In research published in the journal of Chemical Papers scientists from Slovakia designed a functional wheat-rye bread to investigate the nutritional impacts and linked it favorably to diabetes and obesity management.
Findings showed that wheat-rye fortified with cereal dietary fiber, beta-glucan hydrogel and sourdough starter culture reduced glucose levels after consumption in healthy males.
“The 10% wheat bran and 12.5% cereal beta-glucan addition combined with the lactobacilli starter culture lowered the glucose response at 120 minutes after the consumption of functional bread,” researchers wrote.
“The glucose-lowering effect of bread in 120 minutes within such a small group of volunteers is quite promising, albeit not ideal; it led us to rethink the recipe of new breads with a possibly higher percentage of health-promoting additives in the future.”
“The designed bread could be used in obesity and diabetes prevention programs, but it would be of general importance to try higher amounts of these functional additives in a longer intervention trial with a larger study group, including women and people without normal glucose tolerance in order to prove the outcomes,” they said.
Nutritional composition differences
The designed functional bread possessed higher acidity levels caused by the lactobacilli strains presented in the sourdough during the fermentation process. Researchers suggested this presence of organic acids may reduce acute glycemic and insulinemic responses.
They also noted that cereals have been linked to prevention of chronic conditions such as cardiovascular disease, type-two diabetes and obesity.
The bread displayed higher fiber content, and significantly lower glucose and fructose levels compared to the control.
The additions of sourdough, beta-glucan and extruded wheat bran also caused changes in the biologically active compounds content, such as polyphenols, flavonoids, and phenolic acids.
Higher levels of polyphenols and flavonoids led to increased antioxidant activity, the researchers noted.
Postprandial study
Ten healthy male non-smokers free from any oncological, cardiovascular or thyroid gland problems were recruited for the study.
The volunteers refrained from food and vigorous activity 12 hours prior to the examination in which blood was tested before and after bread consumption.
Source: Journal of Chemical Papers
Published online ahead of print doi: 10.2478/s11696-012-0258-8
“Nutritional, antioxidant, and glycaemic characteristics of new functional bread”
Authors: L. Mikusova et al