exceeded rye for the first time only in 1957 Rye has unusual carbohydrates and proteins, and as a result produces a distinctive kind of bread It’s described in the next chapter (p 545) Rye Carbohydrates Rye contains a large quantity, up to 7% of its weight, of carbohydrates called pentosans (an old term; the new one is arabinoxylans) These are medium-sized aggregates of sugars that have the very useful property of absorbing large amounts of water and producing a thick, viscous, sticky consistency Thanks to its pentosans, rye flour absorbs eight times its weight in water, while wheat flour absorbs two Unlike starch, the pentosans don’t retrograde and harden after being cooked and cooled So they provide a soft, moist texture that helps gives rye breads a shelf life of weeks Rye pentosans also help control appetite; the dried carbohydrates in rye crisps swell in the stomach, thus giving the sensation of fullness, and they are slowly and only partly digested Rye and LSD In addition to its role as a food, rye has also had an indirect influence on modern medicine and recreational pharmacology The cool, moist climate in which rye does well is also favorable for the growth of the ergot fungus (Claviceps purpurea) From the 11th to the 16th centuries, ergot contamination of rye flour was responsible for frequent epidemics of what was called Holy Fire or Saint Anthony’s Fire, a disease with two sets of symptoms: progressive gangrene, in which extremities turned black, shrank, and dropped off; and mental derangement Occasional outbreaks of ergot poisoning from contaminated flour continued well into the 20th century Early in the 20th century, chemists ...swell in the stomach, thus giving the sensation of fullness, and they are slowly and only partly digested Rye and LSD In addition to its role as a food, rye has also had an indirect influence on modern... turned black, shrank, and dropped off; and mental derangement Occasional outbreaks of ergot poisoning from contaminated flour continued well into the 20th century Early in the 20th century, chemists... modern medicine and recreational pharmacology The cool, moist climate in which rye does well is also favorable for the growth of the ergot fungus (Claviceps purpurea) From the 11th to the 16th centuries,