We are regularly asked whether eating low-carb bread is healthy.

In this article I will tell you exactly what low-carbohydrate bread is, whether you will lose weight and what effects it has on your health (including a delicious baking recipe).

Low-carbohydrate bread: what’s in it?
Low-carbohydrate bread is made from all kinds of foods that contain wheat and gluten.

If you eat wheat and gluten in small amounts, it will not have that many consequences. However, if you are overweight or want to lose weight, the advice is to avoid wheat and gluten as much as possible.

There are many people who really enjoy bread, but there are also many people who suffer from their stomach problems. Gluten in particular has a huge influence on the health of your intestines. (1)

But, let’s take a look at the nutritional value of low-carb bread. Each slice contains on average:

84 calories
3.1 grams of fat
7.4 grams of carbohydrates
1.3 grams of fiber
6 grams of proteins
Compare this to the nutritional value of a slice of whole wheat bread:

82 calories
0.7 grams of fat
13.8 grams of carbohydrates
2.3 grams of fiber
3.8 grams of proteins
If you look at the above lists of nutritional values, you will see that there are indeed fewer carbohydrates in low-carbohydrate bread.

But less carbohydrates does not immediately mean healthier. Because we also see that there is generally more (unhealthy) fats such as margarine and / or olive oil (no extra virgin) and less fiber in low-carbohydrate bread.

All in all, therefore, less rich in good nutrients than that slice of wholemeal bread.

Next, let’s take a look at the ingredients list of two varieties of low-carb bread that you find in the supermarket.

What do these ingredients mean?
If we look at the ingredients list, we see, among other things: soy, wheat gluten, wholemeal wheat flour, baker’s yeast, baker’s salt, wheat germ, barley malt, wheat bran and some e-numbers.

Although soy contains a lot of good nutrients, watch out for unfermented soy (such as soy flour and soy grit – small pieces of soy bean – which we see here in the ingredients list).

It is better not to eat too much of it, because soy can disrupt your hormone levels and structural use of soy would have a negative effect on your health. (2)

In addition to wheat, gluten and soy, we finally see a number of e-numbers in the ingredients list. With e-numbers, products have a longer shelf life and they become tastier, tastier and lighter.

Too many processed food e-numbers have a negative impact on your health and it can also affect your metabolism and hormone balance. In this article, we’ll dive into even more depth about e numbers.

Is low-carb bread healthy?
The reason many people tend to eat low-carb bread is because on the one hand they want to lose weight, but on the other hand they don’t want to give up bread because they like it so much.

Very understandable! And eating a slice of (low-carbohydrate) bread every now and then is of course not a disaster at all.

But if you want to lose weight, it is better to omit bread from your diet. Also low-carb bread.

In addition to the above reasons, it is also true that eating low-carbohydrate bread maintains the need for bread. This is unfavorable if you want to lose weight, because you want a diet without bread.

Is regular bread unhealthy?
No, bread is not necessarily unhealthy. Bread is nutritious and contains a lot of fiber, proteins, minerals and vitamins. Whole grain bread certainly contains important building materials.

But, as with almost everything, too much bread is not healthy. Bread is full of (fast) carbohydrates. Your body breaks down carbohydrates into glucose, which leads to an increase in your blood sugar.

Some studies show that when your blood sugar level is too high, you get more hungry and the chance that you will overeate increases. (3).

You also have a greater risk of type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease when you consume an excess of carbohydrates. (4)

And especially if you want to lose weight, it is important to eat little or no bread.

It is also the case that one bread is healthier than the other bread. So you probably know that it is better to eat whole grain bread instead of white bread.

Below you can see an overview of which bread contains relatively few carbohydrates and which other (important) nutrients are contained in which type of bread.

This is calculated on the basis of 1 slice (about 30 grams).

Energy (kcal) Carbohydrates Fiber
Low-carbohydrate bread 84 kcal 7.4 g 1.3 g
Gluten-free bread 55 kcal 11 g 0.9 g
Spelled bread 68 kcal 12.7 g 1.1 g
Whole wheat bread 82 kcal 13.8 g 2.3 g
Sourdough bread 118 kcal 20.2 g 3 g
White bread 112 kcal 21.5 g 1.2 g
Rye bread 138 kcal 25.5 g 5.7 g
Gluten-free bread in relation to low-carbohydrate bread

Necessities

250 g almond flour
2 tbsp coconut flour
1 ripe banana
3 tbsp flax seeds
½ tsp sea salt
½ tsp baking soda
5 eggs
2 tsp cinnamon
1 tbsp honey
1 tbsp apple cider vinegar
2 tbsp coconut oil
Preparation method

Preheat the oven to 180 degrees Celsius.
Place the almond flour, coconut flour, flaxseed and sea salt along with the baking soda and cinnamon in the blender or food processor.
Beat the eggs and mix in the coconut oil, honey and apple cider vinegar.
Pour this mixture into the blender with the rest of the ingredients.
Cut the banana into pieces, add and let everything turn until smooth.
Put a sheet of baking paper in a baking tin and pour the batter in it.
Put the bread in the oven for half an hour and then let it cool for half an hour.
Tip: It is best to keep your homemade bread in a bag in a sealed bread bin. This way your bread will stay soft for the longest. Do you want a crispy crust? Then keep the bread in a paper bag.

Conclusion
In this article you have read that we do not recommend low-carb bread if you want to lose weight.

Low-carb bread:

Does not help with weight loss because, like regular bread, it contains wheat and gluten
Contains more unhealthy fats and less fiber and is therefore no more nutritious than a slice of wholemeal bread
Contains extra additives such as soy and e-numbers that disrupt your hormone balance and metabolism.
Regular bread is not necessarily unhealthy, but excess bread can disrupt various processes in the body and thus hinder weight loss. One bread is also healthier than another. For example, it is better to eat a slice of wholemeal bread or spelled bread than, for example, white bread.

If you want to lose weight, it is better to eat less carbohydrates (and therefore less bread) than you are used to.