Dietetics / by Alexander Bryce.

  • Bryce, Alexander, 1863-
Date:
[1913]
Catalogue details

Licence: In copyright

Credit: Dietetics / by Alexander Bryce. Source: Wellcome Collection.

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    look upon the present popularity of standard bread as a veritable triumph for the press, all experience goes to show that the working-classes at least pin their faith entirely to the white variety. The Merits of White Bread—There must, of course, be a reason for this preference, and it quickly becomes apparent on a little study of the subject. Careful ex- amination of a grain of wheat by cutting it into thin shoes will reveal the fact that it consists of the follow- ing parts : (1) the germ from which the future plant will grow accounts for per cent, of the whole grain ; (2) the kernel or endosperm intended as food for the germ and consisting of 85 per cent, of the grain ; (3) the bran or protective covering composed of hard woody fibre impregnated with mineral salts constitutes the other 13£ per cent, of the grain. Each of these parts contain protein in varying quantities, the greatest amount in proportion to its size being in the germ, and the smallest amount in the innermost layer of the bran. The en- dosperm contains of course most of all, in the form of ?;luten—the sticky substance which makes the manu- acture of bread possible—the small particles of which lie in a mass of starch grains. The only fat found in wheat resides in the germ, but it is almost negligible in quantity. Although it is quite possible to utilise wheat in its entire state as a food by soaking it for a long time in water, then boiling it in milk and adding a little sugar, thus making frumenty, it is usual to grind or mill it into the state of flour. By the stone-grinding process the bran was discarded and the germ and endosperm ground together. The modern roller-mill, however, not only rejects the bran but also the germ, because of the fact that its oil is apt to become rancid, and its proteins slightly digest the starch, converting it into a soluble form called dextrin and also in a lesser degree into maltose or malt sugar. This of course darkens the colour and hence militates against the popularity of the bread made from it. For this reason, only 70 per cent, of the grain is utilised in the production of ordinary
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