How much bread can I eat a day and which type should I choose?

Do you have questions about nutrition? Send them to us at comer@lavanguardia.es, our nutritionist Aitor Sánchez will solve all your doubts.

Good morning. During the year I take great care of what I eat, but in summer I go out more and I don’t watch my diet as much. That makes it not so good to go to the bathroom. What summer foods can help me? What other tips do you give me? Thank you very much (Georgina Gómez, reader)

Hello Georgina,

If you notice a big change in intestinal transit just with summer, it may be because you don’t take care of your diet as much as you say. This can happen especially if you are restricting healthy foods such as fruits, vegetables, and legumes.

But it can also happen with aspects that often go unnoticed, such as hydration and physical activity. To have a good intestinal motility it is important to hydrate properly during the holidays and especially in hot months. Pay attention to fruits and vegetables and try to have them present in abundance.

If we focus on physical activity we can have very different situations. People who take advantage of the holidays to do more sport, especially in good weather, but there are also people who take these months as an opportunity to relax and rest their bodies and therefore move less. Also try to stay active because it will help your intestinal transit.

Hello good. I really like bread, but I’ve read that I shouldn’t overdo it. How much bread can I eat a day and which type should I choose? (Jorge González, reader)

Hello Jorge,

Bread is one of those foods that can have more or less space in our diet depending on how our physical activity is.

If we are very sedentary people, we must restrict foods such as bread, cereals, rice… And take rations more in line with an inactive life. Of course we talk about restricting these energy products once we have already eliminated unhealthy foods from the diet. There’s no point in worrying about bread if we’re having soft drinks, okay?

Finally, we must consider that bread is a source of carbohydrates and not one of the most interesting. We are talking about a product that is practically flour, and therefore has very little nutritional value.

It is true that not all breads are the same, and to find the best options we can take into account the following:

1) We will always prioritize options that are 100% comprehensive.

2) if we can choose a slow fermentation or an artisan sourdough bread, much better.

3) if instead of only wheat we prioritize rye or spelt breads, they will have greater nutritional value, although they often have a skyrocketing price.