Found this BREAD product the other day and personally it scares me ...

BECAUSE - I am a "grain junkie" and always have been and as anyone knows that's familiar with the Zone Eating Plan and "balancing" - you CAN consume grains but, and you have to understand a "grain junkies" way of thinking, the amount you can consume in an amount that would start to please ME - way exceeds that which would enable me to balance the meal.

... as in maybe 4 big fat slices of Rosemary/Olive Oil whole grain loaf !

HOwever - I have come across this product which is quite remarkable :


FLAX, OAT BRAN & WHOLE WHEAT FLOUR PITA BREAD

These are the "smaller" pitas - about 8" in diameter.

6 "Loaves" = 1 package = 8 oz total

Here's the nutritional analysis :

ONE PITA

Cal = 60

total fat =2 sat = 0, trans fat = 0

chol = 0

total carb = 8g

fiber = 4 g

sugar = 0

protein = 6g


Actually MORE PROTEIN THAN CARBS !

INGREDIENTS :

Water,wheat Gluten, Corn Starch, flax, oat fiber, whole wheat flour,Oat Bran, Yeast, Isolated Soy Protein, Soy flour, Soy Oil, Sesame Flour, Salt, { several preservatives sodium based ] Sucralose




How about that ?

Anyone have any opinions on the ingredients ?

I am always unsure about "gluten" - good, bad, both, neither ? ?

Rather not be consuming sucralose but it's the last ingredient so how much can there be ?

It is made by :

Joseph's Middle East Bakery Inc
Lwrence MA 01843

No mention of web site on packaging.

Their products are widely distributed around here in any market :

New Hampshire, Maine, Massachusettes, Connecticut.

no idea how far beyond that they go.


from the "END" Zone

E.Wally

ewally@verizon.net

My thoughts:

1. Cornstarch as the second ingredient (third if you want to consider the water) makes me say forget it.

2. Artificial sweetner in bread makes me think "what's wrong with this picture"?

If I'm going to eat some bread, it's going to be one with better ingredients than that one.

E. Wally,

I don't like seeing the artificial sweetener in it, either. But, IF you are going to eat some bread, I don't know why this would be any worse than other breads. I think there are many more worse choices, like those with high fructose corn syrup!

If you look at a bread label, there is usually some type of sweetener in it, be it sugar, honey, or the evil one that I mentioned above!

In Wisconsin, there is a company that makes a pretty decent bread, IMO. It is called "Natural Ovens". If you want the website, I could give it to you via email. Most of their breads have at least 4 grams of fiber per slice, and I think there is one variety that is very similar in nutritional content (i.e. lower carb and higher protein). They deliver to stores in the midwest, but I think they ship nationally.

CranberryCat,

I suspect I didn't do a good job of advising just WHY I was posting this :

Which to more fully explain is -


I fully realize the ingredients in this bread are less than optimal - that's why I went to the trouble of listing them - to see what the opinion was on in particular, "gluten" as it seems the opinion on this is constantly shifting. Also because it is one of the more significant ingredients.

I don't like artificial sweetners and I stated that - however - I also stated that it was the last ingredient listed which means it has very little. How much sugar free gum is consumed by Zoners I wonder ? I would guess it has more artificial sweetner in it than the pita plus how often and how many pitas are you going to be eating in comparison to chewing a pack of sugar free?

In comparison to about any other bread the "balance" is remarkable - for bread. That is - IT IS NOT WILDLY SKEWED with a ton of sugar and carbohydrates - which - means, if you are going to eat some, that, you can only eat a very small amount to "balance" - and - probably be able to eat extremely little if any other carbohyerate.

I thought I made it clear, but I apparently dropped the ball once again, that "eating bread" happiness to me is not eating 1/2 of 1/4 of one slice of whole wheat.

With this product I [ someone ] could actually EAT THE WHOLE THING and according to the nutritional analysis only have used up about 1/2 block of protein AND carbohydrate ! ! remarkable.

Now - I never implied/suggested that the ingredients were straight from the local health food store - but - I thought they were pretty good - all things considered.

About 99% of the breads in the "bread aisle" at the supermarket DO NOT have isolated soy protein or flax in them - for example.

****************************************

Now - let's consider last night - my choice for dinner :

Protein : grilled chicken fillet sandwich

BREAD CHOICES : One of the ENTIRE "flax" pitas with the chicken inserted into it + romaine lettuce + my hand made olive oil base condiment - making a nice plump delicious [at least] "looking" sandwich.

Or : the chicken ON TOP of the paltry slice of my favorite "Rosemary and Olive Oil Whole Wheat" whose [ the bread's ] nutritional analysis is : P = 4g, "sugar = 28 g, C = 32 g Fiber = <1

Choosing the "sandwich" [ and I don't call it a sandwich unless it has bread under it AND on top of it ] with the Rosemary Olive Oil and NO OTHER CARBOHYDRATES -

Or -

The honest to goodness sandwich PLUS a nice huge Romaine, blueberry, strawberry, peach, caper, cilantro infused salad.


... from the "END"Zone

ewally@verizon.net

E. Wally,
I hope you didn't misinterpret my message. I really didn't think that it was all that bad.

Your point on the artificial sweetener is well-taken. There are plenty of zoners who still drink diet soda, too.

All in all, there is likely to be very little artificial sweetener in the bread.

And, I have never seen isolated soy protein in any other bread product, except the one that I mentioned in my previous post and in the bread that you posted about.

Sue mentioned that she would want to find another bread. Her quote was "If I'm going to eat some bread, it's going to be one with better ingredients than that one."

Honestly, I don't know where you might find a bread with better ingredients, especially in light of the fact that the carb content of your bread is very low!

With your bread, the "net" carb is 4 grams per slice. You could eat a complete sandwich and still have only one block of carb. Unfavorable as this carb may be, it would still leave you plenty of room to make a meal out of this, adding some favorable carb to it (and the protein/fat, of course).

CranberryCat,

That's pretty much what I thought too - and I didn't even think about the amount of diet soda that Zoners must gulp down by the gallon per day ! I drink a can or two myself most days in the summer.

I find those pitas remarkable because on top of it's ease in fitting into a Zone meal and NOT TOTALLY COMSUMING the carbohydrate portion - it actually tastes pretty good !!!

I saved that part for last and find it amusing that apect hasn't even come into consideration - good grief !

I also wonder how many Zone meals consist of a sandwich on white bread - perhaps it's "balanced" but the carbs are pure garbage - hormonal/cellular debris.

I find it interesting how we can all talk constantly about the importance of "balance" and somehow lose it when we step back and look at the big picture.

The American food industry has turned the consumption of food, among other things, into a "fun sport" if not anything else - why shouldn't we have a little fun and enjoyment too.

... from the "END"Zone

E.Wally

ewally@verizon.net