How To Manage Refined Flour (Maida) Consumption!

Refined flour (Maida) is a finely ground powder of wheat and is the staple food of many countries. Refined flour, also known as flour is widely used in making breads, buns, wraps, pasta, noodles, pancakes, biscuits, cakes, wafers, ice-cream waffles, etc. We are so used using flour in our meals that it has become an indispensable part of our kitchen.

Recently many medical studies have concluded that we must not consume refined flour as it contains refined carbohydrates, which is the main determinant for rising cases of obesity, heart diseases and other lifestyle disorders. It is said that when the wheat kernels are crushed by machines into refined flour, they get segregated from the vitamins, minerals and fibre content and we just relish on to the leftover starchy powder.

As food delicacies made from refined flour rules all kind of party events, then what must we actually do to not compromise on the mouth watering dishes while keeping away from its ill-effects at the same time? Instead of banning it completely, lets try to limit its consumption as anything we eat more than limit will have retrogressive effect on our health.

As far as flour is concerned, here are list of advantages and disadvantages of consuming flour, which will help you in limiting usage of refined flour in your kitchen:

ADVANTAGES

1. Can Be Easily Digested

In old times, people used to work hard and majority of people were involved in laborious tasks. Since that time, it has been the bread that fulfilled their satiety levels. The refined flour in bread consists of high amount of starch, which provided them with lots of energy for performing such heavy tasks. The starch in flour consists a major part of carbohydrates that converts into glucose when consumed. People who have poor digestion depend mostly on refined flour as they are unable to digest fibrous brans of grains along with polyunsaturated oils. But refined flour consists of only starchy endosperm of the grain, which provides the body with energy to carry on with our routine tasks.

2. Kicks Your Metabolism

Metabolism is the rate at which the cells produce energy and cells need fuel to release energy. Glucose from carbohydrates is the main source of fuel that can support your energy levels for a long time. Simple starches found in refined flour are easily digestible and they take no time to convert into glucose. Your body can get instant source of energy by consuming bread or bun.

Try to keep a piece of bread in your mouth for sometime and you sense sweetness like sugar. This proves that refined flour takes very less time to release glucose from carbohydrate. So you need to give your metabolism, a kick with proper doses of refined flour. Abstaining from refined flour will not make you skinny, in fact providing your body with fuel at proper times in proper quantity will regulate your body weight.

3. Can Be Used Instantly

Many nutritionists suggest that consuming whole grains is great for the health but only when it is properly prepared. To make grains more digestible and to nullify their anti-nutrient phytic acid, grains are required to undergo special preparation processes such as soaking, sprouting, fermenting, etc. But refined flour needs no treatment as the fibrous outer shell called bran in grains is absent in its case. So whenever you wish to bake some cookies or bread, just use refined flour without fear of wasting time in getting it ready for cooking.

4. Remains Fresh For Long Time

Most of the whole grain flours comprise of polyunsaturated oils in the germ of the grain, which reduces the shelf life of these flours. But in case of refined flour, the finely ground flour gets rid of the germ of the grain, thus keeping all the polyunsaturated oils at bay. Polyunsaturated Fatty Acids (PUFAs) can create havoc in the body and you may be prone to heart diseases as they decrease the High Density Lipoprotein (HDL), a kind of good cholesterol essential for smooth functioning of the heart. So you can easily buy refined flour in bulk and store it in an air-tight container for a long time.

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DISADVANTAGES

1. Inclusion Of Artificial Nutrients

Since most of the vitamins and minerals are lost while grinding the wheat grain into fine flour, many manufacturers add in synthetic vitamins to compensate for the lost nutrition. This is being done in the awe of the so called health consious people, who are getting fooled by purchasing this kind of refined flour for the added nutrients. They are not aware of the side-effects of consuming such flour that is filled with low-quality vitamins.

So it is always better to purchase organic refined flour from health food stores or online stores, which ensures optimum quality and you will also not compromise on your health standards. Additionally, avoid depending on outside food prepared from refined flour as you are unaware of the quality of flour used. Be strict when it comes to making a right choice in terms of food.

2. Processed Using Chemicals

Manufactures follow certain processes before packing the actual refined flour. The refined flour consists of a chemical residue, which results from bleaching to get the milky white appearance. Also, it is known that the refined flour has to undergo a process where it is put through a chlorine gas bath. In this process, the poisonous chemical bleach reacts with the flour to make it look bright white in colour. Some proteins in the flour even reacts with the chlorine and releases a byproduct called alloxan, which induces diabetes in lab-rats. It is not known whether it is the main reason behind people suffering from diabetes due to more consumption of refined flour.

3. High Usage Of Pesticides

Among all the grains, it is said that wheat is the only grain that is induced with high amount of pesticides. Even before it is cropped, wheat seeds are coated with lots of fungicides and pesticides. Moreover, while growing them up, they are even more sprayed with such chemicals like the carcinogens and xenoestrogens, which can actually cause hormonal imbalances and can lead to fatal diseases such as cancer. In addition, synthetic hormones are also applied for faster growth of wheat.

To get rid of these issues, you need to depend upon organically manufactured wheat grains and grind it on your own for relishing the perfectly made dishes from pesticide-free refined flour.

4. Causes Obesity And Diabetes

In today’s lifestyle, people are hardly used to strenuous jobs and most people prefer a sitting job. People in this age are not required to work hard and they also have lost the appetite, which people in earlier ages used to have. Refined flour contains of starch and carbohydrates in large proportion, which used to provide immense energy to earlier people as they had to put that energy to work. But nowadays, where people work with their mind, they don’t have to perform much of the physical tasks. So when they consume more of refined flour, they accumulate carbohydrates in excess, leading to more glucose production. This is the main reason for obesity and diabetes in the long run.

The solution for this problem is to gorge on food items made from refined flour by limiting the quantity. You should count your calories and intake optimum carbohydrates. You can also mix it up with other flours to augment the nutrition level of your dish. You need to have a combination of nutrient rich and energy rich diet and thus mixing up flours while baking your favourite dish is the perfect recipe of a healthy lifestyle.