Barbara:

>Just curious - is there a qualitative difference between bread and pizza
>base, on the one hand, and pasta on the other (assuming that they are all
>wheat-based)? Is it that the former two may contain yeast, while the
>latter doesn't?

I think that white bread and pasta are made of roughly the same parts of
the grain. The leavening process of the bread (with yeast) should be
considered as positive, as it (partly) destroys phytates, but bread is
cooked at a higher temperature (especially the crust), which leads to the
formation of so-called Maillard molecules (recognizable by the brown
color). I don't know if it poses a great health risk, but I avoid it to be
safe.

Another reason why I avoided bread and not pasta was a practical one:
bread and paste were not present at the same meals. When we has bread (or
pizza), I could avoid it and still get enough calories. But once, the
meal consisted essentially of a salad+cooked vegetables+pasta, so I had to
choose between eating 200 calories and eat the pasta...


Best wishes,

Jean-Louis
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