Current Evidence on the Effects of Sodium Bicarbonate used in Bread Processing on Human Health: A Systematic Review

In the last decade, there have been some claims about hazards of Sodium bicarbonate in bread, in public and scientific sites. Currently, the use of sodium bicarbonate in bread processing is forbidden in Iran. Therefore, the present study sought to assess the current evidence on the adverse effects of sodium bicarbonate use from oral route on public health. Different databases, including Scopus, Pubmed, and Ovid were searched for hazards of sodium bicarbonate in baking. Based on this systematic review, there was no study showing any adverse effects of Sodium bicarbonate when used in producing bread. However, we found many studies about the use and medical application of it. The reported adverse effects mostly included gastrointestinal and electrolytes implications at medical doses which are significantly higher than those used in bakery, or some complications due to accidental or excessive oral ingestion of sodium bicarbonate. Not only was there no evidence on the adverse effects of sodium bicarbonate on public health, but at medical doses, many useful effects were also reported in clinical trial studies. Therefore, it is assumed that the use of Sodium bicarbonate at normal doses does not have any adverse effects on human and can be used for bakery in Iran.