Objective
: Wheat bread is a traditional food in the Arab
Middle East countries. In these countries, as
well as in other countries of the world, the prev
alence of type II diabetes mellitus is high. The
consumption of low Glycemic Index (GI) foods may
provide a variety of health benefits including
control of blood glucose and lipids. The purpose of
this study was to measure the serum glucose
response of a new bread (Biobread), which is produ
ced from whole wheat and other ingredients, and
compare it with the traditional Arabic type bread made from white flour.
Methods
: The study was performed in the laboratory of
Department of Nutrition and Food Technology,
University of Jordan, Amman-Jordan. A group of
8 adult healthy volunteers (4 men, 4 women)
participated in this study. They were fed the co
mmercially prepared Biobread and white bread. The GI
(mean ± SEM) was calculated by standard methods.
Results
: The glucose response of the Biobread was lower
than that of the traditional white bread giving
a GI value of 70.2 ± 8.5.
Conclusion
: The Biobread can be classified as a relativel
y low- GI food item. There seems to be an
effect of the added ingredients on the blood glucose
response, particularly the rye and soybean flour
incorporated in Biobread.