Is white bread really harmful to health?

England – Experts on “low-carb diets” warn against eating white bread due to its content, which may lead to high blood sugar, but some say there is no reason to actually give it up.

Dr. Duane Mellor, a nutritionist at Aston University, said that what is “added to bread is what is most important.”

He explains: “White bread is not as bad as many people think. The most important thing is to think about how to add more fiber to the diet, and that is not limited to bread only, but salads, vegetables and legumes as well.”

White bread contains about 49 grams of carbohydrates per 100 grams, compared to 41 grams in whole wheat bread.

But Mellor says: “In terms of how quickly our bodies digest starches and produce glucose, there is not much difference between white bread and whole wheat bread.”

As nutritionist Rob Hobson said, high blood sugar is a “natural reaction to eating.”

He added: “I don’t see anything wrong with eating white bread or high-quality sourdough, which is considered the least processed.”

Meanwhile, Dr. Idris Mughal told the Telegraph: “You have to remember that bread is just energy, and it will break down into glucose. Eating bread alone every day won’t do your health any favors, but if you eat it as part of a lunch sandwich with lettuce, grilled chicken breast, and maybe some pickles, that’s perfectly fine.”

However, white bread is an ultra-processed food (UPF), which is under fire for its supposed risks, with studies linking it to cancer and heart disease.

But Mellor explained that there are “some things added to bread that sound like bad chemicals,” like ascorbic acid listed as E300, but it’s actually vitamin C.

“This acts as an oxidizing agent that helps the gluten form bonds that give the bread a better texture,” he said.

However, Hobson acknowledged that cheap packaged white bread is “low in fibre” and “easy to overeat”.

He added: “If this is the only bread you can buy, try choosing whole grain bread, and try to fill it with something healthy that contains protein and vegetables to help reduce the impact on blood sugar levels.”

Source: Daily Mail