Health Warnings
The Hoax of “Enriched Wheat Flour”
If you’re like most people, you probably think “wheat flour” is the same thing as whole-grain wheat flour.
Like most people, you’re wrong. And that’s just what food manufacturers want.
“Wheat bread” is made of refined, processed wheat that’s stripped of its nutrition. It has virtually no resemblance to whole-grain wheat. A “wheat flour” or “enriched wheat flour” ingredient is technically no different than white flour. Manufacturers take whole-grain wheat, strip out 11 vitamins and minerals, then add synthetic chemicals that represent only four vitamins and one mineral.
Here’s the nutritional math: Whole-grain wheat - 11 nutrients + 5 nutrients = “Enriched”
Thus, “enriched” wheat products are missing the original, naturally occurring vitamins and minerals found in whole-grain wheat!
With consumers increasingly aware of the detrimental health consequences of consuming processed, milled grains (like white flour), food companies and bread manufacturers have been steadily shifting away from using the term “white flour” and instead using “wheat flour” on their products. It’s one of the most common tricks used by food manufacturers trying to jump on the whole-grain bandwagon. They display “made with whole grains!” on the front of the package while, in reality, the whole-grain ingredient may only represent 5 percent of the total finished product. (Companies blend whole grains with refined grains in order to make the product cheaper while still justifying the whole grains claim.)
Sadly, this hoax seems to be working. New research from one popular pastry manufacturer shows that an astonishing 73 percent of mothers mistakenly believe “wheat flour” is the same as whole-grain wheat flour.
Thus, by exploiting this consumer confusion, food manufacturing companies are able to reposition cheap, refined grain products with low nutritional value as “healthy-sounding” foods because they’re made with “wheat flour.”
For a flour or flour-based product to be truly whole-grain, it must explicitly list “whole-grain wheat flour” as a primary ingredient. Bottom line: Avoid the following ingredients:
- Enriched wheat flour.
- Wheat flour.
- White flour.
- All-purpose flour.
- Bleached flour.
- Cake flour.
- Bread flour.
If you want the best nutrition from a wheat-based ingredient, shop only for whole-grain wheat, not enriched wheat flour or simply “wheat flour.” Watch out for tricks and traps set for consumers by food manufacturers, and don’t trust what you read on the front of the label — always check the actual ingredients list to verify what you’re getting.
[Ed. Note: Mike Adams, the Health Ranger -- a leading authority on healthy living -- is on a mission: to explore, uncover and share the truth about harmful foods and beverages, prescription drugs, medical practices and the dishonest marketing practices that drive these industries. For his latest findings, click here.]
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Tags: enriched wheat, processed grains, wheat, whole grain wheat
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I think that it is an absolute shame that our government allows these companies to down right lie to us to try to get us to buy a product that can make us sick. I, myself, am type 2 diabetic. Any white flour product makes my blood sugar jump sky high. I read labels religiously. I am constantly seeing the wording changed around on ingredients to try to trick the consumer into thinking he is getting something he is not. In the real world, we call this a con, and it is illegl. Only in corporate America is it considered good business….all in the name of making money!