Grains of Wisdom

Summer 2008

Nutrition education and the food industry – for many health professionals this may seem like an oxymoron. However, let’s really take a look at some major educational efforts being implemented by the food industry. The Nutrient Rich Coalition, an outgrowth of the Dietary Guidelines Alliance, offers fast and reliable information to help you eat the nutrient-rich way – that means getting the most vitamins, minerals and other nutrients – but not too many calories – from the foods you choose. Sound familiar? It should as it is what health care professionals have advocated for a very long time.

The International Food Information Council’s (IFIC) mission is to communicate science-based information on food safety and nutrition to health and nutrition professionals, educators, journalists, government officials and others providing information to consumers. IFIC is supported primarily by the broad-based food, beverage and agricultural industries.

Both of these organizations, as well as many others including Wheat Foods Council, are industry supported. Does that mean that the information they provide is questionable? Quite the contrary. Nutrition educators associated with industry are very cognizant of providing messages and information that is based in research. In addition, they are often experts in their respective fields whether it is grains, dairy or communication.

This edition of Grains of Wisdom takes a look at what is being done by the Nutrient Rich Coalition and reports on the Functional Food Survey recently done by IFIC. Take a look, compare the information provided to any other source and see just how reliable it is.

With the obesity epidemic going at full speed, Americans are fast becoming overweight but yet remain undernourished. The newly formed Nutrient-Rich Coalition, of which Wheat Foods Council is a member, was formed to address and clarify consumers’ misconceptions and help them understand how to get more nutrition from the foods they eat and drink. This coalition takes a new approach to defining “healthy foods” by promoting a nutrient-rich approach to eating. It follows the advice of the dietary guidelines and MyPyramid by encouraging getting the most vitamins, minerals and other nutrients from foods while staying within calorie recommendations.

The coalition is a partnership that brings together leading scientific researchers, communication experts and twelve food commodity associations representing the five food groups of MyPyramid. They recently launched a new web site, www.NutrientRichFoods.org, which provides user-friendly tips, recipe ideas and grocery shopping lists to help consumers simplify, and even enjoy, the process. The site also contains helpful resources for health professionals, including the Live Well! Tool kit. The tool kit is easily downloadable from the site and was created as an education guide for health professionals to use with their clients.

The coalition sums it all up by stating “The Nutrient Rich Foods Coalition is advancing scientific and market research to develop tools that make it easier for people to get the most nutrition from their calories, as recommended by the dietary guidelines and MyPyramid.”


"Functional Foods” survey

The International Food Information Council (IFIC) recently completed their annual survey on how consumers explore health and wellness benefits of foods. The survey provides insights into how consumers view their own diets, their efforts to improve them, and their understanding of the components they incorporate into their diets.

While 80 percent of Americans rate their health status as excellent or very good, a significant number, 58 percent, say they are only somewhat satisfied with their health. This gap indicates that many Americans who consider themselves to be healthy also perceive room for improvement.

When it comes to making purchase decisions, taste still rules. Since the last survey done in 2006, significantly more consumers (65 percent) cite healthfulness of a product as a factor in purchasing decisions behind taste (88 percent) and price (72 percent).

When asked on an unaided basis, the top ten “functional foods” that consumers named in the 2007 survey are: 1) fruits and vegetables, 2) fish, fish oil and seafood, 3) milk and other dairy products, 4) whole grains, including oats, oat bran and oatmeal, 5) fiber, 6) green tea, 7) meat, 8) water, 9) certain herbs and spices, 10) nuts.

Most women know that getting enough folate is important during their childbearing years, but how many men know that the same goes for them? Earlier this year researchers from the University of California Berkeley and the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory found that men who reported higher levels of dietary folate had lower frequencies of chromosomal abnormalities.¹ While this isn’t a direct cause and effect relationship this new information will help researchers determine if the current recommended daily intake of folate for men (400 micrograms) needs to be increased.

For now, it’s important to know that folate has other health benefits like possible protection against heart disease in addition to creating new body cells. Since folate is a water soluble vitamin it’s found in many foods as well as fortified foods. Here are some folate packed foods that can help men reach the recommended intake:

• Leafy green vegetables like spinach and romaine lettuce
• Green vegetables like asparagus, broccoli and Brussels sprouts
• Citrus fruits
• Legumes
• Grain foods made with enriched flour such as bread, cereal, pasta and tortillas

Desiree from Fargo, N.D. asks: Are there research studies comparing the effects of whole wheat, white whole wheat and white (enriched) bread? White whole wheat is new to me. Does it have the same health benefits attributed to whole wheat products?

Thanks, Desiree, for your great question. Whole wheat, white whole wheat and enriched wheat, as well as many of the products from which they are made, are good wholesome foods. They contribute many nutrients to the diet of individuals who consume them. However, they are different products and provide unique health benefits.

Whole wheat, whether from white wheat or the more traditional red wheat, is a whole grain. Whole grains contain all three parts of the kernel, the bran (outer layer) contains the largest amount of fiber, as well as antioxidants and phytochemicals; the endosperm (middle layer) mostly protein and complex carbohydrates and soluble fiber; and the germ (inner seed) rich source of trace minerals, unsaturated fats, vitamins, antioxidants and phytochemicals.

Enriched grain foods are made from the finely ground endosperm of the kernel. Some of the nutrients that are milled out are replaced through enrichment. In fact, slice for slice, enriched white bread has over twice the amount of folic acid as whole wheat. And, folic acid is credited with helping to decrease the risk of coronary heart disease and memory loss and is attributed to the decreased incidence of neural tube defects in infants.

So you see while whole grains supply the body with additional fiber, phytochemicals, antioxidants, healthy fat and certain vitamins and minerals, enriched grains (white bread, pasta and flour tortillas) contribute high levels of folic acid and iron – both important nutrients for good health. The 2005 Dietary Guidelines recommend getting half our grains as whole grains for good reason – both whole grains and enriched grains make a contribution to good health.

Your chance to meet our president, Marcia Scheideman, is right around the corner. Marcia will attend the following events:

• July 19-22, 2008 - SNE Annual Meeting, Atlanta, GA
• July 26-28, 2008 - US Wheat meeting, Kansas City, MO
• September 8-9, 2008 - National Food Policy meeting, Washington, DC
• October 6-8, 2008 - Urban Wheat Field, New York City
• October 25-28, 2008 - ADA Annual Meeting, Chicago, IL

According to researchers at Penn State, people who ate five servings daily of whole grains as part of a low-calorie diet lost more abdominal fat and had lower levels of C-reactive protein than those who only cut calories. They believe a diet high in whole grains may help shrink fat cells and reduce inflammation.

University of Minnesota researchers instructed 26 middle-aged adults to meet with a dietitian weekly for three months. Those who attended all scheduled sessions lost 67% more weight than those who skipped appointments.

For nearly 30 years, carrots were the only veggie in the WIC program used by more than 8 million women, infants and children. New rules will allow Moms to buy a wider range of produce and whole grains. One study shows users who receive vouchers for produce eat up to twice as many fresh fruits and vegetables.

The media has taken notice of the Wheat Foods Council’s 35th anniversary cookbook “Food for Thought from Parents to Children.” The Washington Post highlighted the book as part of a special feature on childhood obesity in May. The book was also featured in Newsweek and on All You magazine’s diet blog.

Additionally, broadcast coverage of the cookbook included regional superstation WGN’s “Lunch Break” section of the noon news show where Chef Gand prepared her whole wheat crepes recipe featured in the cookbook, and on Martha Stewart’s satellite radio program.

Wheat Foods Council’s 35th anniversary cookbook, Food for Thought, From Parents to Children, is now available for sale. Playing on the “35th” theme, there are a total of thirty-five recipes in the cookbook – thirty submitted by parents from across the country and the remaining five from celebrity chef and mother of three, Gale Gand. Chef Gand’s recipes were created exclusively for WFC.

Parents will be able to use this cookbook as a way to make cooking with their children a fun and educational experience. Nutritious, convenient recipes are accompanied by facts about nutrition, portion sizes and foods' origin. We want to help parents across America make healthy eating a priority in their homes. A highlight of the book will be the education it provides on wheat and the role of grains in a healthy diet.

Each recipe in the cookbook is a wheat-based recipe and falls into one of five recipe categories of breakfast, lunch, dinner, snacks and dessert. The cookbook will be available for purchase at www.wheatfoods.org for $3.50 beginning in May of this year. The proceeds will go to Spoons Across America, a not-for-profit organization dedicated to educating children, teachers and families about the benefits of healthy eating.