Part 2: What Happened When We Ditched Enriched Flour?

Hey y’all, Momma J here, and if you read Part 1, you already know that enriched flour is nothing but a lab experiment disguised as food. We learned about synthetic vitamins, the dangers of folic acid, and how nearly half the population can’t even process it properly—causing serious health risks, especially for expectant mothers.

But here’s where things get real.

When we made the switch to organic, non-enriched flour, I expected it to taste better (which it did), but I didn’t expect all the other changes we noticed—how we felt, how our food cooked, and even our energy levels.

If you’ve ever wondered whether it’s really worth switching, let me tell you what happened to our family when we ditched enriched flour for good.

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1. The Taste Test: Why Organic Flour Wins Every Time

The first shocker? The taste.

Like I told y’all in Part 1, the moment we made our first batch of homemade egg noodles with organic flour, we could tell something was different. They needed extra flour to come together, and they cooked up more tender but richer in flavor.

We tested this over and over again:

Biscuits: Fluffier, not as dry, and tasted more like actual wheat.

Bread: More flavorful, with a deeper, nuttier taste.

Pie crusts: More delicate and crisp, but not as crumbly.

Gravy: Thicker and smoother—no weird clumps like enriched flour sometimes gives you.

But the biggest shock? Once we got used to real flour, we tried going back to enriched flour for comparison.

Y’all. It tasted like glue. Like paste. Like something fake. How did we ever think this was normal?

That was when I realized: our taste buds had been trained to accept “processed” as normal.

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2. The Biggest Surprise: How We Felt After Switching

Okay, this part is where things get serious. I thought switching flours would just be a small thing. I did not expect it to change how we felt.

Less bloating – I used to think feeling heavy after a meal was normal. Nope. Turns out, enriched flour was messing with our digestion.

Better energy levels – No more afternoon crashes or feeling sluggish after eating a big meal.

Clearer skin – This one surprised me, but after a few months, I realized my skin wasn’t as dry, and I wasn’t breaking out as much.

Less brain fog – I’m not saying flour was the only thing, but when we got rid of synthetic folic acid and other junk, I felt like I could think more clearly.

Now, here’s the kicker: My kids felt it too.

My little ones weren’t getting as fussy after meals. They seemed calmer, more focused, and—this might be a coincidence, but—it felt like they weren’t constantly craving snacks like before. Could it be because their bodies were actually getting real nutrients instead of processed fillers? I think so.

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3. Postpartum Recovery & Mental Health: The Folic Acid Factor

Now, this is the part I need all my mama friends to hear loud and clear.

If you read Part 1, you already know that folic acid—the synthetic version added to enriched flour—can be a problem for women, especially during pregnancy and postpartum.

I had my fair share of struggles after birth—exhaustion, brain fog, and postpartum blues. I just chalked it up to “normal.” But now I have to wonder:

Could my body have been overloaded with folic acid it couldn’t process?

Was unmetabolized folic acid (UFA) blocking other essential nutrients from being absorbed?

Could switching to natural folate have helped with mood, energy, and recovery?

📌 A study in PLOS ONE found that women with the MTHFR gene mutation were more likely to struggle with postpartum depression if they had high levels of unmetabolized folic acid. (https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371%2Fjournal.pone.0012201&utm_source=chatgpt.com)

📌 Another study in The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition found that excessive folic acid intake can block the body’s ability to properly use other B vitamins, which are essential for mood regulation and brain health. (https://academic.oup.com/ajcn/article/102/4/899/4564389)

After cutting enriched flour and folic acid-laced foods out of my diet, I noticed a change in mood stability, energy, and overall well-being.

This isn’t just me, y’all—there are entire double-blind, peer-reviewed studies showing that too much folic acid can actually make things worse for women who can’t process it.

So if you’ve been struggling postpartum, check what’s in your food. Because it might not be you—it might be what they’re putting in our food supply.

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4. The Autism Connection: Why This Is a Wake-Up Call for Moms

Now, I know this is a controversial topic, but mamas, we need to talk about it.

There are real studies linking high folic acid levels in pregnant women to an increased risk of autism in their babies.

🔍 A 2017 study in The Journal of Nutrition found that pregnant women with excessive folic acid levels had double the risk of having a child with autism. (https://academic.oup.com/jn/article/147/3/507/4584640)

🔍 A 2019 study in Frontiers in Neuroscience showed that children with autism were more likely to have mothers who had high levels of unmetabolized folic acid during pregnancy. (https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fnins.2019.00383/full)

This doesn’t mean folic acid causes autism. But it means there’s a connection, and that’s enough to make me take a step back and rethink everything.

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5. Would We Ever Go Back? Absolutely Not.

After seeing how we felt and learning what’s in enriched flour, there’s no way we’re ever going back.

We’re sticking to:

✅ Organic, non-enriched flour

✅ Real folate from whole foods (liver, eggs, leafy greens, legumes)

✅ Methylated folate supplements if needed (not folic acid)

I know change is hard, but just try it once.

Buy a bag of organic flour, bake something from scratch, and see if you notice a difference. More importantly, see how your body feels. Because once you know the truth, you can’t unknow it.

And that’s why I’m here—to make sure you know.

Stay strong, stay informed, and stay rooted in tradition,

Momma J

"Crafted for wellness, rooted in truth."