When it comes to buying more whole grain, all the advertising makes it very difficult to decide what is the healthiest option – especially with all the new products.
Whole wheat is better for two main reasons. First off, non-whole wheat products, such as white bread have been through a process called milling. During this process, producers take away the fiber and nutrients like niacin and lots of others. They normally try to replace this loss by fortifying the bread with the minerals they took out during the milling process. Whole wheat bread has all three parts of the wheat berries (the bran, the germ and the endosperm) and all the good for you nutrients along with lots of fiber.
If a piece of bread has at least 3 grams of fiber, it's considered good. It is recommended that we all get 25-35 grams and not most people do that. Fiber can help decrease cholesterol, prevent constipation, and decrease intestinal cancers. Fiber helps provide volume and bulk so it helps you stay full longer. When looking at different products, look for the first ingredient to be whole wheat flour (not just wheat flour).
If you look at pastas, whole wheat pastas are made from durum wheat. Durum is the second-most widely cultivated wheat species (after common wheat). The whole-wheat pastas may have higher protein content (7-10 grams per 2 ounce dry serving).
To get a better feel for the benefits of regular vs. whole wheat products, let’s compare pastas (see labels below). In addition to the protein benefit mentioned above, a cup or 5 oz of cooked whole wheat pasta can average 176 calories per cup vs. 224 calories for the same amount of cooked regular spaghetti. Additionally, it’s important to take a look at the fiber content. The whole wheat pasta has 4 grams of fiber per cup compared with 2.6 grams of fiber with the regular pasta.
Rebecca
