If you are a bread lover, you should know that there is a big difference between eating wholemeal bread and bread made from refined flour. Therefore, to protect health without underestimating the intake of this popular food, we show you the keys to recognize a 100% wholemeal bread in the supermarket.
Whole grain bread: exclusively with whole grain flour
According to Royal Decree 308/2019, wholemeal bread or 100% wholemeal bread is called:
… breads made with exclusively wholemeal flour. The denomination will be completed with the name of the cereal or cereals from which the flour or flours used come from.
Nevertheless, there may be a whole wheat bread (not 100% whole wheat) in which other flours are used and not exclusively integral options. In these cases, the name of the bread will include the mention “made with X% wholemeal flour” to designate the proportion of whole grain flour used.
We recommend choosing a whole wheat bread that does not have refined flour inside but was made exclusively from whole grain flours. That is, we choose a 100% whole wheat bread.
For this, we must Note that the main ingredient or the one that appears first in the list of ingredients be an unrefined flour.
So, to recognize a 100% wholemeal bread we must refer to the list of ingredients observing in detail if it is a bread that only has wholemeal flour or if it is mixed with refined white flour, being in the latter case less advisable.
It can be called the 100% whole wheat, whole wheat bread or whole grain breadbeing able to also add wholemeal semolina or other whole grain derivatives, but they should always use exclusively wholemeal flour, be it wheat, oats, spelled, rye or other cereals.
Of course, we also recommend avoid breads with added sugar in high proportions and instead, choose those with fewer ingredients that are, precisely, the least processed or industrialized.
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