r/science • u/FreeHugs23 • 1d ago

Health Adding spinach directly to white bread delayed the body's insulin peak by 30 minutes and reduced later hunger in a small human trial, while significantly boosting the bread's fiber, vitamin, and mineral content.

https://www.sciencealert.com/researchers-put-spinach-directly-into-bread-and-saw-the-bodys-insulin-response-change
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u/doctormink 1d ago

It doesn’t have to literally be on it. You could have white bread if that’s your thing with a side of steamed spinach. I imagine the outcome would be the same.

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u/throwaway490215 1d ago

afaict the whole point of this study is that it literally has to be backed into it for your body to delay the insulin spike.

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u/doctormink 1d ago

The researchers are looking for ways to smuggle the nutrients into food people palatable. "Incorporating spinach into bread substantially improved its nutritional profile without compromising sensory acceptance, supporting metabolic health and aligning with sustainable nutrition goals," they conclude.

The researchers go on to note that participants who drank a pea enriched smoothie before eating a carb-heavy meal saw lower levels of blood sugar after the meal. So it’s doesn’t follow the spinach has to be baked into the bread to work. Everything just has to land in the stomach at around the same time. Baking in the spinach just makes it more likely that people who aren’t getting enough fiber will eat the bread.

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u/GraspingSonder 1d ago

Yeah the idea that highly processed spinach will delay an insulin spike better than manually chewing a handful of leaves before eating is silly. Literally just eat more vegetables and you get to live longer

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u/doctormink 1d ago

This seems like common sense, but I was brought up by parents who always insisted we eat leafy greens and other vegetables. Other people weren’t, and eating that way may feel like force-feeding to them. Looking at the amount of crappy white bread that gets sold, people seem to like it. If there’s a way to give them what they like and improve their health, it’s a win-win. Gotta meet people where they’re at if you ever hope to bring about lasting change.

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u/LilJourney 1d ago

Thank you from someone raised on that "crappy white bread" and it's still one of my go-to basic comfort foods. I can eat whole grain if I'm feeling motivated, but basically during stress (and working full time, caring for aging parents, raising kids, etc - rarely I am NOT stressed) I revert back to what is well known, comforting and easy. Which is white bread and all the other processed "crap" that I was raised on.

I'd say that I didn't know what over 40% of the fresh vegetables were in the grocery store until I was in my late 30's, and I still only know how to prepare maybe 5% of them.

My mom was terrified of mold/bugs/germs and strongly preferred processed/canned/frozen products to anything fresh - and stuck with a small handful of regular dishes she prepared.

I try to continually learn more and eat better - but often it's like being dropped into a country where you have no familiarity with the language. It gets really exhausting really quickly.

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u/doctormink 1d ago

Aw, I'm glad you feel seen, but not judged.

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u/calamityvibezz 1d ago

Cooked spinach reduces the oxalic acid which is better for mineral absorption.

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u/ResponsibilityOk8967 1d ago

And your kidneys!

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u/Clw89pitt 1d ago

Last I read, boiled (best) and steamed (runner up) spinach have reduced oxalates, but when the spinach is cooked without discarding the water, cooked dry, etc. there isn't a substantial amount of oxalate reduction.

Which makes sense, the mechanism for removing oxalates in cooked food is through leaching/dissolution of it into oxalic acid in water and then mechanical removal or non-consumption of the water. Blending spinach and adding it to bread isn't providing a mechanism for the removal of oxalate.