Bran diet: detailed menu for the week and 4 recipes

Bran is a by-product of flour production. This is a shell that envelops the grain, protects it from external influences, and accumulates useful nutrients and vitamins.

The specificity of bran depends on the grain from which the product was isolated (buckwheat, rice, millet, barley). The product is classified not only by grain, but also by the degree of grinding of the bran: coarse (large, reminiscent of whole grain flakes) and fine (small, similar to flattened and ground grain).

Nutritional value of the ingredient

Initially, the bran was separated from the grain in order to increase the shelf life and preserve the taste of the flour. Excessive amounts of bran, due to the high content of fatty acids, impart bitterness to the grain and reduce its digestibility. A small amount of the hard shell of the grain provides the exact opposite effect: the taste becomes richer and “breadier”, intestinal motility improves, and satiety occurs faster and better.

Content:

• Nutritional value of the ingredient
• Beneficial features
• Chemical composition
• Use in cooking
• Side effects and contraindications

Brief historical background

At the beginning of the twentieth century, the hard shell of grain was completely excluded from the diet of the then Europe. Bran was considered a cheap waste by-product, which the milling industry dumped and burned in tons. By that time, scientists had already acquired some equipment, carefully studied the composition of bran and recognized its high nutritional value.

The end of the twentieth century was marked by a return to origins. Grains are no longer meticulously cleaned, thereby depriving them of beneficial vitamins, micro- and macroelements. Oat bran was the first to return to the diet. They were recognized as a valuable source of dietary fiber, they began to be added to ready-made breakfasts, introduced into low-calorie diets, and added to nutrition programs for those who were trying to lose the hated pounds. A similar practice can still be observed today: bran is popular among vegetarians, adherents of proper nutrition, athletes and those losing weight.

Nutritionists support the desire of the masses for rational nutrition. Fashion trends classify bran as a “superfood” (plant products enriched with vitamins and nutrients) and introduce everyone to good eating habits.

Recommendations

To lose weight, choose wheat, buckwheat, rye or oat bran. But the diet does not have to be on any specific type. Experts, on the contrary, advise combining them to get the maximum amount of nutrients. Do not take a granular product - give preference to a crumbly one.

Prepare for the diet: a week before it, accustom your stomach to a new product. To do this, it is enough to eat 1 teaspoon of it for breakfast. The maximum daily amount is no more than 3 tablespoons, and you need to reach this dosage gradually. You can eat during meals or 10 minutes before meals.

In order for fiber to fulfill its functions (swell and fill the stomach), it is very important to drink at least 2 liters of water per day.

It is not recommended to use any medications during the diet, as fiber will absorb their beneficial properties and they will be completely ineffective.

To lose weight you need:

1. Reduce daily calorie intake to 1,500 kcal.
2. Reduce portion sizes.
3. Avoid unhealthy foods: fatty foods, pickled foods, sweets, baked goods and confectionery products, processed foods, fast food, alcoholic and carbonated drinks, fried foods.
4. Include lean meat and fish, seafood, eggs, dairy products, vegetables, berries, fruits, and mushrooms in your diet.
5. Go in for sports, increase physical activity.
6. Eat strictly according to the regime, preferably according to the principles of fractional nutrition.

The course of weight loss is no more than 3 weeks. You can repeat it only after 2 months.

Beneficial features

The benefits of bran are determined by the high content of dietary fiber. They regulate intestinal function, normalize stool, and restore the microflora of the internal environment.

Other benefits of dietary fiber:

1. Remove cholesterol from the body.
2. They reduce weight due to faster and longer saturation (do not forget about the nutritional value of the ingredient). Bran accelerates metabolism and helps the gastrointestinal tract more easily absorb useful micro- and macroelements.
3. Normalize blood sugar levels.
4. They have a detox effect.

How bran normalizes cholesterol levels

The product “binds” dietary fiber and bile acids of the stomach. In this way, the degree of activity of the acid is regulated, the level of its aggressiveness in relation to the internal environment is normalized. In addition, bran stimulates the production of B vitamins. Intestinal bacteria, “bound” by dietary fiber, begin intensive production of the vitamin, which supports the functioning of the entire body. Bran slows down the level of starch breakdown and affects the glycemic index of the product (adjusting it to the needs of the body at the moment).

The role of bran in weight loss

Bran contains a high percentage of fiber. Fiber, in turn, is one of the most important products for losing weight and athletes. It is absorbed more slowly, causing the body to feel full for several hours longer, and improves intestinal motility. Fiber minimizes the percentage of nutrient absorption and, thereby, reduces the total caloric intake of the meal. Food enters the body, stimulates satiety, but is only partially absorbed. Unprocessed foods are simply eliminated from the body, rather than remaining as extra inches on the sides.

Fiber does not break down fat deposits, but fights the cause of their accumulation. The substance stimulates the digestive system to work faster, better and more efficiently. Only with this principle of losing weight can you achieve real success.

What is detox and how does bran affect it?

Detox can be compared to the reset button on your phone. We feed the body with toxins through food, bad habits, and an aggressive external environment. Internal cleaning systems simply cannot cope with the entire amount of pathogenic microflora and allow some particles to pass through. These missed particles accumulate and grow, causing disease. Detox presses the reset button, renewing your natural cleansing processes and making them work several times harder, faster and better.

Bran stimulates detox and does a great service to the entire human body. The ingredient breaks down and removes waste, toxins, heavy metals, excess liquid, and pathogenic food breakdown products.

Chemical composition

Nutritional value (per 100 grams of raw bran)

Nutrient balance (in milligrams per 100 grams of raw bran)

Authorized Products

The bran diet includes:

• Wheat, oat, rye, rice bran, bran bread, rye crackers, diabetic crackers, whole grain bread.
• Beef, veal, chicken, rabbit, sea/river fish, seafood, seaweed.
• Low-fat fermented milk products, cottage cheese, cheese.
• Vegetables in various forms: white cabbage, spinach, broccoli, peppers, asparagus, carrots, beets, tomatoes, green leaf lettuce, radishes, radishes, red onions, white radishes, zucchini, pumpkin, garlic, celery, watercress, garden greens . When cooking vegetables, you should not bring them to a too soft state, since the fiber in such products is destroyed. Vegetables should crisp slightly.
• Vegetable/cereal soups.
• Virgin vegetable oils.
• Porridge made from whole grain cereals (millet, buckwheat, oatmeal, unpolished rice).
• Legumes (peas, chickpeas, beans, lentils), dried mushrooms.
• Nuts (almonds, pistachios, walnuts, cashews, peanuts), seeds (sunflower, flax, pumpkin, sesame), fruits/berries (green apples, bananas, grapes, apricots, blueberries, lingonberries), dried fruits (dates, raisins, dried apricots) .
• Green tea, herbal teas, instant chicory, still mineral water, compotes, jelly, juices with pulp.

Table of permitted products

Use in cooking

Bran has taken the position of “superfood” in cooking; it is used in the niche of healthy balanced nutrition. How to eat bran:

1. Porridge. The bran is placed in boiling water for 20-30 minutes. The product swells, has time to absorb water, and becomes softer and more pliable. The liquid is drained and a coarse, tasteless slurry is obtained. It can be added to desserts, first and second courses, or eaten separately with your favorite sauce or dressing.
2. Salad dressing. Bran is added to vegetables in its pure form or mixed with herbs, Greek yogurt or sour cream. It turns out a real vitamin bomb from plant products that have a beneficial effect on the gastrointestinal tract, well-being and external beauty.
3. Ingredient for desserts. You can make flour with bran, and from it the right pies, cookies, bread or crispbread. Bran is added to sweet yoghurts and even sweets.
4. As a breading. Breadcrumbs are not a proper and healthy ingredient. Bran is an excellent plant-based substitute for a high-carbohydrate product. The frying process is similar and will not cause difficulties even for a beginner. It is recommended to fry bran products in a non-stick frying pan without oil or with a drop of coconut oil.

The maximum benefit of bran is achieved only in the presence of liquid. The product “works” only when it swells in water/milk, absorbs the required percentage of liquid and becomes soft.

Bran pancakes recipe

Nutritional value (per 1 serving of prepared dish)

We will need:

• bran (to taste from any grain) – 2 tablespoons;
• soft paste-like low-fat cottage cheese (sold in briquettes) - 1.5 tablespoons;
• chicken egg – 1 pc.

Preparation

Bran pancakes are the main dish of the Dukan Diet. According to the principles of the diet, such pancakes can be eaten at any time of the day, regardless of the quantity. Low-calorie pancakes are especially loved by French women. Any chain store in France sells vacuum-packed healthy pancakes, which need to be slightly warmed up and safely added to your diet.

Mix bran, egg (you can use a whole egg or just the white) and cottage cheese in a deep container. Heat a non-stick frying pan, pour the batter onto it and form a pancake. Fry for 1-2 minutes on each side until golden brown. Serve immediately after preparation with your favorite sauce or topping.

Apple Nut and Seed Cookies Recipe

Nutritional value (per 1 serving of prepared dish)

We will need:

• bran (to taste from any type of grain) – ¼ cup;
• instant oatmeal - ¾ cup;
• applesauce (it is recommended to prepare it yourself from fresh apples) – 250 g;
• almonds – 30 g;
• walnuts – 30 g;
• sunflower seeds – 30 g;
• dried fruits – 100 g;
• nut butter – 2 tablespoons.

Preparation

Finely chop nuts, seeds, dried fruits. Take a deep container and combine all the ingredients in it. Mix the mixture thoroughly and refrigerate for 30-50 minutes (to make the mixture more plastic and pliable). Take out the cooled mass and form several cookies out of it. Prepare a baking sheet and line it with special baking paper that can be used without oil. Place the cookies on baking paper and place in the oven for 40 minutes at 160°C. Serve immediately after cooking or store in a suitable container for 3-4 days.

Bran for weight loss: how to take the product correctly?

This is a product that should be used with the utmost caution. Do not overload your intestines with digesting it, as the body can quickly become clogged. As a result, you can get a very undesirable effect.

The rules for taking oat bran are simple. You should start taking it with one teaspoon of the product. Over the course of a week, you need to slowly increase the dosage to reach two tablespoons. Bran of this type is suitable for adding to salads that are seasoned with olive oil.

You can mix them with homemade dairy products, leaving the drink overnight. This will be a liquid that is rich in vitamin E, chromium and selenium. Thanks to this, you can use it even at night.

But how to properly take rye bran for weight loss? These points are a little different from the previous version. Unfortunately, this option can bring not only benefits to the body, but also harm. It is not recommended to use it in dry form, since it is necessary to soak the bran in boiled water beforehand. You can also add them to your favorite dishes.

You need to adhere to the rules for preparing the product so that it allows you to achieve the desired result. Bran must be added half an hour before preparing a particular dish. For example, they go perfectly with buckwheat, to which sautéed onions are added. This is a dish that will be the optimal breakfast for a person losing weight. Baking made from bran has a piquant and original taste. You can consume this delicacy with milk or homemade yogurt.

Bran for weight loss: how to use with kefir?

Many people wonder whether it is possible to lose weight with bran in a week at home? This can be done if you combine this product with delicious kefir. This is the best way to lose weight, as extra pounds quickly disappear. In a week you can cope with three kilograms of weight.

Experts have given recommendations on how to take bran with kefir every day. Every morning, drink at least two glasses of clean water, the temperature of which is above room temperature. When you drink the liquid and 30 minutes have passed, eat the pre-steamed bran. The serving size should be half the dosage taken for the day. Wash everything down with a glass of kefir.

The rest of the time you can eat fresh vegetables or fruits. You can prepare dishes from lean meat or milk. Also, do not forget that your diet should contain portioned consumption of bran. They are eaten at 12 grams, keeping a pause of three hours, washed down with a glass of kefir. If you are going to bed, drink low-fat yogurt an hour before bed. A glass of kefir will also not be superfluous.

During the day, the optimal amount of food you eat should be 1500 Kcal. The diet ends very carefully and gradually to avoid stress. You also shouldn’t add familiar foods to your diet too quickly.

You can arrange for yourself a day on which you don’t need to eat at all. Kefir in combination with bran is a powerful weapon that will make it possible to cope with extra pounds. You can become the owner of an ideal figure if you adhere to all the rules of the fasting day.

You need to consume kefir with bran at night regularly. To do this, eat 36 grams of the product, washed down with any fermented milk drink. On the second day, consume 24 grams of steamed bran three times a day. During the day you need to eat at least 72 grams of the product, and also drink 1.5 liters of kefir.

Such a diet will activate the functioning of the digestive organs. But remember that before following a fasting diet, you need to carefully examine your health status.

Side effects and contraindications

The ingredient is prohibited from being introduced into the diet for diseases of the gastrointestinal tract at the stage of exacerbation of the pathology. As soon as the inflammatory process goes into remission or disappears completely, it is necessary to examine the body and wait for the doctor’s decision. The specialist will assess the possible risks, draw up an approximate diet and indicate the permissible dosage of bran in the daily nutrition plan.

Remember that excessive passion for even the healthiest and most wholesome foods is fraught with pathology. An imbalance occurs in the body (albeit healthy substances), which leads to unstable functioning of all body systems.

What can uncontrolled consumption of bran lead to:

1. Development of diseases of the gastrointestinal tract. Transition of pathologies from a state of remission to an exacerbation stage with additional manifestations and deteriorations.
2. Bloating, flatulence.
3. Malfunctions of the intestines.
4. Hypovitaminosis or “vitamin deficiency.” An imbalance of vitamins and nutrients occurs in the body. A huge hole is formed between the consumption and supply of nutrients, which cannot be filled without therapeutic intervention.

Possible consequences of eating superfood

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Even if a person is absolutely healthy and full of energy, there is a risk of not getting enough fiber from traditional plant-based foods in the daily diet. Patients often, without a doctor's prescription or apparent reason, administer fiber on their own, without controlling the dose and without monitoring the body's reaction. What this could mean: increased gas formation, nausea/vomiting, bloating, bowel irregularities, disruptions in the level of absorption of some beneficial nutrients.

An adult needs 2-3 tablespoons of fiber per day. There is no need to consume the product in its pure form (this is both problematic and absolutely unappetizing). Use bran instead of harmful breadcrumbs, add it to baked goods and add to salads. Combine the product with a high-quality healthy diet, and if there is the slightest malfunction in the body, consult a doctor.

Combination with medications

It is forbidden to use medicines together with bran. The product acts as an active substance that is capable of breaking down elements of the composition of medications. Bran will simply block the drug and deprive the body of the necessary help. The minimum time interval between food intake (with the addition of bran) and medication should not be less than 6-7 hours.

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