Whole wheat bread and walking that line...

During my weight loss phase a few years ago one item I ate a small amount was bread. I was choosy too- only Great Harvest whole grain type stuff, half a slice or a low carb tortilla wrap. Now my family is borderline empty nester and the hubby and I don't go through that much bread, and I am tired of paying $8 a loaf only to toss half of it away. So I bought a new mixer after burning out my Kitchen Aide trying to make bread, and am once again making my own bread.

This time is a little different. I started to research flours and such, mostly due to my frugality. The crap you get in a store just won't cut it. Too processed, even if you are buying 100% whole wheat. So enter my trusty Vitamix and for the first time I am milling my own flour. Now I am certain it is not overly processed and no extra crap is in it. The bread I bake is 100% whole wheat flour ground from wheat berries, and it is delicious.

But damn. I am confident I have the highest quality bread that can be made, but this still doesn't mean that blood sugar levels are not mucked up by it. I think I am going to drag out my blood testing kit and monitor the impact. If my blood sugar levels are not going nuts from it, then it will stay on the menu. If it does though, no more. Walking that line can be tricky. It is not enough to "think" it is a good choice or to eat in moderation. Look for evidence. Good luck in your journey and be careful with eating crappy bread!

Alas, poor Celiac, I once knew bread well....

I sometimes just make it from almond and coconut flour for a lower carb version. It is a bit more expensive, but not by much. Making it at home allows for many variations too, which is nice: gluten-free, low carb, or high carb, you can easily customize it to the way you eat and your dietary needs.

I notice I also eat less of everything when I make it from scratch, curiously, whether it's steak or my low-carb bread. I've always found this interesting.

I just started learning more about different grains and milling them at home. Spelt has stellar nutrition stats (better than hard red wheat berries) and I think it is Ok gluten wise? If that is the case it might be a nice option. You can buy the spelt at Whole food and grind it in a Vitamix or similar high powered blender. Although the fancy grain mill is now firmly on my kitchen gadget disease list.

I...actually don't know! Thanks for letting me know, though. It's actually all the wheat proteins in my case. I'm also allergic to wheat in addition to having Celiac. I guess my genes just really hate wheat >.>

Usually I don't risk it. Just not worth it in the end because Celiac has neurological complications as well as GI stuff, and potentially cancer. However, if it works well. I even went through medications and got non-gluten generics, because I was still having issues which was really a pain in the posterior.

I recall one of your posts from some time ago mentioning the gluten in medication. That is just awful and I am so sorry it affects you to that extent. It must be very difficult to keep track of it to that degree. Good thing you are such a science brainiac and very in tune with that kind of thing, but even with that yikes.

As a celiac myself, spelt is a no go. It's a form of wheat, and thus contains gluten. :(

There is an amazing documentary called "Cooked" by Michael Pollan. It's about this very subject, the evolution of bread and what it has become today. I have it on Netflix and really recommend it...your bread sounds wonderful!

Going to watch that- thanks for posting about it!

Good, I hope you enjoy it....another one by him is "In Defense of Food" on Netflix as well. Let me know what you thought of "Cooked".

The only way to tell is to test your sugar.

There are some very improved lancets and meters on the market now. Testing is easier and more comfortable.

I use the One Touch Delica 33 gauge lancets and really don't feel any pain. The higher the gauge, the thinner the lancet. The druggist gave me 30 gauge by mistake once and they were not as comfortable.

The One Touch Verio Flex meter syncs to your phone and was $19.95 at Walmart. It uses Verio strips that need a very tiny sample.

Your bread sounds wonderful and I am hoping it does not raise your sugar.