Whole Grain Studies and News

Eating several servings of whole grains per day while limiting daily intake of refined grains appear to create less fat tissue in the body, according to researchers.

They add that limiting this particular type of fat tissue may help prevent cardiovascular disease and type 2 diabetes.

What's the difference between "whole" grain and "refined" grain? As the name implies, there is more of the grain in whole grain. It contains germ, endosperm and bran. Refined grain, on the other hand, usually just retains the endosperm.

Whole grains are a natural source of protein, as well as a source of carbohydrates.

Researchers at the Jean Mayer USDA Human Nutrition Researcher Center on Aging (USDA HNRCA) at Tufts University observed lower volumes of visceral adipose tissue (VAT) in people who chose to eat mostly whole grains instead of refined grains.

Whole grains three times a day

"VAT volume was approximately 10 percent lower in adults who reported eating three or more daily servings of whole grains and who limited their intake of refined grains to less than one serving per day," said first author Nicola McKeown, PhD, a scientist with the Nutritional Epidemiology Program at the USDA HNRCA.

An example of whole grain food is oatmeal or whole wheat bread. Examples of refined grain food are rice and white bread.

McKeown and colleagues, including senior author Caroline S. Fox, MD, MPH, medical officer at The Framingham Heart Study of the National Heart Lung and Blood Institute (NHLBI), examined diet questionnaires submitted by 2,834 men and women enrolled in The Framingham Heart Offspring and Third Generation study cohorts.

The participants, ages 32 to 83, underwent sophisticated tests to determine VAT and subcutaneous adipose tissue (SAT) volumes.

Visceral fat surrounds the intra-abdominal organs while subcutaneous fat is found just beneath the skin.

"Prior research suggests visceral fat is more closely tied to the development of metabolic syndrome, a cluster of risk factors including hypertension, unhealthy cholesterol levels and insulin resistance that can develop into cardiovascular disease or type 2 diabetes," said co-author Paul Jacques, director of the Nutritional Epidemiology Program at the USDA HNRCA and a professor at the Friedman School of Nutrition Science and Policy at Tufts.

"Not surprisingly, when we compared the relationship of both visceral fat tissue and subcutaneous fat tissue to whole and refined grain intake, we saw a more striking association with visceral fat. The association persisted after we accounted for other lifestyle factors such as smoking, alcohol intake, fruit and vegetable intake, percentage of calories from fat and physical activity," Jacques said.

Read the labels

Adding whole grain foods to your diet will probably require some label-reading. When shopping, check the ingredients list closely. If the first ingredient in the list is "whole wheat," "whole meal," or whole corn," then it's a whole grain food item.

Try to avoid products with ingredients described as "enriched" or "bromated." That could indicated refined ingredients.

Just because the first ingredient is listed as "wheat flour," that doesn't necessarily mean it's a whole grain product. A better indicator is "wholegrain wheat flour" or "whole wheat flour."

Sara Lee's "whole grain white bread" is toast.

The company has agreed that labels for its "Soft & Smooth Made With Whole Grain White Bread" will make clear that the product is only 30 percent whole grain. It's part of a settlement agreement the company has reached with the Center for Science in the Public Interest.

Last December, the nonprofit nutrition watchdog group threatened to sue the company over the bread's labeling, which, at the time, suggested that it had as much fiber as 100 percent whole wheat bread.

Government guidelines recommend that consumers make at least half their grains whole, so Sara Lee's disclosure that this particular bread is just 30 percent whole grain will help consumers put it into that context, the group said. As part of the agreement, Sara Lee will add copy to the label stating that two slices have 10 grams of whole grain, and that USDA recommends consumption of 48 grams of whole grains daily.

"Consumers who want the health benefits of whole grains should look for bread that is labeled '100 percent whole wheat,' or failing that, a bread where whole wheat flour, not just 'wheat flour,' is the first ingredient," said CSPI executive director Michael F. Jacobson. "This settlement will help consumers comparison shop among breads: plain white bread, breads like Sara Lee's with 30 percent whole grains, and 100 percent whole wheat bread."

Sara Lee says its "Soft & Smooth Made With Whole Grain White Bread" is meant to be a transitional product, designed to get consumers who are used to the taste and texture of white bread to consume more whole grains.

Other food companies often give consumers the impression that their white-flour-based products are "made with whole grain" even if there is only a small amount. Kraft uses phrases like "good source of whole grain" or "excellent source of whole grain" on labels even if the product is mostly refined white flour. Kraft Supermac & Cheese, for instance, is advertised as a "good source" of whole grain, even though its first ingredient is white flour.

General Mills, to its credit, according to CSPI, recently began transitioning away from those types of source claims in favor of indicating the amount of whole grains in grams.

The distinction between white flour and whole wheat flour is an important one nutritionally. When whole wheat is refined into white flour, most of the fiber and key nutrients are lost.

Though some nutrients are added back in when white flour is "enriched," studies show that whole grain foods might be useful in reducing risk of heart disease and diabetes. White flour does not have anywhere near the same beneficial effects, according to nutrition experts.

"It's time to take the whole grain halo off of foods made primarily with white flour," said CSPI litigation director Steve Gardner. "Companies that use the phrase 'whole grain' absolutely have the legal responsibility under state consumer protection laws to disclose exactly how much whole grain is there. We are pleased that Sara Lee has agreed to do that."

Yet Sara Lee helps foster that confusion by marketing a Soft & Smooth Made with Whole Grain White Bread and falsely claiming that it is as nutritious as whole wheat bread, says the nonprofit Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI).

CSPI has served the company with formal notice that it will file suit against the company if the misleading claims continue.

Sara Lee claims that its Whole Grain White Bread has the taste and texture of white bread with the goodness of whole grain, and whole grain goodness with all the mouthwatering pleasure of scrumptious, soft, white bread.

By claiming an exciting innovation in white bread, the repeated whole grain goodness claims are particularly misleading because some new breads are in fact, made with a white whole-wheat flour that is, in fact, whole wheat. One version of a label for the Sara Lee product at issue made the patently false statement that Sara Lee Soft & Smooth Made with Whole Grain White [bread] = 100% Whole Wheat.

This whole grain bread is mostly refined white flour, the kind of flour that health authorities recommend Americans eat less of, said CSPI executive director Michael F. Jacobson. Sara Lee is attempting to put a whole grain halo on a bread that is not whole wheat. I call that a whole grain whitewash.

On breadrules.com, a web site operated by Sara Lee, a press release for a genuinely 100 percent whole wheat Sara Lee bread regretfully ruminates that seven out of 10 consumers mistakenly believe their wheat bread is 100% whole wheat, and that 50 percent of traditional wheat bread consumers mistakenly believe their bread is the best nutritional choice.

Another Sara Lee site, thejoyofeating.com, lets consumers test breads by Arnold, Natures Own, Pepperidge Farm, on a Whole-Grain-o-Meter to see if the product is 100 percent whole grain or not. While the meter rates several Sara Lee breads, its Whole Grain White Bread is absent.

A pledge form on that site gives the impression that switching to a Soft and Smooth whole grain bread is an act of nutritional virtue. But in fact, only 30 percent of the grain in Sara Lees Soft and Smooth Whole Grain White Bread is whole grain, and the rest is refined white flour, according to news reports. In fact, there is more water in this product than whole grain.

It would be more accurate to say that this Sara Lee product is brimming with the wholesome goodness of white flour and water, said CSPI litigation director Steve Gardner. The intent is to confuse consumers, who are denied the nutrition they think they are paying for. Its hard to see how a judge or jury would let a company get away with such an obvious fraud.

CSPIs notification to Sara Lee says it wants the company to stop the misleading whole grain claims and to donate to charity the profits it has received from Soft & Smooth Made with Whole Grain White Bread that it has earned since its introduction in 2005.

Sara Lee has 30 days to respond to CSPIs settlement offer.

Brown rice had previously been excluded because its dietary fiber content was considered too low but will now be allowed to display a whole grains logo and information pointing out the benefits of consuming whole grains.

Whole grain foods can help reduce the risk of heart disease and many cancers, health officials say.

"Rice is the most popular grain around the world, which makes brown rice a great choice for increasing whole grain intake," says Joann Slavin, Ph.D., R.D., whole grains expert and Professor of Food Science and Nutrition at the University of Minnesota.

"In the United States, where chronic diseases such as heart disease and cancers are common, encouraging whole grain brown rice consumption could have a significant public health impact."

Brown rice contains beneficial phytonutrients including antioxidants, anthocyanins, phytosterols, tocopherols oryzanol and many other potentially protective substances that have been found to help reduce the risk of heart disease, certain cancers, type II diabetes and potentially aid in weight maintenance.

Brown rice also contains 15 vitamins and minerals, including B-vitamins, potassium, magnesium, selenium, iron, and 2 grams of fiber per one half cup of cooked rice.

U.S. dietary guidelines recommend "making half of all grain servings whole" or consuming three whole grain servings per day in the average 2000-calorie diet.

Yet data from a recent consumer survey conducted by EatingWell magazine and the USA Rice Federation show that the majority of Americans (65 percent) don't eat anywhere this amount.

Under the reform, all single ingredient whole grain foods are eligible to make the health claim as long as they meet broad health claim requirements.

The dietary fiber aspect of the health claim has been a bone of contention since 1999 when the claim was established because it favored high fiber content over total nutritional composition.

The fiber relaxation will please groups such as the flax industry that are yet to receive the approval brown rice has won, a cause of acrimony to an industry that feels unfairly persecuted by anachronistic laws.

According to the EatingWell/USA Rice survey:

• 87 percent of US consumers know that whole grains are good for them.

• 80 percent know whole grains can be protective against cardiovascular disease, but less than two-thirds are aware they also offer protection against certain cancers.

• While 80 percent of consumers know that brown rice is a whole grain, more than 80 percent also mistakenly think that bran cereal and breads marked simply as "wheat" are also whole grains.

• 80 percent of individuals said they would be likely to eat more whole grains if these foods were clearly labeled as whole grains

• 68 percent said they would increase consumption if the health benefits were stated on the package.

Research indicates rice eaters are more likely to meet dietary guidelines than non-rice eaters.

May 10, 2007
Eating whole grain bread and other foods is associated with a significantly lower risk of developing cardiovascular disease, including heart disease and stroke. Thats the conclusion of a new analysis conducted by researchers at Wake Forest University School of Medicine.

Consuming an average of 2.5 servings of whole grains each day is associated with a 21 percent lower risk of cardiovascular disease compared to consuming only 0.2 servings, said Philip Mellen, M.D., lead author and an assistant professor of internal medicine.

These findings suggest that we should redouble our efforts to encourage patients to include more of these foods in their diets.

The results were published online in Nutrition, Metabolism & Cardiovascular Diseases and will appear in a future print issue.

The findings are based on an analysis of seven studies involving more than 285,000 people. By combining the data from these seven studies, researchers were able to detect effects that may not have shown up in each individual study. The studies were conducted between 1966 and April 2006.

Mellen said the findings are consistent with earlier research, but that despite abundant evidence about the health benefits of whole grains, intake remains low.

A nutrition survey conducted between 1999 and 2000 found that only 8 percent of U.S. adults consumed three or more servings of whole grain per day and that 42 percent of adults ate no whole grains on a given day.

Many consumers and health professionals are unaware of the health benefits of whole grains, said Mellen.

A grain is whole when the entire grain seed is retained: the bran, germ and the endosperm. The bran and germ components are rich in fiber, vitamins, minerals, antioxidants, and healthy fats. These are the parts removed in the refining process, leaving behind the energy-dense but nutrient-poor endosperm portion of the grain.

Examples of whole grain foods include wild rice, popcorn, oatmeal, brown rice, barley, wheat berries and flours such as whole wheat.

In addition to protecting against cardiovascular disease, which accounts for one-third of deaths worldwide, there is evidence that whole grains also project against diabetes and other chronic conditions.

Years ago, scientists hypothesized that the higher rates of chronic diseases we have in the West, including heart disease, are due, in part, to a diet full of processed foods, Mellen said. Subsequent studies have born that out especially with whole grains. Greater whole grain intake is associated with less obesity, diabetes, high blood pressure, and high cholesterol major factors that increase the risk for heart disease and stroke.

According to nutritionists, consumers should look for 100 percent whole grain on food labels or look for specific types of whole-grain flour as the main ingredient, such as whole wheat.