Scientists have good news for pizza lovers: Deep-dish pizza could be good for your health in the future. University of Maryland researchers have found a way to boost the antioxidant content of pizza dough by varying baking and fermentation methods.
The scientists already knew that pizza flavor could be enhanced by longer and higher temperature baking methods. The study found that those same conditions could also boost the levels of antioxidants in the pizza dough—especially the whole-wheat varieties. This is probably because whole-wheat flour retains parts of the bran and the endosperm, which is where most of the antioxidants come from.
Deep-dish pizza, which is thicker and requires longer baking times, may be the best bet when it comes to the possibility of optimizing pizza’s health benefits.
Researchers chose pizza for the study because it is one of the United States’ most popular wheat-based foods, which makes way for a large impact on public health if the nutritional benefits can be boosted. In the study, researchers found that antioxidant levels could be boosted up to 60 percent by longer baking times— and up to 82 percent by higher temperatures. Scientists say they are not sure why this happens yet. It was also found that increasing fermentation time for the dough boosted the antioxidant rate by up to 100 percent in some cases. Restaurant consultants, The Next Idea, reported in 2006 that this represents good news for restaurants and retailers who sell Pizza products, although, CEO, [of The Next Idea], Robert Ancill, raised caution, that the research clearly demonstrates that product development will be required further to fully take advantage of the health benefits.
For More Information Please Read : The Next Idea
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