Flour, the powdery substance made from ground grains, is useful for baking and thickening sauces, but its nutrition is a mixed bag. Not all flours are created equal when it comes to its affect on your health. No flour is genuinely bad for you, but some are better for you than others. Look for whole grain flours for the biggest nutritional bang for your buck.

Calorie and Fat Content Flour is quite caloric. A 1-cup serving of white flour, for instance, contains 495 calories while a cup of rye flour has 356 calories. It is not common to consume flour alone, however, so when you add a cup of flour to a recipe, your caloric intake from flour is reduced. The fat in flour is quite low. Servings of white flour and whole wheat flour have 2.2 g of fat each.

Carbohydrates and Fiber The carbohydrates in flour directly impact your blood sugar level, so choosing flour with a low glycemic index is better for you. Breads made with whole grain flours have a glycemic index of approximately 7 to 9, while bread made from white flours range from 10 to 15 on the glycemic index. Eating white flour does not necessarily send you into insulin shock, but consuming wheat flour is healthier. White flour contains 99.3 g of carbohydrates and 3.3 g of fiber, while rye flour has 76.9 g of carbohydrates and 12 g of fiber. Choose whole grain flours to get more fiber in your diet.

Protein Eating whole wheat flour is a good choice for protein. A 1-cup serving of this type of flour provides 16.4 g of protein. Even though white flour is the least healthy for you, it still contains protein necessary for muscle growth and energy -- a serving contains 16.4 g of protein. As a rule, you need 50 to 175 g of protein per day, so consider incorporating whole wheat flour into a pizza crust and topping it with ground beef or pepperoni to increase the protein in your diet.

Vitamins All types of flour provide thiamin, a vitamin known as B-1. Enriched wheat flour is highest in thiamin, with 74 percent of the daily recommended intake. White, whole wheat and rye flours also contain folate, riboflavin and niacin as well as other healthy B vitamins. You also take in vitamin E and vitamin K in rye flour and whole wheat flour.

Minerals Rye and whole wheat flours serve as excellent sources of manganese and selenium, but you can get a range of minerals in many flours, including calcium, zinc, iron and copper. This makes flour good for increasing bone density, producing red blood cells and boosting the health of your blood vessels.

Read more: http://www.livestrong.com/article/446789-is-eating-flour-bad-for-you/#ixzz22Dm3vXjR

So from these it looks like flour in moderation is ok?

well from what I've read from other sources, I think flour seems more like a food source that we should omit from our lifes altogether, let me start from here.

Name
Donny Utton

Age
28

Date
1 January 2013

Current Pics

Weight
13st 4, 186lbs

Measurements
Neck 14
Shoulders 46 3/4
Chest 38 3/4
Waist 38
Hips 35 1/2
L Arm 10
R Arm 10 1/2
L Thigh 21
R Thigh 19
L Calf 14 1/2
R Calf 14 1/2

Body Fat %
26%

Diet
4 Larges coffees a day with 8 spoons of sugar
2 chocolates a day
3 bags of crisps
chocolate cereal
Biscuits
Apple
One Glass of water
Sandwich
Mc donalds, 3 burgers and a large big mac
Pizza or curry or chinese or chicken pasta or rice.

Training
None

Mood
Irritable
Tired

Medicine
Ive been given Omeprazole 20mg once a day to help with the intensified heartburn and I have been issued to get a blood test for possible ulcer.

Supplements
None

Issues Fixed or Gained
Injured Knee
Fractured sternum aches still
bad farts
I smell stronger in mornings now
Dry skin
Spots
Loads of moles coming up on body
Crusty Eyes
cuts take ages to heal
Teeth look dirty
red blotches on body and face
Bags under eyes
eyes lack colour
Heart burn daily quite intense
moles appearing
fat stomach
weak joints, low flexibility
dandruff
fungus on toes and dry skin on feet, yellow nails, brittle nails
stained teeth
sore tooth
Grey hairs
Dry patches on arms
bleeding gums
lower back ache
previously right knee injury still causing me pain
blood when go toilet
dry eyes
mucus nose
always tired and feeling low



Notable Changes
Lack of energy and focus
Low Sex Drive
Low self seteem
Lack of confidence
my weight gain and lack of fitness, my stomach is huge and clothes look ridiculous on me.

Extra Info about what Im giving Up and Why
Im giving up chocolate, crisps, cakes, sweets and anything sweet or manufactured.

Next Step
My next step is to start a running routine slowly build up my cardio and see If i can structure a healthier diet plan to coincide and hopefully start clearing up my symtoms and build a healthier body.