A nutritionist goes to Mercadona and indicates which is the best bread sold in this supermarket.

Entering a supermarket may seem like a simple task, but for someone trying to maintain a healthy diet , it can become an odyssey. In the bakery aisles, the challenge can be even greater: the variety of breads available—from whole-grain to multigrain, with seeds, fiber, or supposedly artisanal—can be disorienting to even the most attentive consumer. And what appears healthy at first glance often hides ingredients and processes that have nothing to do with good nutrition.

That's where the experts come in. Nutritionists like Carlos Ríos , creator of the "Realfooding" movement, recently analyzed the different types of bread sold at Mercadona and ranked the best and worst breads sold at the supermarket .

"You're choosing the wrong bread from Mercadona and you don't even know it," warns the nutritionist at the beginning of his video. His analysis isn't just based on fiber content or whether it's whole grain, but also on the quality of the flours , the type of fats , the presence of additives , and the transparency of the labeling .

The nutritionist begins his assessment with what he calls the "death group," a category that encompasses breads made with refined wheat flour , present in much of Mercadona's offerings. The key, he explains, is to turn the packaging over and read the ingredients. "We start with the death group, where you only have to turn these breads over to realize they're made with refined wheat flour," he points out.

And it's not just a technical or fashion issue. For the expert, the use of this type of flour has serious long-term health consequences . "Physiologically, this flour is the same as refined sugar; high consumption is linked to obesity, type 2 diabetes, some types of cancer, cardiovascular and neurodegenerative diseases," he warns forcefully. Therefore, this type of bread, so common in many Spanish homes, should be avoided if the goal is to maintain a balanced diet.

On a second level, the nutritionist places a group of breads that are somewhat healthier, but still have some nuances. These are those that use 100% whole-wheat flour , which is a positive point, but they come with other undesirable ingredients.

"On the second level, we find a group of breads made with 100% whole-wheat flour. These breads are more filling and rich in fiber, but the problem is that their ingredients contain refined sunflower oil, and the truth is that they also come with an excess of additives, emulsifiers, preservatives... up to 3 or 4 types of preservatives," explains the nutritionist.

This type of bread, although it may seem adequate at first glance, is far from optimal due to the number of unnecessary ingredients it contains. Therefore, the expert places them in the middle of the range. "I would classify these breads as 'average'; they're neither very good nor very bad," he clarifies, concluding by recommending their consumption in moderation.

Furthermore, she points out an additional problem: the lack of transparency on some labels. As she demonstrates, there are breads that claim to be whole-grain, but don't include a list of ingredients, making it impossible to confirm their authenticity. "In some cases, like this new product, they list '100% whole-grain wheat bread,' but since we don't have access to the list of ingredients, we can't verify whether they're actually telling the truth," she comments, showing one of these products.

At the top of his ranking, the nutritionist presents the three types of bread he considers good options at Mercadona. In third place, he places a lesser-known option, but one that's very interesting from a nutritional perspective.

"We're in the top three recommended breads with our fiber and sesame bread, which is 100% whole grain rye flour," he says, highlighting its high fiber content and lack of harmful ingredients .

In second place are 100% whole-wheat rolls . In this case, the list of ingredients is available, and the analysis is favorable: "In the top two are 100% whole-wheat rolls. Here we have the list of ingredients and we can confirm that it's 100% whole-wheat," he notes.

Finally, the bread that takes first place meets all the requirements advocated by the "Realfooding" movement: simple ingredients, no additives, and good fats. "In the top 1, we have, of course, 100% whole-wheat bread, which contains whole-wheat flour, extra virgin olive oil, sourdough..." he concludes.