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Carbohydrates, glycemic index and diabetes mellitus

Glycaemic and insulin index of four common German breads

European Journal of Clinical Nutrition volume 70, pages 808–811 (2016)Cite this article

Subjects

Abstract

Background/Objectives:

German-style breads are recommended as a lower glycaemic index (GI) alternative, yet little data is available. Our aim was to test the GI and insulin index (II) of four breads and rolls commonly consumed in Germany.

Subjects/Methods:

Four German bread products were tested for their GI and II in 12 healthy subjects according to the International Standard Organization guidelines.

Results:

Only the wholemeal rye bread with visible intact grains and sunflower seeds was identified as low GI (GI=55). Both the wholemeal spelt wheat (GI=63) and the rye wheat sourdough bread (GI=62) were classified as medium GI, whereas soft pretzel was high GI (GI=80, P<0.05 compared with other products). The II of soft pretzels (II=102) was also highest and differed significantly from wholemeal rye (II=70) and rye sourdough bread (II=72) but not from wholemeal spelt wheat (II=77).

Conclusions:

Contrary to popular belief, these German-style breads are medium to high GI, with the exception of the rye bread with intact grains and seeds. The results highlight the need to test, rather than ‘guestimate’, the GI of local products, and develop a broader range of low-GI breads.

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Acknowledgements

We thank Lieken Urkorn for providing two of the breads and sponsoring their transport to Sydney, Australia. Furthermore, we thank the SUGiRS staff, particularly Karola Landrey, Courtney J Wright and Alisha Li, for helping with the organization of the GI/II testing in the metabolic kitchen, with the processing of the blood samples and with the conduction of the glucose and insulin analyses.

Author contributions

AEB, JBM and JG conceived the project; AEB and JG selected the breads; FA and KLE supervised the testing procedures and data interpretation; KB assisted in the II result interpretation; JG conducted the GI/II testing, undertook statistical analyses, interpreted the findings and wrote the manuscript; and all authors read and approved the final manuscript.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Nutrition and Food Sciences, Nutritional Epidemiology, University of Bonn, DONALD Study at the Research Institute of Child Nutrition, Dortmund, Germany

    J Goletzke & A E Buyken

  2. School of Molecular Bioscience, The University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW, Australia

    J Goletzke, F S Atkinson, K L Ek, K Bell & J C Brand-Miller

  3. Boden Institute of Obesity, Nutrition and Exercise and School of Molecular Biosciences, The University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW, Australia

    J C Brand-Miller

Authors
  1. J Goletzke
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  2. F S Atkinson
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to A E Buyken.

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Competing interests

JBM is a coauthor of The Low GI Handbook book and other books (DeCapo, New York), President of the Glycaemic Index Foundation and Director of a non-profit GI-based food endorsement programme in Australia and manages the University of Sydney GI testing service. The remaining authors declare no conflict of interest.

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Goletzke, J., Atkinson, F., Ek, K. et al. Glycaemic and insulin index of four common German breads. Eur J Clin Nutr 70, 808–811 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1038/ejcn.2016.9

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