OPTIMAL HEALTH UNIVERSITY ™ ●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●● Presented by Steven L. Smith, DC The Whole Truth About Whole Grains

We hear a lot about the health benefits of whole grains these days. And food manufacturers know we’re listening. Unfortunately, some manufacturers are using this trend to their advantage by liberally and questionably using the term “” to describe their products. Make sure you’re armed with the whole truth about whole grains before your next trip to the grocery store.

“whole oats.” Whole grains contain the whole ker- whole-grain brown . nel. When grains are refined or proc- Next, consider the second ingredient. essed, two essential kernel compo- Is It Really Whole Grain? Even if the primary ingredient is a nents — the (the outer shell of whole grain, if the second is a form of the kernel) and germ (seed) — are At the typical supermarket, only about refined grain, such as “ ” or removed. The bran and the germ sup- 10 percent of grain-based products are “enriched flour,” then the product may ply most of the grain’s health-boosting genuinely whole grain. This alone can still contain a large mix of refined nutrients, such as niacin, thiamin, ri- make finding true whole-grain items a flour. And don’t be fooled by healthy- boflavin, magnesium, phosphorus, challenge. The quest is compounded sounding ingredients, such as iron and zinc. They’re also out- by the fact that many products appear “unbleached ,” “durum standing sources of fiber. to be whole grain, but only contain a wheat,” “cracked wheat” or “bran.” In miniscule amount — or none at all. addition, just because a product is Dr. Smith wants patients to understand organic does not mean it is whole that whole grains play a key role in So what’s the secret to finding whole grain. preventing obesity, diabetes, cardio- grains on the grocery-store shelves? vascular disease and some types of Dr. Smith suggests that you first ex- Again, whole grain should be the first cancer, according to new research. amine the front of the package. If just ingredient and only flour listed. Unfortunately, differentiating between the phrases “wheat,” “whole grain” or whole-grain products and less- “contains whole grains” appear, most Enriched Flour: Not So Enriching healthful options can require some likely only a fraction of the product minor detective work. That’s why Dr. consists of whole grains. Instead, look Shoppers may be easily duped into Smith is teaching patients how to be for claims like “100% whole grain” or confusing “enriched wheat flour” with whole-grain sleuths. “complete whole wheat.” Also, don’t whole grain. Enriched flour is far from be fooled by “multi-grain” options, whole, or its natural state. This flour Don’t Let Brown which often contain mostly refined undergoes a refining process that Bread Bamboozle You grains. cleaves out essential nutrients. The product is “enriched” when manufac- Many brown contain little or In addition, don’t assume that because turers add back in a few of these nutri- no whole grain whatsoever. Some are a product contains fiber, it’s 100 per- ents. Enriched flour is not nearly as simply white breads colored with mo- cent whole grain. Of course, fiber is nutritious as whole grain. lasses or artificial color to resemble immensely healthy, but it’s not inter- changeable for whole grain. Along those lines, “unbleached” is not the equivalent of whole grain. Unless After inspecting the front of the pack- it is clearly labeled “whole,” then age, next check out the ingredient list. “unbleached wheat flour” has been The first ingredient and only flour refined — and stripped of health- listed should contain the word boosting components. “whole,” such as “whole wheat,” “stone-ground whole grain,” “whole ,” “whole-grain ” or

Steven L. Smith, DC, Hickory Chiropractic Clinc, PLLC 256 Third Avenue NW, Hickory, NC 28601 (828) 323-8998 www.hickorychiro.com [email protected] Whole Grain Health Benefits legumes, fish and poultry. Conversely, lar disease at the study’s onset. In die- the Western diet included greater con- tary questionnaires, participants re- So what exactly do you get in return sumption of refined grains, red and corded their daily consumption of for all your whole-grain detective processed meats, sweets and french whole grains. work? Read on to find out. fries. During a 14-year follow-up, research- Obstruct Obesity During 14 years of follow-up, re- ers documented 1,818 cases of heart Research shows that substituting re- searchers determined that subjects in disease and found that risks were sig- fined grains with whole grains cuts the the Western pattern were most likely nificantly elevated among individuals risk of becoming overweight or obese. to develop the disease (Arch Intern who refrained from, or rarely ate, Med 2004;164:2235-40). whole grains (Am J Clin Nutr In one large-scale study, researchers 2004;80:1492-9). tracked the breakfast habits of 17,881 Inhibit Inflammation subjects, aged 40 to 84 years. During Most people think of inflammation as How Can I Get eight years of follow-up, participants a response to infection or an acute More Whole Grains? who consumed breakfast cereal with injury. However, chronic inflamma- whole grains consistently packed tion is linked with diseases like car- Multiplying your whole-grain con- fewer pounds than those who ate diovascular disease, Alzheimer’s dis- sumption is easy. Simply swap the whole-grain cereals less often (Obes ease, diabetes, Parkinson’s disease and refined-grain products in your diet Res 2005;13:1952-60). cancer. with whole-grain items whenever pos- sible. Why do whole grains encourage One study of 902 individuals with weight loss? The answer may lie in a diabetes examined whether consump- For breakfast, skip white breads and food ranking system called the tion of whole grains was associated opt for whole-grain cereals or whole- “glycemic index,” which ranks carbo- with inflammation. grain . For lunch or dinner, opt hydrate-containing foods based on for whole-wheat pasta or brown rice. their effects on blood . A diet rich in whole grains signifi- For snacks, consider whole-grain cantly reduced two key markers of bread with hummus or tapenade (olive Processed foods, such as bread or inflammation: C-reactive protein spread) rather than refined-grain pasta made with refined white flour, (CRP) and tumor necrosis factor-alpha crackers. And, always use whole- swiftly elevate blood sugar and have a receptor 2 (TNF-R2). wheat flour for . high glycemic-index rating. On the other hand, whole-grain foods have “Our data indicate that whole grains Aim to eat at least three ounces of 100 much less effect on blood sugar and a and a low-glycemic index diet may percent whole-grain foods per day. low glycemic-index rating. reduce systemic inflammation among (One ounce is about a slice of bread, women with type 2 diabetes,” con- one cup of breakfast cereal or 1/2 cup Increased blood sugar triggers an clude the study’s authors (Diabetes of cooked rice or pasta.) overproduction of the hormone insu- Care 2006;29:207-11). lin, ushering weight gain. In addition At first, whole-grain items may take to stabilizing blood sugar, whole Halt Heart Disease some getting used to, but stick to it. grains produce a feeling of fullness Multiple studies show that whole Once you become accustomed to faster than refined grains, in part due grains reduce the risk of heart disease. whole-grain products, you’ll find that to their fiber content. you prefer them to refined-grain op- In an analysis of 938 subjects, re- tions. Deter Diabetes searchers found that individuals with Research shows that a nutritious, low- higher intakes of whole grains had Optimal Health University™ is a professional service of PreventiCare Publishing®. The information and recom- diet — packed with whole grains lower incidence of heart disease. Par- mendations appearing on these pages are appropriate and fiber — prevents type 2 diabetes. ticipants who consumed the highest in most instances; but they are not a substitute for consultation with a health care provider. Optimal amount of whole grains had the lowest Health University™ may be photocopied (NOT re- For one study, researchers collected levels of total cholesterol and LDL printed) exactly as they are published noncommercially by current subscribers ONLY to share with patients or dietary information from 69,554 (“bad”) cholesterol. potential patients. Optimal Health University™ may women aged 38 to 63 who were free NOT be reprinted in any print or electronic publication from diabetes at the study’s onset. “The results suggest a lower risk of including newsletters, newspapers, magazines or Web sites. Any other reproductions are subject to Preventi- diabetes and heart disease in persons Care Publishing® approval. Copyright, 2013. Preventi- Based on the subjects’ dietary habits, who consume diets high in whole Care Publishing® . 1-831-313-0335. researchers identified two major die- grains.” (Am J Clin Nutr 2006;83:27.) www.preventicare.com tary patterns: “prudent” and “Western.” The prudent pattern was Another study examined 42,850 sub- characterized by higher consumption jects who ranged in age from 40 to 75 of whole grains, fruits, vegetables, years and were free from cardiovascu-