What's in your white flour?

I don't know about you but, many people think that when you buy a bag of white flour from the grocery store, you are getting ground wheat and that's it. But this is not true. Many of the large flour producers add different things to the flour. I thought it would be good to go through what some of these ingredients are in your white flour.

Wheat flour - This is exactly what it states, ground wheat.

Benzoyl Peroxide - This is an interesting one - Benzoyl Peroxide and Calcium Peroxide are a food additive, both are used to whiten flour through oxidation of the carotenoids that naturally occur in ground flour. It seems that our governments and food manufacturers feel that the consumers here in North America and other parts of the world prefer bleached white flour over the light yellowish natural color. 

When flour is freshly ground it has a light yellowish color to it. Over a period of time ( 30 to 60 days ) the flour will naturally whiten. Large flour producers find this too long and expensive to hold the flour for that period of time. So, by using Benzoyl Peroxide you can cut that time down to 2 or 3 days. Countries such as the European Union, Japan and even China have banned the use of Benzoyl Peroxide and Calcium Peroxide as a additive to flour. One interesting note is that China was only using a maximum of 60mg/kg, which is much lower than most international levels - for example 75mg/kg, level recommended by the Codex Alimentarius Commission, an international organization that develops food standards.. So, even at 20% lower level - Benzoyl was banned in China and is still being used in Canada and the USA. From my understanding in Canada the maximum level is 150mg/kg of Benzoyl Peroxide.

Amylase - Amylase is an enzyme and used for proper baking to occur. The amylase breaks down starches to provide sugars and a sweeter taste, it also helps with the fermentation process. What is important is that the amount of this enzyme can have a direct bearing on the quality of bread produced. If the right amount of amylase is used, a high volume bread with firm and soft texture is achieved. If it is too high, a sticky bread crumb and low volume could result. If it's on the low side, a dry bread crumb with large holes could result.

Because many large flour producers use grains from all over, they may get weak grains that produce low gluten - not good for bread making. By using this enzyme it helps to raise the protein levels, producing better gluten and in turn allows the bread to rise higher and faster then it would have. 

Ascorbic Acid - This is a form of Vitamin C and also helps to form gluten. It also encourages the maturing of the flour. Many times while harvesting you get ripe and unripe wheat grains. Ascorbic Acid helps to force ripening.

Niacin - is Vitamin B3 and is what causes your packaging to say fortified or enriched. Niacin will also help flour to retain it's white color.

Reduced Iron - I have no idea why it's called "reduced iron". You read that and you would think iron was removed wouldn't you? But that's the opposite of what has happened. They have added Iron to your flour. It's not necessarily a bad thing, but some have said, that reduced iron can not be absorbed by the body … so why have it in my flour?

Thiamine Mononitrate - or Vitamin B1, is part of the enriching process in flour. Thiamine is water-soluble, this means the body can expel excess amounts to stop side affects.  

Riboflavin - is also known as Vitamin B2 and is produced by micro-organisms and plants. So, riboflavin can be found naturally in flour. However during the stripping away of the bran and germ to make white flour, it is removed and must be added back.  

Folic acid - is a Vitamin B9 and is water-soluble. It's very important for women of child-bearing years to take folic acid. It can also be found in many dark green vegetables.

Other ingredients you may find in your flour is L-cysteine. While some L-cysteine is directly synthesized in laboratories, most of it is extracted from human hair. The hair is dissolved in acid and L-cysteine is isolated through a chemical process, then packaged and shipped off to commercial bread producers and flour producers. Besides human hair, other sources of L-cysteine include duck feathers, hog hair. This is a non-essencial ingredient added to flour as a conditioner, in order to speed up the industrial processing.

It's funny, when most of us would be appalled if we found a hair in our food at a local restaurant. But, to think that we are eating hair in our white flour or baked goods everyday, is enough to gross anyone out. I guess it's like that old saying " what you don't know won't hurt you" lol. 

Azodicarbonamide - is used to create foamed plastics, such as PVC's and imitation leathers. However it is also used in the food industry as a food additive, a flour bleaching agent and an improving agent. In the UK, the Health and safety executive has identified azodicarbonamide as a respiratory sensitizer (a possible cause of asthma) and determined that products should be labeled with "May cause sensitisation by inhalation."

In Canada and the USA, you will not find white flour without many of these Vitamins and additives added to them. In the case of the vitamins they are forced by law and must be added to all white flours. I'm not saying all these things are bad or good. That's up to you to decide. For me the Benzoyl Peroxide, L-cysteine and azodicarbonamide is the most disturbing additives to our flours and the one's that are really not necessary. 

Many of the vitamins can also be found by eating right and having a healthy lifestyle. 

I prefer to have natural vitamins rather then synthetic ones added to my food. If you use whole grain wheat flour, organic, or grind your own flour. You won't have to worry about any of these ingredients added to your food. But now you know what is in your white flour when you buy it in the stores. 

But... remember, these are the additives and vitamins added to the white flour you buy, we haven't even touched on the additives added to the bread you buy at the store. We will get into that on another day.

Happy baking all!

Article from www.thekneadforbread.com

Foods You Don't Have to Buy Organic

Source: the Environmental Working Group (EWG), a nonprofit organization that advocates for policies that protect global and individual health. The 2010 version is based on the results of nearly 96,000 pesticide tests performed on produce and collected by federal agencies between 2000 and 2008. 

Nearly all of the data used took into account how people typically wash and prepare produce - for example, apples were washed and bananas peeled before testing. Of the 50 different fruit and vegetable categories tested, the following "Clean 15" foods had the lowest pesticide load, and consequently are the safest conventionally grown crops to consume from the standpoint of pesticide contamination:

• Onions
• Avocados
• Sweet Corn
• Pineapples
• Mangoes
• Sweet Peas
• Asparagus
• Kiwi
• Cabbage
• Eggplant
• Cantaloupe (Domestic)
• Watermelon
• Grapefruit
• Sweet Potatoes
• Honeydew Melon

Why should you care about pesticides? The EWG points out that there is a growing consensus in the scientific community that small doses of pesticides and other chemicals can have adverse effects on health, especially during vulnerable periods such as fetal development and childhood.

Here's a video in which I address the importance of avoiding pesticides.

Of the vegetables least likely to test positive for pesticides, here's some additional information from EWG:  

• Asparagus, sweet corn, and onions had no detectable residues on 90 percent or more of samples.
• More than four-fifths of cabbage samples (82.1 percent) had no detectible pesticides, followed by sweet peas (77.1 percent) and eggplant (75.4 percent).

And here's more on the "cleanest" fruits:

• Fewer than 10 percent of pineapple, mango, and avocado samples showed detectable, and fewer than one percent of samples had more than one pesticide residue.
• Nearly 60 percent of honeydew melons had detectable pesticides but only 14.2 percent of samples contained more than one residue. Grapefruit had residues on 54.5 percent of samples, and 17.5 percent showed multiple pesticide residues.

To this list, I would add one caveat: When it comes to pesticide use, there is more to consider than just the residues that are ingested by the consumer. Although peeled foods such as mangoes, avocados and kiwis may spare the consumer from significant pesticide exposure, it is possible that large amounts of pesticides and herbicides are used on the farms from which these originate, contaminating groundwater, promoting erosion and otherwise damaging local ecosystems. To help promote the health of the planet as well as your own health, it's best to buy organic whenever possible, including when you are purchasing the foods listed above.

At the opposite end of the contamination spectrum, check out the list of Foods That You Should Always Buy Organic, also known as the "Dirty Dozen."

by: Stephen Perrine and Heather Hurlock edited by Brian Bartholomew D.C.

On May 11, the White House announced it was targeting a new threat to America’s health and security. It wasn’t some rogue nation or terrorist organization, or a newfound disease or environmental threat. It was a class of chemicals that are making Americans fat. They’re called endocrine disrupting chemicals, or EDCs. And chances are you’re eating or drinking them right now.

The White House Task Force on Childhood Obesity released a report called "Solving the Problem of Childhood Obesity Within a Generation." In the report they list endocrine-disrupting chemicals as a possible reason for increased obesity in the country and describe how scientists have coined a new term for these chemicals — "obesogens" — because they "may promote weight gain and obesity."

What does this mean for you? It means that weight gain is not just about calories-in versus calories-out.

No, America’s obesity crisis can’t entirely be blamed on too much fast food and too little exercise. We have to consider a third factor: the obesogens. They’re natural and synthetic compounds, and many of these chemicals work by mimicking estrogen — the very hormone that doctors DON’T want women taking anymore (as a large clinical trial linked hormone therapy to increased risk of heart disease, breast cancer, stroke, blood clots and abnormal mammograms).

The obesogen effect is the reason why traditional diet advice — choose chicken over beef, eat more fish, load up on fruits and vegetables — may not fully work.  We can reverse the obesogen effect if we simply adopt these four simple laws of leanness:

Leanness Law No. 1: Know When to Go Organic
The average American is exposed to 10 to 13 different pesticides through food, beverages and drinking water every day and nine of the ten most common pesticides are EDCs. But according to a recent study in the journal Environmental Health Perspectives, eating an organic diet for just five days can reduce circulating pesticide EDCs to non-detectable or near non-detectable levels.

Of course, organic foods can be expensive. But not all organics are created equal—many foods have such low levels of pesticides that buying organic just isn’t worth it. The Environmental Working Group (EWG) calculated that you can reduce your pesticide exposure nearly 80 percent simply by choosing organic for the 12 fruits and vegetables shown in their tests to contain the highest levels of pesticides. They call them "The Dirty Dozen," and (starting with the worst) they are celery, peaches, strawberries, apples, blueberries (domestic), nectarines, sweet bell peppers, spinach, kale/collard greens, cherries, potatoes and grapes (imported).

And you can feel good about buying the following 15 conventionally grown fruits and vegetables that the EWG dubbed "The Clean Fifteen," because they were shown to have little pesticide residue: onions, avocado, sweet corn (frozen), pineapples, mango, sweet peas (frozen), asparagus, kiwi fruit, cabbage, eggplant, cantaloupe (domestic), watermelon, grapefruit, sweet potatoes and honeydew melon.

Leanness Law No. 2: Don’t Eat Plastic
This ought to be a no-brainer. Indeed, you’re probably already thinking, Well, I don’t generally eat plastic. Ah, but you do. Chances are that you’re among the 93 percent of Americans with detectable levels of bisphenol-A (BPA) in their bodies, and that you’re also among the 75 percent of Americans with detectable levels of phthalates. Both are synthetic chemicals found in plastics that mimic estrogen — essentially, artificial female hormones. And like pesticides, these plastic-based chemicals trick our bodies into storing fat and not building or retaining muscle. Decreasing your exposure to plastic-based obesogens will maximize your chances both of losing unwanted flab and of building lean muscle mass. Here’s how:
1) Never heat food in plastic containers or put plastic items in the dishwasher, which can damage them and increase leaching. BPA leaches from polycarbonate sports bottles 55 times faster when exposed to boiling liquids as opposed to cold ones, according to a study in the journal Toxicology Letters.
2) Avoid buying fatty foods like meats that are packaged in plastic wrap because EDCs are stored in fatty tissue. The plastic wrap used at the supermarket is mostly PVC, whereas the plastic wrap you buy to wrap things at home is increasingly made from polyethylene.
3) Cut down on canned goods by choosing tuna in a pouch over canned tuna. And get any canned and jarred foods from Eden Organic, one of the only companies that doesn’t have BPA in its cans.


Why Not?
1) Try Meditation for 10-15 minutes in the morning.
2) Write 3 goals with time deadlines
3) Make a new recipe this week (Be on the lookout for our new recipe book in the office)
4) Forgive someone right NOW and be freed!!
5) Love the life you live and live with 100% passion and enthusiasm.  Thank You!!

Healthy Eating on a Budget »

IN NUTRITION | 5 COMMENTS BY DR. JOSH AXE

There was a time when imported foods and processed and prepared foods were considered a luxury only within the reach of the rich. But if you’ve so much as walked into a grocery storerecently, you know things have changed. Healthy food is not the least expensive food from a financial standpoint. 

I will often remind people that the financial cost is not the only thing to consider when choosing what foods you put into your body. In the long run, when you factor in healthcare costs and the cost of quality of life lost due to poor nutrition, a slightly higher grocery bill right now doesn’t seem all that bad. 

But there is good news if you are shopping for healthy foods on a budget! 

The State of Food Today

The Bureau of Labor Statistics reports that the average American spent about 9.9% of their income on food in 2008. That’s a number that’s dropped incrementally for the last decade. The USDA’s Economic Research Service posts food expenditures by percent of disposable income. In 2000, the average American spent 9.9% of their disposable income on food; in 2008 he or she spent 9.6%.

We may be spending less but are we getting value for our money?

A 2009 consumer survey conducted by food industry research firm Technomic found that although over half of US consumers are more aware and concerned about their eating habits compared to the year before: 

• 70% say healthy foods are getting more difficult to afford
• 53% say they buy unhealthy foods because of cost constraints
• 44% say that their budgets prevent them from making healthy choices

The Dirty Dozen

There are certain foods that I strongly urge people to buy organic. At the top of the list are meat and dairy products (though I recommend avoiding pasteurized dairy products altogether, organic or not). One thing to consider is “you are what you eat, what they ate.” 

The Environmental Working Group has put together a “dirty dozen” guide to the foods you need to buy organic. By following these guidelines and always choosing organic varieties of the following produce, you can reduce your pesticide exposure by 80%. 

The foods with the highest pesticide loads are: 

•  Peaches
•  Apples
•  Bell Peppers
•  Celery
•  Nectarines
•  Strawberries
•  Cherries
•  Kale
•  Lettuce
•  Imported Grapes
•  Carrots
•  Pears

The Clean Fifteen

Eating the 15 least contaminated foods when you can’t afford to buy organic can cut your pesticide exposure from 10 a day to 2 a day on average, says EWG. 

•  Onions
•  Sweet corn
•  Asparagus
•  Sweet peas
•  Cabbage
•  Eggplant
•  Broccoli
•  Tomatoes
•  Sweet potatoes
•  Avocadoes
•  Pineapples
•  Mangoes
•  Kiwi
•  Papayas
•  Watermelon
•  Grapefruit

Buying Local

Buying locally grown produce is another great way to save money and the environment. 

Community-supported agriculture, or CSAs, are an alternative many people are choosing. Cornell University’s Professor David Pimentel published a much-cited paper in 2009 about the energy costs of America’s eating habits. 

One head of iceberg lettuce contains only 110 calories and yet takes 4000 calories of energy to transport it from California to New York. 

“On average,” says Pimentel, “our food travels 1,500 miles before we get it…it takes about 4 calories of transportation for each calorie that you consume.  Four to one.” 

It’s really something to think about considering that Pimentel and his students discovered that our food system today accounts for 19% of America’s fossil fuel consumption. 

Author of Animal, Vegetable, Miracle Barbara Kingsolver writes: “If every US citizen ate just one meal a week (any meal) composed of locally and organically raised meats and produce, we could reduce our country’s oil consumption by over 1.1 million barrels of oil every week.” 

A recent report by the Food Marketing Institute (FMI) has found that American consumers are 48% more comfortable with foods grown in the US over foods that come from out of the country and 72% buy locally grown products on a regular basis. 

FMI conducts research for many big businesses and reports that the troubling economy has not significantly impacted consumer interest in sustainability. The firm is advising food manufacturers that “there is growing evidence that sustainability can make sound business sense, reducing costs and increasing consumer loyalty.” 

As it stands today, CSAs cut out the middle man and you end up getting better food for a better price. A share in a CSA farm costs from $400 to $600 for the growing season and comes with tons of bang for your buck. 

• You get fresh food that is in season—both factors that increase nutrient value—every week.
• You know where your food is coming from and can investigate the farming methods for yourself.
• You reduce your carbon footprint and support both the local economy and sustainable agriculture.
• You get to know your neighbors and re-connect with food.
• You’ll get surplus food that you can dry, freeze or otherwise preserve for off-season months.

Sources

Bureau of Labor Statistics (2009)

Economic Research Service (2008)

Business Wire (2009)

Environmental Working Group (2009)

Cornell Alumni Magazine (2009)

Food Marketing Institute (2009)

Rodale News (2010)