Whole grain beer

bcattoes
bcattoes Posts: 17,299 Member
edited October 2 in Food and Nutrition
Would adding Benefiber to a glass of beer be the same as whole grain beer? I asked this of a nutritionist friend and she laughed loudly and said "That's the best one I've heard in a while. I'm stealing that.". I think she thought I was joking. But beer is made from grain, it has carbs, so if you add the fiber back, why wouldn't it be the same? Inquiring minds want to know!

Replies

  • drog2323
    drog2323 Posts: 1,343 Member
    I don't think so. most major brand beers are made with probably (i'm no expert) less than great grains and ingredients. highly processed etc. So I don't think you would get any value from that or the beer.

    the only beer I know that is supposed to have a few health benefits is Guiness. And only in moderation.

    the next option would probably me a craft or micro-beer from a local brewery. usually good ingredients, sometimes all natural etc.
  • wordenhog
    wordenhog Posts: 1
    LOL, sounds good to me!
  • sbwood888
    sbwood888 Posts: 953 Member
    So if you pour benefiber into chocolate syrup, I guess that makes it good for you??
  • kitty0767
    kitty0767 Posts: 11 Member
    "barley soup" has lots of redeeming qualities!
  • brewingaz
    brewingaz Posts: 1,136 Member
    I don't think so. most major brand beers are made with probably (i'm no expert) less than great grains and ingredients. highly processed etc. So I don't think you would get any value from that or the beer.

    the only beer I know that is supposed to have a few health benefits is Guiness. And only in moderation.

    the next option would probably me a craft or micro-beer from a local brewery. usually good ingredients, sometimes all natural etc.

    Wrong. Barley is barley. The grains in Guiness are the same grains in other beers. The grains that make the difference in color and flavor are still barley, they have just been roasted to different levels and at different moisture contents. The beer you get from Miller, Coors, etc, do contain other grains such as corn or rice. They are not highly processed either way you brew with it.

    But, I'd recommend going to a craft or microbrewery in lieu of cheap Miller or Coors beer because 1) it tastes better, 2) you will get added benefits from the beer being unfiltered (assuming the small brewery does not filter their beer) because the yeast in it is an excellent source of B12 (and it also lessons hangovers the following day).
  • bcattoes
    bcattoes Posts: 17,299 Member
    So if you pour benefiber into chocolate syrup, I guess that makes it good for you??

    I'm sure it would be better than if you didn't add fiber. But chocolate is not made from grains. The main gripe with beer (other than calories) is usually carbs. Adding fiber should lower the net carbs, right?
  • brewingaz
    brewingaz Posts: 1,136 Member
    So if you pour benefiber into chocolate syrup, I guess that makes it good for you??

    I'm sure it would be better than if you didn't add fiber. But chocolate is not made from grains. The main gripe with beer (other than calories) is usually carbs. Adding fiber should lower the net carbs, right?

    Not if the carbs are already there in the beer. Then you're just adding fiber.
  • infamousmk
    infamousmk Posts: 6,033 Member
    I was going to suggest bottle or cask conditioned beers too, if you're looking for health benefits in your beer. But really, don't pour stuff in your beer, okay?
  • kitty0767
    kitty0767 Posts: 11 Member
    whoa... I don't think adding bene-anything to beer will make it better... maybe just have some whole grain pretzels, on the side. It is Friday after all :drinker:
  • Kimdbro
    Kimdbro Posts: 922 Member
    Well, you'd be getting part of your daily fiber intake, and you'd be integrating whole grains into your diet all the while enduring a glass of beer that tastes like *kitten*. Your call.
  • a_stronger_steph
    a_stronger_steph Posts: 434 Member
    Oh, goodness. If you're going to do that, just add the Benefibre to a glass of water and drink that before the beer. You'll get the fibre and you'll welcome the deliciousness of that beer all the more. But the idea of adding something like that to beer itself? That's just sacrilege! :drinker: Well, unless it's something like Coors Light or Canadian... in which case you'd probably be vastly improving on the product. Though that's not saying much.
  • bcattoes
    bcattoes Posts: 17,299 Member
    So if you pour benefiber into chocolate syrup, I guess that makes it good for you??

    I'm sure it would be better than if you didn't add fiber. But chocolate is not made from grains. The main gripe with beer (other than calories) is usually carbs. Adding fiber should lower the net carbs, right?

    Not if the carbs are already there in the beer. Then you're just adding fiber.

    But isn't "net carbs" total grams of carbs minus grams of fiber?? So the fiber would lower the net carbs, but not total carbs.
  • bcattoes
    bcattoes Posts: 17,299 Member
    Well, you'd be getting part of your daily fiber intake, and you'd be integrating whole grains into your diet all the while enduring a glass of beer that tastes like *kitten*. Your call.

    Really?? I've never used Benefiber but I thought the commericals said it was tasteless. Surely they wouldn't lie in a commercial. :noway:
  • Avalonis
    Avalonis Posts: 1,540 Member
    So if you pour benefiber into chocolate syrup, I guess that makes it good for you??

    I'm sure it would be better than if you didn't add fiber. But chocolate is not made from grains. The main gripe with beer (other than calories) is usually carbs. Adding fiber should lower the net carbs, right?

    Not if the carbs are already there in the beer. Then you're just adding fiber.

    But isn't "net carbs" total grams of carbs minus grams of fiber?? So the fiber would lower the net carbs, but not total carbs.

    True, but adding fiber (which is a carb) cancels itself out. You CANNOT lower the net carbs of a beer.
  • brewingaz
    brewingaz Posts: 1,136 Member
    So if you pour benefiber into chocolate syrup, I guess that makes it good for you??

    I'm sure it would be better than if you didn't add fiber. But chocolate is not made from grains. The main gripe with beer (other than calories) is usually carbs. Adding fiber should lower the net carbs, right?

    Not if the carbs are already there in the beer. Then you're just adding fiber.

    But isn't "net carbs" total grams of carbs minus grams of fiber?? So the fiber would lower the net carbs, but not total carbs.

    True, but adding fiber (which is a carb) cancels itself out. You CANNOT lower the net carbs of a beer.

    Yes. IF you're adding carbs to carbs, you're adding carbs. Just because you added fiber, does not mean you removed the already existing carbs in the beer itself.
  • Reneda
    Reneda Posts: 140
    I seriously thought this was just a joke... ???
  • bcattoes
    bcattoes Posts: 17,299 Member
    So if you pour benefiber into chocolate syrup, I guess that makes it good for you??

    I'm sure it would be better than if you didn't add fiber. But chocolate is not made from grains. The main gripe with beer (other than calories) is usually carbs. Adding fiber should lower the net carbs, right?

    Not if the carbs are already there in the beer. Then you're just adding fiber.

    But isn't "net carbs" total grams of carbs minus grams of fiber?? So the fiber would lower the net carbs, but not total carbs.

    True, but adding fiber (which is a carb) cancels itself out. You CANNOT lower the net carbs of a beer.

    Yes. IF you're adding carbs to carbs, you're adding carbs. Just because you added fiber, does not mean you removed the already existing carbs in the beer itself.

    Buzz kill!!
  • Daveydesigns
    Daveydesigns Posts: 5
    My husband is a homebrewer, which means we make beer at home. Beer is not really "whole-grain" its a liquid aftermath of boiling whole grains. Here is the deal: most beers are made with from barley, hops, water, and yeast. You start by boiling the grain and hops for a current amount of time, when done the grains and hops are removed. What remains from the boil is the sugars and some flavors. The brew is placed in a bucket with some yeast and it ferments for some time. The yeast eat the sugars and create alcohol. So, your really drinking alcoholic flavored water. Keep that in mind.

    Health benefits can come from yeast that are left behind from fermentation they can provide some extra vitamins, but you will not find yeast in filtered beers. So try unfiltered beers like many wheat beers (cloudy beers) or bottle-conditioned brews ( You can always look at the bottom of the bottle, if you see sediment that's the yeast And of course the less alcohol content (ABV) the less calories. As for adding Benefiber, you feel so full after one beer I can't imagine after adding fiber.
  • brewingaz
    brewingaz Posts: 1,136 Member
    My husband is a homebrewer, which means we make beer at home. Beer is not really "whole-grain" its a liquid aftermath of boiling whole grains. Here is the deal: most beers are made with from barley, hops, water, and yeast. You start by boiling the grain and hops for a current amount of time, when done the grains and hops are removed. What remains from the boil is the sugars and some flavors. The brew is placed in a bucket with some yeast and it ferments for some time. The yeast eat the sugars and create alcohol. So, your really drinking alcoholic flavored water. Keep that in mind.

    Health benefits can come from yeast that are left behind from fermentation they can provide some extra vitamins, but you will not find yeast in filtered beers. So try unfiltered beers like many wheat beers (cloudy beers) or bottle-conditioned brews ( You can always look at the bottom of the bottle, if you see sediment that's the yeast And of course the less alcohol content (ABV) the less calories. As for adding Benefiber, you feel so full after one beer I can't imagine after adding fiber.

    ^^ This. (Except you don't boil the grains unless you're doing a decoction mash, but I'm a brewer and being totally technical ha ha). But yes, 95% of your beer is water. It's the most abundant ingredient in beer. The rest is flavored by the grains used, hops, yeast strain used, and of course the conditions in which you ferment it in.
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