October 8, 2012 

By request - a reprisal of an old topic.

What is a whole grain?   It is a grain that contains the germ, endosperm and the bran and comes from the grass family.  We consider oats, wheat, barley, rye, corn, rice, sorghum, grasses and millet as whole grains.  These grains can then be converted into many useable forms of food to eat.  You want your grain based food to be made from ground whole grains, that's it.  Never enriched flour.

Let's look at the three parts: 1) germ; 2) endosperm; 3) bran.

The germ is the plant embryo that contains many antioxidants and prevents the seed from being hurt by microorganisms, i.e. bacteria.  The endosperm is the starchy storage tissue that provides the energy for growth of the seed.  The bran contains the fiber, vitamins, minerals and antioxidants.  We need all three parts.

Nature has given us a perfect food for energy, colonic health and growth.  

Where has it gone wrong?  

When we started to grind the grain into flour, but removed the nutritious bran and germ to make white flour, we inadvertently caused a huge problem.  The process of refining grains caused outbreaks of vitamin deficiencies including beri-beri and pellagra.  The discoveries of vitamin deficiencies brought about an era of fortifying flour.

Let us stop here.  Why not add back the germ and bran and be happy again???  Instead we go against nature and artificially think that we can replace the problem with enrichment.  This worked to stop the vitamin deficiencies but did little to control the next set of issues to come.  

The importance of fiber, fatty acids and the synergy of the three components of the grain cannot be understated.  High fiber diets are linked to good colonic health which is the root of all health.  Low fiber and refined grain diets are directly associated with colon cancer, coronary artery disease, diabetes and metabolic syndrome.

Cereals are a major source of energy in the American diet. We need to focus on the type of cereal for a healthy outcome.  If there is a cartoon character on the box, it is unlikely to be healthy for you or your child.  Look for true whole grain cereals and preferably oatmeal.

Take home point:

Avoid or at least reduce the consumption of refined flour based foods and increase whole grain foods.  Eat oatmeal, barley, quinoa, stone ground wheat, etc... Avoid enriched refined flour.