to get back into my old routine, including the gym. It feels good to go out there and do something so, right now, the focus is on my health... and getting outdoors to enjoy some of this beautiful summer weather!!!
Again, thanks for asking (I REALLY appreciated it!) and sorry for having to post that here...
Sourdough Bread - 2008/07/10 16:46Karen, I'm so sorry to hear that! As you said it is common especially for first pregnancies for anyone. My daughter also recently suffered a miscarriage and she is not diabetic. Keep your spirits up and enjoy that sunshine. We are headed for a heatwave here in San Diego and I'm bracing myself.
Sourdough Bread - 2008/07/10 16:54Thanks for the kind words, Linda. Yeah, they were telling me it's approximately 1 in every 3 women who will experience one. Crazy, eh? Sorry to hear about your daughter, as well, I hope she wasn't very far along (I was 4 months).
Wow, heat wave... get ready! It's hot here already this morning, 34° C which means I'm sticking inside with the AC on and the blinds closed LOL
Sourdough Bread - 2008/07/11 19:09Karen I am so sorry to hear about your miscarriage. No matter if it is common or not and if it turns out for the better (which, in case the child would have been born disabled I also find it is) - it still must have been a blow to you. I am happy to hear though you are getting into your routine again and decided to enjoy from what there is to enjoy from
My first pregnancy also ended in a miscarriage. I am not diabetic so here you have it.
Linda, I am sorry to hear about your daughter's miscarriage as well. How is she taking it?
Talking about heat.... here temperatures aren't that high (around 30+ celsius) but the humidity in the air is killing me
Sourdough Bread - 2008/07/14 16:26Thanks, Blair... I appreciate that! And I'm sorry, too, to hear about yours.. I cant' believe how common it is! It's definitely not easy, but you just have to move forward...
As for me, my #'s are doing great and so I took a little extra insulin yesterday and had a small piece of ice cream cake. OMG -- FANTASTIC. It was my dad's birthday so I figured, what the heck... I had to help celebrate!
Hot again here today, but not humid... I think I might play hooky this aft and go for a walk... and I bought some of that bread so I'm going to try some today and will let ya'll know how it was.
Sourdough Bread - 2008/07/15 10:02Hi Karen, good to hear that at least it isn't humid where you are at, so you still can take part in outdoors activities.
I'm glad you enjoyed that ice cream cake Of course it was your duty to help your father celebrate his birthday. You are completely right about that
Belated, but sincerely meant nevertheless: congratulations with your father's birthday!
Sourdough Bread - 2008/07/16 21:11Just on my way out but I wanted to post that -- mmmm -- the sourdough bread was dee-lish!! And, this is the best part, I checked my blood sugar levels afterwards and (when comparing to when I eat my whole wheat or multigrain) noticed that there wasn't as drastic of a spike. Sure, my levels went up a bit but nothing crazy...
And, dang, I had it warm and plain (no butter, not that I ever do) and it was fantastic.
I doubt I'd have it all the time, because I really like whole grain bread, but it's a great alternative.
Sourdough Bread - 2008/07/17 11:00Ah good to hear you liked it Karen. I tried it myself (although I have eaten it before but in a different form when I was child since in the Netherlands in those days it was considered quite a regular bread to eat at breakfast) - and I also like it a lot. I find it a bit "heavy" (meaning that it does fill you up quicker than regular or whole grain breads) but sometimes that is a very good thing
Hope you got to your destination in time yesterday after posting this
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That is so interesting. Such a surprise! Thanks Karen, this is good to know. 
Of course it was your duty to help your father celebrate his birthday. You are completely right about that 
