The Whole Truth About Whole Grains

Jan. 9, 2007 — -- Today it seems that everything is touted as "whole" this or that. Whole grains, whole wheat, a whole lot of health: it's the latest in food marketing.

Why? Because food manufacturers know that whole grains are one of the healthiest ingredients you can eat. More and more foods are made with them, but that doesn't mean all are created equal.

Why? Because those marketing words don't always present an accurate picture of what's inside the food.

To decipher the whole mess, you first need to understand what exactly whole grains are and how they work.

"Whole grain" means the grain still has all three of its original elements: the outer shell or bran, which contains fiber and B vitamins; the germ, which contains phytochemicals and B vitamins; and the endosperm (what a name), which contains carbohydrates and protein.

The key is that they're "whole" and not "refined," by stripping away the bran and germ, which leaves you eating only the endosperm.

The whole grain should be left intact -- meaning you get more fiber and more micronutrients that help protect against disease.

These whole grains are also healthy for you because they're absorbed more slowly than enriched or bleached flour and thus raise glucose and insulin levels less -- keeping you fuller longer and slowing your digestion.

But not all foods that tout whole grains or whole wheat are the healthiest form. Some fake-out words you should watch out for:

Made with: It may have a drop of whole grains, but unless it's made entirely with them, you won't reap all the potential benefits.

100 percent wheat: This means it could have some or a lot or no "whole" wheat.

Multigrain: This tells you nothing about whether the grains are whole or refined. Even if you're getting 38 grains, that isn't much good if they are all refined.

Whole grain: If the label doesn't say "100 percent whole grain," it may have many blends. Bad words to see: enriched, bleached, unbleached, semolina, durum, and rice flour.

Blends: "Whole-grain blend" means it usually doesn't have much whole grain at all.

Good source: This means it has 8 grams of whole grains per serving or as little as 13.5 percent. Don't confuse whole grain with fiber; 8 grams of whole grain may have less than 1 gram of fiber.

Excellent source: This means it has 16 grams per serving or as little as 27 percent.

Supports heart health: Any food can say that it "supports" an organ. What you want to see on the label: "May reduce the risk of . . ." This means that the food has ingredients clinically shown to be effective in reducing the risk of, say, heart disease or high cholesterol, depending on the food.

For more information on reading food labels, click here.

Excerpted from "You: On a Diet" by Michael F. Roizen, M.D. and Mehmet C. Oz, M.D. Copyright c 2006 by Michael F. Roizen, M.D. and Oz Works, LLC. Reprinted by permission from Free Press, a Division of Simon & Schuster.