Can You Freeze the Carbs Out of Bread? Resistant Starch Claim Tested

Recently, there was a video by Dr. Alan Mandell on his channel, motivationaldoc, where he describes a process that supposedly turns the flour in white bread into a "resistant starch", thereby rendering some amount of the carbs to be unabsorbed by your body and decreasing the glucose response when white bread is consumed. His statements in the video are based on a study referenced on PubMed (linked below).

All of of my previous testing on "resistant" starch led me to believe that this was just wishful thinking, and potentially even dangerous for people who need to keep control over their blood glucose. So armed with a Dexcom G6 continuous glucose monitor and a smug attitude, I decided to test it out on myself.

I tested both the highest and lowest glucose response cited in the article below. Any other testing, including sourdough bread, consuming apple cider vinegar, multiple re-freezing, etc. is outside of the scope of this video, as it was not included in the original study.

Finally, some people have accused me of attacking or insulting Dr. Mandell. I've watched this video multiple times and I can't see where this supposedly occurred. I link to his video both within my own video and in the description. I hope he sees some additional traffic from it. My concern was the article he linked to and based his video on, and I stated that I had my doubts about it based on previous tests I'd done. And that's why I decided to test on myself for the purpose of this video.

Timestamps:
0:00 Intro
1:13 A critical look at the study
4:54 My testing methodology
6:03 Baseline: plain white bread
7:42 "Resistant" bread test
11:32 Summary

The cheapest, well reviewed glucose monitor on Amazon:

This applies to kits only and is applied during checkout.

-
-

SeriousKeto is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon. I also earn a small commission on qualifying purchases using the Levels Health link and Keto Mojo link above.

[mobiustrip]

I'm really glad you were honest in this video. I spotted this study years ago and applied it and it does work! I eat two slices of frozen, toasted wholewheat bread every day with fried eggs. Blood sugar hardly budges (I'm not keto, just generally low carb) Thanks man!

[SeriousKeto]

Something I want to make VERY CLEAR, based on the results of this test (n=1): I am not saying that this process turns bread into a "low carb" food. I am not saying that this process makes bread "keto friendly". The spike on the second test is still what I would consider "bad", it's just less "bad" than the first test.

Additionally, after performing this test over a two day period, I definitely noticed inflammation symptoms (pain in my knees and stiffness in my hands and knuckles). This may contradict the claims about the anti-inflammatory benefits made about this bread preparation method, unless the anti-inflammatory properties aren't strong enough to overcome the soybean oil in the bread I tested (which tends to be the inflammatory culprit for me).

FINALLY, some people have accused me of attacking or insulting Dr. Mandell. I've watched this video multiple times and I can't see where this supposedly occurred. I link to his video both within my own video and in the description. I hope he sees some additional traffic from it. My concern was the article he linked to and based his video on, and I stated that I had my doubts about it based on previous tests I'd done. And that's why I decided to test on myself for the purpose of this video.

[dave]

I have to tell you, Dr. Mandell was right! I'm a diabetic and I wear a CGM. I've tested this theory twice now eating a peanut butter sandwich. Before when I would eat the un-toasted sandwich, my blood glucose would spike around 60 points. With the frozen bread toasted, the spike was minimal! It's truly amazing!

[margeebechyne]

For Keto I can see this as not that great, but as a diabetic this is really helpful. I precook a lot of starchy foods does keep my blood sugar down. I precook rice, potatoes and even pasta. The next day (or whenever) my blood sugar spike is much lower. I've tried the frozen bread and that is working well for me, too.

[NoFeArChiC]

Tons of respect for your response towards the test results when you initially thought your numbers wouldn't be impacted. That's the mark of a real man, being able to humble yourself and admit that you were wrong (even if it's slight). Time to check out some of your other videos! 😊

[SuperDerek]

Steve, I absolutely love how your background in process improvement pushes you toward skepticism and testing hypotheses with the scientific method when others would rather fall into magical thinking. I think this is one of the things you and your channel exemplify that helps further legitimize the keto movement. Personally, these sorts of experiments help your channel stand out in my mind as being _more_ than just a great channel to get keto recipes. Keep up the fantastic work!

[surfit.]

Great testing. Testing yourself on anything on how it affects you is a great way to get to know how your body reacts. We're all built differently.

[lizweekly]

Thank you Steve for 'bitting the bullet for us', so to speak and taking one for the team, by testing these products and putting yourself out there!!! I won't be doing it in my keto journey thank you for your sacrifice. I am along way from my goal and you have helped me understand some of the do's and don'ts! A BIG Thank you to you buddy. Liz from Ontario, Canada

[carlosc]

Thank you Steve! It certainly speaks volumes about your character that we look to you for the truth😀 I was one of the people who asked your opinion of this so again thank you for always taking one for your team😀

[sungoddiss]

Yes, I did see that video from that doctor about freezing bread and also there’s a one about freezing rice and pasta and how that is better to eat after you’ve cooked it and then frozen it and then defrosted it before you eat it. So I was very interested in hearing what you had to say, and very pleased that this other doctor, whom I watch his videos often, is pretty right on. I mean, none of us want to be led astray, right? So thank you.

[-.Steven]

This is great information! Thanks for taking one for the team! Edit: I agree, bread and grain are not going to be part of my diet ever.

[Wingman]

Seems to me a difference of 66 points (98 - 32) is indeed significant. Nevertheless, I had seen this somewhere also, and I since make 50/50 white/wholewheat bread which I keep frozen after slicing, this was positive news. Thanks for checking it out.

[LaVonne]

Thanks for running the test. Really interesting. I'm always glad to be able to add another tidbit of info that will assist me on my keto journey. I think I will do my own test on whole grain bread just to see what kind of results I get. That way I will know if I want to have a "cheat" meal I will be able to flatten the spike a little.

[SunShine-dkrk]

Great info, firstly thank you, I have been mostly keto since 2017 and started then at 97kg and now around 80kg, during that journey I always had my fave meal burgers with buns once a week and unknowingly mostly froze the buns, after my treat meal I'd fast 24 hours as figured it would get me back into Keto, so really appreciate your work on this matter educating us.

Thank you wishing yourself family, friends and fellow followers health and happiness.

[susancelotto]

I’m a statistics geek too. Thanks for taking a look at this study and then going the extra mile to test yourself for us!

[martinlatoya]

I respect and appreciate your evaluation being BASED ON INFORMATION!! These days it’s not common to find integrity!! Salute 🫡

[mikenyrlife]

Great take Steve, I always appreciate you doing the work most of us are too lazy to do. I had not seen that study, I did try Resistant Starch Rice when all that BS came out and my glucose may not have gone up as much as just having rice, but the inflammation and spikes were enough for me to stop testing. Adding fats like butter does stunt a lot of the glucose spikes which is great for me, but my wife does not eat butter (yeah I know weird) so is of no use to her.

[briand]

Thanks for being our guinea pig, Steve, it's very much appreciated. While I could be wrong, I think if resistant anything was a thing, the corporate overlords would've already tested it and sold it as a Keto product and at a Keto price.

[tenerifecats]

Thanks for this! I have been hearing about freezing/toasting bread deal and was waiting for one of you reliable guys to review it.

[sylviabee]

I respect your honesty. I love that guy. He’s to the point and knows the right impact his studies have on diabetic people. Even better… no long drawn out videos. Short with great information