Wheat flours compared for fiber, phenols and antioxidants
What it found
Whole wheat flours had more fiber, phenols and tocopherols than white flours, and stronger antioxidant activity in lab tests.
Durum and bread wheat varieties differed in these measures.
What they found
Animal and lab studies
Antioxidant activity in lab
In lab tests, whole grain flours had stronger antioxidant activity than white flours. Whole grain flours from bread wheat had stronger antioxidant activity than those from durum wheat.
Other findings
Fiber in whole vs white
Whole grain flours and bran had more total dietary fiber than white flours. Insoluble fiber made up most of the total fiber, up to 96%.
Fiber in durum vs bread
Whole grain flours and bran from bread wheat had higher total dietary fiber than those from durum wheat. In white flours, durum wheat had higher total dietary fiber than bread wheat.
Arabinoxylans in flours
Whole grain flours had higher total arabinoxylans. Water-extractable arabinoxylans were higher in durum wheat flours than in bread wheat flours.
Phenols and tocopherols
Whole grain flours had more total phenols and tocopherols than white flours. Alpha-tocopherol was the main tocopherol form. Marius whole grain flour had the highest total phenols and tocopherols.
What the authors conclude
“Due to their phytochemical composition, analyzed wheat varieties are beneficial foods for health, whose consumption and, particularly, the consumption of whole wheat flours, must be promoted.”
Also in their conclusions
- They say the analyzed samples met the conditions for all approved health claims related to wheat, especially whole flour and bran fraction.
- They state that these wheat flours can be considered functional ingredients or functional foods with approved nutritional and health claims under European regulation.
- They advise that consumption of whole wheat flours should be promoted.
How it was done
The authors wanted to compare different wheat flours and varieties for their bioactive compounds, to see what health claims could be made under European rules.
They analyzed whole grain flour, white flour and bran from two durum wheat varieties (Endural and Aldura) and two bread wheat varieties (Cajeme and Marius), harvested over two years. They measured dietary fiber, arabinoxylans, total phenols, tocopherols and antioxidant activity in lab tests.
What it can’t tell you
- This study measured compounds in flour and ran lab tests, not in people. It cannot show what health effects eating these flours would have.
- The lab tests do not prove that these flours prevent disease or improve health in humans.
Who paid
- Funding
- Funded by Spanish Ministry of Science and Technology; ALIMNOVA research group; FEDER under Program PT2020 for financial support to CIMO; Foundation for Science and Technology (FCT, Portugal) (from the PubMed record).
- Conflicts
- The authors declare no conflict of interest.
- Authors work at
- Complutense University of Madrid (UCM), Spain; Instituto Politécnico de Bragança, Portugal; Ciudad Universitaria s/n, Spain
The paper
- Title
- Potential Health Claims of Durum and Bread Wheat Flours as Functional Ingredients
- Type
- Study
- Evidence
- Animals and lab studies
- Summarised from
- Full text
- Cite
- Ciudad-Mulero M, Barros L, Fernandes Â, et al (2020). Potential Health Claims of Durum and Bread Wheat Flours as Functional Ingredients. Nutrients. doi:10.3390/nu12020504Free full textPubMed 32079210DOI
Summary written 26 Sep 2026. Check it against the paper before it changes what you eat. How we summarise papers · Report an error