People in this country looooooove their white bread, white rice, refined cereals and white pasta – but lots of the good stuff (vitamins, minerals and dietary fiber) are stripped away during the refining process, so there’s less nutritional benefit to these foods. A new study reports on the various health benefits from eating lots of unprocessed whole grains.
In a 9-year nutrition study of 388,000+ men and women, those who had the most dietary fiber (25-30 grams/day) were 22% less likely to die than those who ate the least fiber (11-13 grams/day). Now remember, dietary fiber comes from fruits, vegetables and whole-grains – the pulp, peel, leaves, stems, etc. of plant foods.
Whole grains seemed to offer the most protection. They include: brown & wild rice, barley, quinoa… plus, whole oats, whole wheat and whole rye found in cereals, bread products, flours and pasta.
This study also found that the risk for cardiovascular and respiratory diseases was cut by as much as 59% in some folks with the highest fiber intake. Whole grains seemed to be the most important fiber source to offer protection.
Enjoy a whole-grain day! The USDA recommends 3 servings of whole grains each day. For example:
Breakfast – oatmeal or whole-grain cold cereal
Lunch- sandwich made with multi-grainbread, tortilla, bun or pita pocket
Dinner – stir fry served over wild rice-quinoa mixture.
Whole-grains! It’s as easy as 1-2-3 servings per day.
