In a UK government-funded study, scientists are trying to create a new type of bread that is just as healthy as wholemeal but looks and tastes like its white counterpart.
The researchers plan to add small amounts of peas, beans and cereals to the bread mix, as well as bran and wheat germ that are normally removed from white flour.
Bread makers have attempted to make their white loaves healthier in the past by adding bran to their flour, but their customers didn’t like the taste and texture.
Improving white bread’s nutritional value involves t adding back smaller quantities of the wheat germ and part of the bran that is taken out in the milling process, she said, as well as adding other grains that are richer in vitamins, minerals and fibre such as quinoa, teff, sorghum and millet. Green peas and chickpeas would provide extra protein, says research leader Dr. Catherine Howarth.
According to the British Diabetic Association, the risk of heart disease, stroke and type 2 diabetes may be up to 30% lower in people who regularly eat wholegrains and the risk of bowel cancer may be also reduced.
The BDA says surveys show that 95% of adults don’t eat enough wholegrains and nearly one in three of us get none at all.
But white bread is also cheaper – and more accessible – than wholemeal bread.
Study shows conservation work indeed effective in halting biodiversity loss
