Eater's Digest: The 'whole' story

By Scott Norgaard     4/15/10 7:00pm

If you're looking for guilt-free food, chances are you've stumbled across whole-grain options. Nutrition experts often laud whole grains, but do most of us know what grains are considered whole grains? What does this label mean?Grains are the seeds of grasses and are typically composed of three parts: an outer bran that contains a lot of fiber, a starchy endosperm and a germ, which is a concentrated source of nutrients. According to the FDA, whole grains are "cereal grains that consist of the intact, ground, cracked or flaked kernel, which includes the bran, the germ and the inner most part of the kernel (the endosperm)."

In comparison, white flour, the flour most commonly found in packaged foods, has the bran and germ mostly removed during the milling of the grain, leaving just the starchy endosperm behind. White flour and processed grains lack a large amount of the nutrients and fiber naturally found in their whole-grain counterparts. Although flour processors generally add some of the vitamins, minerals and fiber back into their products, this added material does not have the same beneficial effects of the whole grain. According to the Mayo Clinic Web site, this is usually because the additives are laboratory-synthesized.

So if heavily processing the grain removes large amounts of the nutrients and beneficial fiber, why are grains processed so often? Whole grains naturally contain oils, which can turn rancid. After the grains have been processed, they become more convenient to store and transport, and their shelf life increases.

---

---

Unfortunately, processed grains also lack the health benefits derived from the inner germ and outer bran components. The Harvard School of Public Health links diets containing whole grains to several health benefits, including improvements in resistance to cardiovascular disease, type 2 diabetes, cancer and digestive health. Whole grain diets are also associated with lowered total cholesterol and LDL (low-density lipoprotein, or "bad") cholesterol. In one study, women who ate two to three servings of whole grains daily were 30 percent less likely to have a heart attack or to die from heart disease over a 10-year period when compared to women who had only one serving of whole grains each week.

The health benefits of whole grains are likely due to the unique combination of the bran, endosperm and germ found in whole grains. It appears as though the entire whole grain is greater than the sum of its nutrient parts. The body's digestive system cannot as easily turn the combination of bran and fiber in whole grains into glucose (sugar) as it can with processed grains. Since enriched flours can be easily converted to sugar, eating them often causes unwanted spikes in your body's blood sugar levels.

Unfortunately, food manufacturers often put refined grains in their products, labeling them with healthy-sounding ingredient names and health claims, which confuses consumers. MyPyramid, the U.S. Department of Agriculture's food guide pyramid, warns that packages containing "multi-grain," "stone ground," "100% wheat," "cracked wheat," and "seven-grain" are not necessarily whole grain. To be completely sure, look for "100 % whole wheat" or check the ingredients. Whole grains are easy to incorporate into your diet. In addition to whole wheat breads and pastas, other whole grains include bulgur, brown rice, oatmeal, popcorn, barley and millet.

There are numerous health benefits linked with eating grains that have the bran and germ included in them. Now, that sounds like one happy ending to the whole story.

Scott Norgaard is a Sid Richardson College freshman.

---