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Sourdough for Health

Internationally recognised as a leading authority on bread nutrition and digestibility, Dr Vanessa Kimbell holds a doctorate in Baking as Lifestyle Medicine and preventative healthcare.

Have you ever wondered why some breads make you feel tired, foggy and achy — or been puzzled that some leave you bloated while others don’t? If you can eat sourdough but not other bread, these articles and recipes are a great place to spark curiosity: learn how bread interacts with the gut microbiome, discover how your unique nutrigenetics shape your response, and read practical, evidence-based guidance. Cutting through the nonsense with clear, useful explanations, Vanessa shares tips, information, advice, recipes and methods to bake, eat and share healthy bread to support digestion and overall health. You can read more about training in personalising bread at The Sourdough School, or book a 1:1 meeting to get your bread personalised.

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Add to the Farm to Loaf Directory

Connecting Bakers Directly to Farmers

When I talk about a system that is ruining both our health and the environment, people understand that we need to change the system. But how? It starts small. With tiny acts of defiance, from individuals who are thinking outside the box. By sharing information we are creating change. Challenging the system.

Sourcing both grains and botanical ingredients directly to bake bread that nourishes.

Following a gathering in 2017 at The Grain Hub it became clear that to move the current acceptance of monoculture we as bakers need support the farmers. So this directory is about doing just that; connecting bakers and farmers. It is a grain directory for creating botanical flour blends.  Our Botanical blends are about supporting gut health and about supporting and nurturing diversity in our fields.

Change

So adding an entry to this directory is about supporting each other, being part of a global community and forming connections between the soil, the farmer, the miller and the baker.

Entry Requirements

Please add the farmers’ details. We also include stockists who are cooperatives and mills who support farmers directly. This is a grain directory, not a flour directory. Flour entries will not be included. Please do check that your mill or business is not already added to the database to avoid double entries.

We approve and validate each entry individually and we reserve the right to modify or reject any entries that are not in line with this remit. Please be as accurate as possible and check the links you submit are correct. Please also check that you have the right to share an image. (We can add an image from our image bank if there is no image.)

Thank you for submitting a supplier to the directory.

Farm To Loaf Directory Addition
Logo – preferably square and at least 400px by 400px *

Maximum file size: 2MB

Business Type *
Are you Certified Organic? *
Grains
Add additional grains in a comma-separated list
Bread Flours
Add additional bread flours in a comma-separated list
Gluten Free Bread Flours
Add additional gluten free bread flours in a comma-separated list
Herbs
Add additional herbs in a comma-separated list
Edible Flowers
Add additional edible flowers in a comma-separated list
Legumes
Add additional ledumes in a comma-separated list
Spices
Add additional spices in a comma-separated list
Seeds
Add additional seeds in a comma-separated list
Seaweed
Add additional seaweeds in a comma-separated list
Dried Fruit
Add additional dried fruits in a comma-separated list
Tea
Add additional teas in a comma-separated list
Please tell us about any other products you would like added to our list

Todays live for diploma students will be on 'How t Todays live for diploma students will be on 'How to engage your patient in the lifestyle changes of the BALM' with @vanessakimbell 

In their 6pm live session, we help keep our students on track with the syllabus and discuss the application of Baking As Lifestyle Medicine to the 6 pillars of Lifestyle medicine, applying the research papers, application of the Research, and how this ties into prescribing, along with guest lecturers, discussions and sharing knowledge.

#lifestylemedicine #health #functionalmedicine #nutrition #integrativemedicine #healthylifestyle #wellness #lifestyle #rcgp #dietitian #nutritionist #healthcareprofessional #holistichealth #healthyliving #plantbased #guthealth #naturopathicmedicine #selfcare #functionalnutrition  #naturopathicdoctor #foodasmedicine #foodismedicine #lifestylegoals #cpd #lifestylechange #mentalhealth #sourdough #sourdoughschool #bakeforhealth
BAKE, ANALYSE, EAT; RECALIBRATE & REPEAT. 📆 Th BAKE, ANALYSE, EAT; RECALIBRATE & REPEAT.

📆 The Sourdough School Clinic - Thursdays 8pm - for students of The Sourdough School 

✏️ In this weekly live session, we cover technical baking questions. Students can submit their Baking Record Sheets in advance of the session.

📋 We look at the details of our student's bakes - the specifics of the flour, timings and temperatures. Using our sourdough record sheets Vanessa will make suggestions on how they might modify, or recalibrate the next time they bake.

Follow the link in the bio to learn more about becoming a student at The Sourdough School 👆

#sourdough #sourdoughschool #bread #sourdoughlove #sourdoughlover #naturalleavened #leavening #levain #realbread #breadmaking #bakebread #makebread #makerealbread #learntobakebread #breadmakingclass #sourdoughstories #bakingforlove #bakingtherapy #sourdoughbaking
IBS AWARENESS MONTH Do you suffer from irritable IBS AWARENESS MONTH

Do you suffer from irritable bowel syndrome (IBS)? It can be tough to deal with the uncomfortable symptoms of stomach cramps, constipation, diarrhoea and bloating. But did you know that making dietary changes, such as incorporating sourdough bread into your diet, could help alleviate some of those symptoms?

Studies have shown that sourdough's long, slow fermentation process can reduce IBS symptoms. Plus, during #ibsawarenessmonth, we're exploring how adding different herbs and spices to your sourdough can further improve both the flavour and the digestion of your bread.

Let's talk about gut health, fermentation, and how sourdough can be a delicious and healthy addition to your diet. Join the conversation and share your experiences with IBS and sourdough.

#guthealth #healyourgut #healthygut #guthealing #guthealthmatters #letfoodbethymedicine #foodasmedicine #gutbrainconnection #nutrientdense #micronutrients #digestivehealth #nutritionfacts #microbiome #breadandguts #ibsawarenessmonth
THE SOURDOUGH SCHOOL – HAND CARVED WOODEN LAME THE SOURDOUGH SCHOOL – HAND CARVED WOODEN LAME

One of the biggest issues around using a plastic lame to score sourdough, of course, is that eventually the blade will become blunt and the lame could end up in landfill.  So several years ago I talked to my dear friend EJ about developing a lame with a replaceable blade. And he came up with this very beautiful hand carved wooden lame.

Very sadly EJ is no longer with us. Recently a friend of EJ’s who is also a wood turner and carver offered to make these again for us in remembrance of our dear friend.

Follow the link in the bio to our shop where you can find our full selection of wooden sourdough tools 👆

#sourdough #sourdoughschool #bread #sourdoughlove #sourdoughlover #naturalleavened #leavening #levain #realbread #breadmaking #bakebread #makebread #makerealbread #learntobakebread #breadmakingclass #sourdoughstories #bakingforlove #bakingtherapy #sourdoughbaking
The Baking As Lifestyle Medicine (BALM) Protocol The Baking As Lifestyle Medicine (BALM) Protocol

The current food system is broken at multiple levels, from the pesticides used in our soils to the emulsifiers and additives adulterating industrially-processed foods. Nowhere is this more apparent than in the bread we eat.  The figures reported by the UK Flour Millers say that bread is bought by a staggering “99.8% of British households” and that “the equivalent of nearly 11 million loaves are sold each day. Approximately 60-70% of the bread we eat is white and sandwiches are thought to account for 50% of overall bread consumption. Average bread purchases are the equivalent of 60.3 loaves per person per year.” 

Most bread sold is made by modern processing methods that strip heart-healthy whole grains of their nutrient contents, resulting in low-fibre bread with a high glycemic index. Over time, white processed bread can increase a person’s risk of insulin resistance alongside other lifestyle diseases.

We’re on a mission to revolutionise the bread making process at every level – from soil to slice. The rules governing this are laid out in our Baking As Lifestyle Medicine protocol. 

#lifestylemedicine #health #functionalmedicine #nutrition #integrativemedicine #healthylifestyle #wellness #lifestyle #rcgp #dietitian #nutritionist #healthcareprofessional #holistichealth #healthyliving #plantbased #guthealth #naturopathicmedicine #selfcare #functionalnutrition  #naturopathicdoctor #foodasmedicine #foodismedicine #lifestylegoals #cpd #lifestylechange #mentalhealth #sourdough #sourdoughschool #bakeforhealth
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