Following Atkins' legacy, people began citing gluten sensitivity and intolerance more and more frequently as they eschewed gluten as a dietary choice, due to both weight loss goals and digestive symptoms. The raw food diets that have risen over the last 10 years have also condemned processed bread and wheat products in favour of foods in their most natural, unprocessed state (no matter how digestible that is).
Are gluten free products really better?
The huge swing towards eschewing bread has seen a boom in gluten-free products - previously restricted to health food shops or available on prescription for sufferers of celiac disease. Indeed, it has made eating both socially and at home far easier for people with allergies and intolerances.
True celiac sufferers (roughly 1 per cent of the population) suffer a painful and immediate immune reaction at the slightest exposure to gluten; whereas the spectrum of intolerance to gluten is diverse and ranges from legitimate digestive reactions to those that are more psychosomatic.
Although "gluten-free" has become synonymous for "healthy", if we take a step back, often that is far from the case. In fact, many gluten-free products contain as much, if not more, highly processed ingredients and additives as commercial wheat bread. Generally when you take something away, it is replaced by something else; in the case of commercial gluten-free bread, flour is replaced by other highly refined carbohydrates like rice starch, corn starch and tapioca starch.
Is Paleo really so wholesome?
One of the most seismic health movements recently has been the inundation of the Paleo diet and lifestyle (closely aligned with the CrossFit boom). An evolution of Atkins thinking, albeit with an obsession for "whole" and "pure" foods in line with raw diets, it worships protein - banning traditional dietary staples like grains, dairy and legumes. Fruit is also the enemy due to its sugar content and is severely limited, despite its nutritional value of vitamins and fibre.
The Paleo diet's belief in a meat and vegetable based diet prioritises privilege over logic - ignoring any notion of necessity, in favour of the zealous belief that our Palaeolithic forebearers were healthier and lived longer (both of which are highly disputable). Paleo zealots also ignore the fact that our ancestors integrated wholesome and unrefined forms of grains and carbohydrates into their diet as a necessary form of energy as soon as they could, with grains becoming a staple of our cultural development and evolution.
Have we forgotten bread's place in our social history?
In fact, bread has played a monumental and imperative role in the growth and history of Western culture. In times of famine and feast, regardless of socio-economic status, income or agricultural bounty, bread has been a dietary staple - feeding families both large and small due to its accessibility, adaptable nature and thrift.
The harvesting and milling of wheat has sustained countless economies, whilst the humble diet of bread, lard and dairy has fuelled society for centuries with none of the allegedly health effects that we see today. In fact it is intrinsically linked to the rituals, traditions and the basic necessities of life; from the "breaking of bread" to one's "bread and butter", the family's "breadwinner" and the fear of falling below the "breadline".
It's tied to poverty, wealth and security - and only in our current, self-righteous state of privilege and security do we now feel the right to dismiss its importance and providence.
Are we eating the wrong kind of bread?
All breads are not baked as equals; highly processed white bread has become a cheap mainstay of Western society due to its inoffensive taste, cheap nature and shelf life. Highly refined and commercial, it's as far from a traditional loaf as you can possibly get.
Its forefathers, or indeed any loaf made at home from scratch, are crusty and dense, a far cry from the disconcertingly soft white loafs for sale on supermarket shelves.
Commercial breadmaking and the rise of fast food has changed our dietary habits drastically - none more so than where our daily bread is concerned.
Traditionally a lengthy process of kneading and fermentation, contemporary commercial manufacturers rely on harsh industrial machines whilst artificial additives form the gluten bonds and stretch so integral to bread.
Additionally, nearly all commercial bread on the market (even those with a more artisan approach) contain 'vital wheat gluten', an additive derived from natural gluten that adds longevity to a loaf's shelf life and acts as a strengthening and rising aid. This additional gluten vastly adds to the burden our stomach faces when digesting commercial bread - no wonder our guts flare up in reaction to it; our bodies haven't evolved at the same pace as commercial food, and highly processed bread is a key example of this.
Although an overwhelming amount of gluten is certainly a contribution factor, recent research has suggested that for those suffering from wheat intolerances, the cause may not purely be gluten itself but the hard to digest sugars known as FODMAPs; found in wheat, as well as pulses, fruits and vegetables. The natural fermentation process of FODMAPs in the gut causes bloating and discomfort - both complaints centered around bread and wheat products and often pinned on gluten.
Where to from here?
Like many topical issues lately, the answer is seemingly to go back to basics; this seems to be most consistently the case when it comes to what we're putting in our bodies.
I certainly don't agree with eschewing bread and carbohydrates completely - it's not only unhealthy but born from a mindset of privilege and luxury in middle-class Western society to not need ones "daily bread".
I believe we need to rethink what we're eating and how; dense, traditional breads made from less refined flours like rye, spelt and wholemeal are far more filling - serving to minimise your intake of bread and sustain you lounger than a soulless white loaf.
Similarly, the nature of fermentation needs to be looked at; whilst standard yeast loaves have their place, sourdough bread has proved far gentler on the body due to its longer and different fermentation process. Requiring nothing but flour and water to create both the starter and loaf, it's a labour of love that is truly rewarding - not to mention cost efficient.
I also strongly believe in the importance of protein, dairy and animal fat in a balanced diet - and certainly in the place of terrifyingly unnatural margarine. By embracing tradition and a more wholesome, organic approach to food you manage to avoid (as much as possible) all the harmful commercial additives that have been damaging our dietary equilibrium.
Food groups can coexist together as part of a balanced diet if we think consciously about what we're consuming and where it's coming from.
Food should be simple, fulfilling and satisfying in every sense of the words, which really is exactly what bread should be.
