Healthy Food Substitutions
Healthy Swaps
The Ultimate Guide to Having Your Cake and Eating It Too (continued)
Sourdough bread
Here’s a little gem of a nutrition nugget for people with diabetes. White bread, as we all know, is the quintessential enemy of good blood sugar control. Along with white potatoes and table sugar, white bread sits at the top of the no-no list. However, when lactic acid is added to bread dough, it does two things –– changes the flavor to the tangy, delicious bite of sourdough bread and mediates the glycemic impact of all that white wheat flour.
We know the glycemic response is less with sourdough because the acid slows the emptying of the stomach, thereby slowing the delivery of glucose to the bloodstream. And research has shown that this anti-glycemic effect can last through to the next meal, slowing the emptying of the stomach even a few hours later.
If you’re feeling ambitious, find yourself a recipe for sourdough starter and bake your own sourdough bread. You’ll learn an ancient method of preserving yeast in the process. Otherwise, check the bakery department of your natural foods store or even your supermarket for a variety of sourdough breads. White sourdough is better than non-sourdough white, but a whole grain sourdough will still rank highest on the health meter and lowest in glycemic response.
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Reviewed by Susan Weiner, R.D., M.S., C.D.E., C.D.N. 3/08