No Foolin’, today is National #Sourdough Bread Day! and we want you to learn the 7 benefits of sourdough bread consumption, which include that it aids in digestion, promotes healthier gut bacteria, is a preservative-free food, it acts as a probiotic, improves vitamin and mineral bioavailability, lowers blood sugar, and it is nutrient-dense. And that is why we use it exclusively in all of our bread makings:

This week, we have baked up more than a thousand loaves and gotten them out to our stores in Utah and Nevada so that you can make some sourdough treats today. (You can find one near you here: https://www.bullseyelocations.com/pages/abovenbreadlocat)

If you have your own recipe to share please do at our Facebook page or on your own. And order some bread today and we will ship it fresh next Tuesday, right to your home. Remember to celebrate by tagging #AbigailsOven and letting us know much you appreciate our bakers. We also have a recipe for you to enjoy if you want to bake your own bread:

7 STEPS TO GREAT SOURDOUGH BREAD OVERNIGHT

Use #SourdoughBreadDay to post your winning bakes AND sad mistakes on social media.

Benefit #1. Aids Digestion

Sourdough contains the bacteria ‘lactobacillus’ which produces lactic acid, which aids digestion. When bacteria interact with yeast, it works to pre-digest the starches in the grains. Pre-digestion by sourdough means less bloating and less digestive discomfort.

Benefit #2. Healthy Gut Bacteria

The lactic acid found in sourdough bread improved the growth of healthy gut bacteria which gives your immune system a boost. Did you know that 80% of your immune system is found in your gut? Sourdough fermentation offers potentially prebiotic action from the carbohydrate polymers on the surface of many bacteria. These may be useful in gut health, as they decrease the number of pathogenic bacteria. And then there is this:

 “The action of making bread is a kind of restoration of certain kinds of biodiversity into our food, onto our bodies and throughout our houses in a way that connects all of these processes. When we make sourdough starters, our bodies and homes flavor our daily bread. And in making sourdough starters, the flour, starter, and bread enrich our bodies and homes.”

—Rob Dunn, Inside the fascinating (and delicious!) science of sourdough bread, ideas.TED.com, Dec 19, 2018

Benefit #3. Less need for preservatives

Acetic acid–which inhibits the growth of mold, is produced in the making of sourdough. So, sourdough naturally preserves itself. So there is less need for artificial preservatives and nasties in your bread.

Natural fermentation of dough is”associated with the decrease of the rate of bread going stale,” according to Food Chem, August 2011. Their research showed that the process was “characterized by a large inhibitory spectrum against [fungus and mold] species that commonly contaminate baked goods and bakeries [and], allowed a long storage of bread (at least 21–28 days).”

Benefit #4. Probiotic Potential

Lactic acid bacteria (LAB) produce beneficial compounds: antioxidants, the cancer-preventive peptide lunasin, and anti-allergenic substances, some of which may help in the treatment of auto-immune diseases. Some experts suggest that sourdough bread may have probiotic’ potential by stimulating immune responses in the gut.

Benefit #5. Absorption of minerals

Phytic Acid which is present in cereals essentially locks in the minerals to that cereal so they cannot be absorbed by the body during digestion. Sourdough goes through a long fermentation process which neutralizes the phytic acid and makes those minerals more available to the body. Studies show that the acidic processes of fermentation improve the texture of whole grain high fiber bread ( see Potential of sourdough for healthier cereal products; Trends Food Sci. Technol. 2005;16:104–112.)  At the same time, this process increases our ability to absorb the minerals and vitamins, especially found in whole wheat flour (see Prolonged fermentation of whole wheat sourdough reduces phytate level and increases soluble magnesium; J Agric Food Chem. 2001 May;49(5):2657-62.).

Benefit #6. Lowers Blood Sugar

The acids also slow digestion causing the sugars in sourdough to be more slowly absorbed and metabolized. This causes a lower and slower rise in blood sugar, and, therefore usually, insulin levels (see  Use of sourdough lactobacilli and oat fibre to decrease the glycemic index of white wheat bread. Br. J. Nutr. 2007 ).

Benefit #7. Nutrient dense

The integrity of sourdough is so complex that it contains a host of goodness in terms of nutrients. In sourdough, you can find vitamins B1-B6, B12, folate, thiamin, niacin, riboflavin, vitamin E, selenium, iron, manganese, calcium, magnesium, phosphorus, zinc, and potassium (okay – some of these in fairly tiny amounts)–in addition to uniquely balanced proteins and fatty acids.

Whoa! This is all in contrast to most commercially produced bread, which maintains only a fraction of their original nutrient content after all the processing they undergo.

Now it is time to celebrate #Sourdough Bread Day with a slice of Sourdough French Toast, a Killer Sourdough Sandwich, or homemade Sourdough Biscuits for dinner.