Chemical Composition and Starch Digestibility of Different Gluten-free Breads

The increasing demand for gluten-free products has favoured the design of numerous gluten-free bakery products which intended to mimic the quality characteristics of wheat bakery products. The objective of this study was to evaluate the nutritional pattern of gluten-free breads representative of the Spanish market for this type of products. The protein, fat and mineral content of the gluten-free breads showed great variation, ranging from 0.90 to 15.5 g/100 g, 2.00 to 26.1 g/100 g and 1.10 to 5.43 g/100 g, respectively. Gluten-free breads had very low contribution to the recommended daily protein intake, with a high contribution to the carbohydrate dietary reference intake. Dietary fiber content also showed great variation varying from 1.30 to 7.20 g/100 g. In vitro enzymatic hydrolysis of starch showed that the most predominant fraction was the rapidly digestible starch that varied from 75.6 to 92.5 g/100 g. Overall, gluten-free breads showed great variation in the nutrient composition, being starchy based foods low in proteins and high in fat content, with high glycaemic index.