6 Reasons to Never Eat White Bread Again

Take a trip to the grocery store and pay attention to the scraps of paper left behind in the shopping carts, blowing in the wind in the parking lot, or wandering aimlessly along a store aisle.

Some of these rogue scraps of paper will be nothing more than a discarded receipt. Look closer and you’ll discover that some of these hidden gems are actually shopping lists someone lost or carelessly threw away (see www.grocerylists.org for more than 3,700 found grocery lists). While there are some interesting and unusual things on these lists, one of the most common items is bread.

If you’ve subscribed to eating white bread, because that’s what you’ve always done, it’s time to change. If you’ve been a loyal whole-grain bread eater for years, keep it up. Here are seven reasons you should never eat white bread again.

1. White bread won’t fill you up
   White bread is made from refined grain that’s had the fiber, bran and germ stripped away. Bread made from refined grain is digested rapidly and won’t help you feel full like whole-grain breads.

2. It contains unhealthy ingredients and chemicals
   It’s no secret that high fructose corn syrup is bad for your health. But the amount of potentially harmful ingredients in white bread doesn’t stop there. White bread often contains a type of bleach, along with other chemicals to prolong shelf life.

3. White bread lacks nutrients
   Ever wonder why white bread is sometimes labeled “fortified”? Manufacturers know making white bread strips away at least 30 nutrients found in whole grains. Sometimes, white bread is fortified with vitamins or nutrients to make it appear healthier.

4. It may raise your risk for diabetes.
   Even if you don’t currently have diabetes, it’s a disease you should be aware of. An estimated 29 million people have type 2 diabetes. Another 86 million are at risk for the disease, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Left unchecked it can lead to vision loss, heart disease, stroke, kidney problems, and high cholesterol. Because white bread is digested rapidly, it’s quickly converted to glucose and causes a spike in blood sugar levels.

5. If you’re a vegetarian, white bread doesn’t make the cut
   Most white bread is made with ingredients like eggs, butter, shortening or margarine, and sometimes milk products. Fortunately, there are vegetarian and vegan-friendly bread options available made with whole grains and natural ingredients.

6. White bread lacks fiber content needed for a healthy bowel
   White bread contains practically no fiber. And that’s a problem when it comes to bowel health. A fiber-rich diet is good for your gut and digestion. But white bread contains hardly any fiber. In fact, you would have to eat about 16 slices of white bread to get the same amount of fiber found in two slices of whole grain bread.

If you’re serious about eating healthy food made from organic ingredients, including bread, make your own bread from our large selection of whole grain flours. Or try Naan bread made from our stone ground bread flour available at HoQ restaurant in Des Moines.