Want to Reduce Belly Circumference? Try the Creations of Red Ginger Bread
Red ginger has a much spicier taste than the other 2 varieties of ginger.
REPUBLIKA.CO.ID, BANDUNG – Many people are now starting to switch to non-rice staples, one of which is bread. Seeing the high interest of the public in consuming bread, encouraged Dr Titin Sulastri, MM to develop bread made from red ginger flour.
This bread is not only born from kitchen creativity, but is based on the results of Titin’s dissertation research while pursuing doctoral studies at the Biotechnology Study Program at Padjadjaran University, Bandung, West Java.
Titin said, red ginger bread has a good antioxidant content compared to regular bread. This is based on the literature that white flour bread has a low antioxidant capacity.
“The test results obtained from this study indicate that plain bread has a weak antioxidant activity of 352.5 ppm, while bread with 6 percent red ginger flour has moderate activity of 142.9 ppm,” said Titin, Wednesday (3/2).
Titin explained, the antioxidants in red ginger bread can help control the negative effects of free radicals, strengthen immunity, and have a positive effect on body weight and abdominal circumference.
The lecturer at the Adventist University of Indonesia said that red ginger has a much spicier taste than the other two varieties of ginger, namely white ginger and elephant ginger. The chemical content in it, namely gingerol phenolic compounds (23-25 percent), shogaol (18-25 percent) and essential oils from 2.58 percent – 3.9 percent, have a higher value than the other two varieties of ginger.
Gingerol phenolic compounds also have a number of benefits, including having antioxidant activity, lowering cholesterol levels, and having a direct or indirect effect on blood pressure and heart rate.
While conducting research, Titin conducted bread testing on 24 volunteers. For 14 days, volunteers ate ginger bread with a bread weight of 50 grams. As a result, the red gingerbread intervention in volunteers affected their respective abdominal circumference. There was a decrease in abdominal circumference by 4.25 percent, while for body weight there was a decrease of 0.33 percent.
The reduction in abdominal circumference, he said, had a positive effect in reducing obesity. This is done considering the WHO has set standards for obesity based on abdominal circumference.
Titin said, the condition of obesity can stimulate oxidative stress. This occurs due to the presence of free radicals that damage body cells. The presence of good antioxidants in red gingerbread helps control the negative effects of free radicals.
“In this study, ginger bread consumption had a positive effect on body weight and abdominal circumference,” said Titin.
Apart from having an effect on body weight and abdominal circumference, Titin also focuses on examining how ginger bread affects cholesterol and blood pressure. The results found that the red gingerbread intervention in volunteers had the potential to increase good cholesterol or HDL by 24.48 percent, and reduce total cholesterol levels by 8.20 percent.
The gingerbread intervention also has the potential to reduce systolic blood pressure by 9.42 percent and diastolic by 9.09 percent. Besides having benefits for the body, red ginger bread also has a longer shelf life, which is 8.83 days. While regular bread ranges from 4.25 days.
Titin said, red ginger flour can function as a natural preservative. Antioxidants are able to reduce the oxidation process of fats and oils, thus minimizing the process of damage to food.
Titin said, the process of making red ginger bread itself is no different from ordinary bread. The difference is, Titin uses 6 percent red ginger flour mixed with wheat flour (3 percent), Saccharomyces cerevisiae yeast and other raw materials for making bread.
Yeast in the bread-making process is needed to develop bread dough. The enzymes in yeast break down carbohydrates into carbon dioxide, which then forms bubbles. During the baking process, these bubbles will be distributed.
The addition of ginger flour turns out to have a different effect on the development rate of the bread dough. From the results of his research, Titin found the addition of red ginger flour by 6 percent had an effect on the physical characteristics of the bread.
“Bread becomes lighter and shorter with a smaller diameter,” said Titin.
In addition, even though it is roasted, the antioxidant levels in ginger flour are still maintained. Red ginger bread has better levels of antioxidants than regular bread. “This shows that with the right manufacturing method, the chemical compound content in red ginger is still maintained,” he said.