Refined and so-called “enriched” grains are some of the most toxic & deficient things we can put into our bodies! Here’s why…to make white flour, wheat is sifted so that the bran & germ are removed leaving only white flour, then it’s bleached. Bran contains the protein & fiber, the germ contains the nutrients like Vitamin E, B-Vitamins, iron and trace minerals. What’s left over is a very, very deficient shadow of what used to be wheat, but shelf-stable because all the “perishable” oils and nutrients are pulled out. The US Govt. decided on multiple occasions over the years that synthetic “nutrients” had to be added back into the flour, thereby supposedly “enriching” it. It’s estimated that 40+ nutrients are taken out with the bran and the germ, and “enriching” only puts back maybe 6 or 7. That’s not much for enrichment, if you ask me! Additionally, the synthetic forms of these vitamins and nutrients are often toxic to certain parts of the population which have certain genetic mutations, for example, if someone has the MTHFR gene mutation, it makes it either impossible or very difficult for the body to handle B-vitamins which are non-methylated. This has major implications with ADHD, ADD, and Anxiety, just to name a few. It’s estimated that 40% of people in America have at least a partial mutation (this genetic mutation inherited from 1 parent). Knowing this has absolutely revolutionized how we do wheat & rice in our home. I began the journey of making our own bread, grinding our own organic wheatberries to make our own flour for bread, cookies, cakes, etc. 2 years ago. If you want more information on this, there is a video by Sue Becker that I highly recommend watching: https://youtu.be/43s0MWGrlT8?si=EStN6hSnXF60NU-D
It might very well be overwhelming when you see a 3 hour video, but I encourage you, if anything in this article has caught your attention, please watch it! You will not regret it! She goes into great detail about the horrific that white flour has had on the health of Americans since the early 1900’s. If we don’t know our history, we are doomed to keep going down this road of terrible health from generation to generation.
Enriched white rice is no different. Brown Rice is what contains all the nutrient-rich bran and germ, white rice has had it ALL removed. “Enrichment” was decided upon by our Govt. for rice also, because of the vast nutritional deficiencies becoming rampant when man-made technologies began to break apart the God-given nutrients in our food.
The longer people ate the white bread and the white rice, the more pellagra (vitamin B3 deficiency), iron deficiencies, constipation, diabetes, etc. began to take hold in our nation and eventually around the world. What if we just went back to eating whole-foods, especially whole-grains that haven’t yet been mutilated in the name of convenience and bottom lines. I highly recommend watching Sue Becker’s informative teaching on the history of bread in America to educate yourself on this incredibly important subject!
Minimally, at least look for and beware of “Enriched”, “bleached”, or “white” in front of the words Flour or Rice on labels. It’s a simple practice that can change your health within weeks! Other options would be “unbleached whole wheat flour” or just plain brown rice. My personal decision has been to grind my own flour and not buy it at the store at all because of how quickly flour can go rancid. It might seem extreme, but truly it’s fit into our lives quite nicely, and surprisingly doesn’t take that much time!