The “whole wheat” or “whole grain” bread you buy at the store may be less than the sum of its parts, with bran and germ added back in after processing rather than being milled together, the New York Times reported June 16.
Some food advocates believe that industrial milling has necessitated use of wheat bred to have a large, easily separated endosperm — the least nutritious part of the grain and the part that’s solely used to make white bread. So local grain economies have sprung up around the country where people can mill, purchase, and use grains that have been milled whole using traditional methods.
This minimally processed bread may be healthier than bread from grains that have been separated and then put back together again. Eating whole grains, in general, is healthier, and wheat germ and bran may help protect against sensitivity to gluten, which is found mostly in the endosperm.
(Photo © Logan Ingalls via Flickr)