Great Grains!
Jessica Nickels, MS, RD/LD
2006
Grains
• Grains are the staple of diets throughout the world
• Fad diets have come and gone, grains were given a bad
name claiming “bread is fattening”
• At one time, pastas, rice, and tortillas were only served
in ethnic restaurants and not at home at the dinner
table.
• Today, they have moved in to the mainstream of our
cuisine
Anatomy of a Grain
• Most commonly consumed grain in the US is
wheat
• In general, the part that we eat is the kernel or
the berry
• This is the seed from which the plant grows
• Each kernel has 3 parts:
• Endosperm
• Bran
• germ
Anatomy of a Grain
• Endosperm
• Makes up about 83% of the weight
• Source of white flour
• Contains greatest amount of protein, CHO, Fe,
B-vitamins (riboflavin, niacin, thiamin)
• Source of soluble fiber
Anatomy of a Grain
• Bran
• Makes up about 14.5% of weight
• Included in whole wheat flour
• Can be brought separately and added to
products
• Contains small amount of protein, large
amount of B-vitamins, trace minerals, and
dietary fiber (mostly insoluble)
Anatomy of a Grain
• Germ
• Makes up 2.5% of weight
• Embryo or sprouting section of seed
• Often separated from flour in milling process because of
the fat it contains, which can limit flour’s shelf-life
• Contains minimal quantities of high quality protein, but
a good share of trace minerals and b-vitamins
• Wheat germ is part of whole wheat flour and can be
purchased separately
Types of Grains
• Amaranth
• Tall willowy plant similar in height to corn with
large shaggy head containing thousands of tiny
seeds
• Seed can be milled into a whole grain flour or
puffed like rice or corn
• Commonly eaten in Africa
Types of Grains
• Barley
• Very versatile
• Pearl barley, which is whole grain with hull and
bran removed, is often used in soups
• Can be milled into flour and is used in baked
products and breakfast cereals
• High in fiber
Types of Grains
• Buckwheat
• Neither wheat nor cereal grain
• Seed from the Fagopyrum family of herbs
• Due to unique flavor, it is often ground and used to
replace part of the wheat flour in pancake mixes
• Kasha is a word commonly used to describe
buckwheat groats, a Russian dish
Types of Grains
• Couscous
• Pasta made from precooked semolina wheat and most commonly
eaten in North African countries
• Can be served hot or cold
• Millet
• Delicate, round grain that is yellow in color
• Cooks like rice but lighter with nutty flavor
• Can be eaten as whole grain or husked
• Often added to bread making
Types of Grains
• Oats
• Oatmeal is most familiar form
• Made by rolling the groats (oats with hulls removed) to
form flakes
• Regular and quick cooking differ in thickness of flakes
• Oat bran is the envelope of the groat
• High in soluble fiber
Types of Grains
• Potato flour
• Actually a root but share many nutrients with
grains
• Potato flour made from cooked potatoes that
have been dried and ground
• Often used in breads or rolls
• Potato dumplings or “gnocchi” is another way
to serve potatoes as a “grain”
Types of Grains
• Quinoa
• Small round seed that can come in many
colors
• Not a grain, fruit of an annual herb
• Grown in the mountainous regions of Peru and
Bolivia for 3000 years
• Can be cooked like rice or ground into flour
and used for baked goods
Types of Grains
• Rice
• Most commonly eaten grain in the world
• Usually starchy endosperm of the grain: hull and bran have
been removed
• In US, white rice is enriched with thiamin, riboflavin, niacin,
and iron
• Enriched rice should not be rinsed before cooking, or the
added vitamins and minerals will be washed away
• Brown rice is grain from which only the hull has been removed
• Instant rice has been precooked and dried
• Rice flour is made from brown or white rice and is free of
gluten
Types of Grains
• Rye
• Can be eaten like rice but takes longer to cook
• Whole rye can be used in soups
• Rye flour contains gluten
• Sorghum
• Tropical grass
• Small amounts added to crackers and other
snack food and can be made into syrup
Types of Grains
• Soy
• High in protein and B vitamins
• Nutty texture and taste
• Spelt
• Predecessor to wheat and has very strong hull
that is difficult to remove when milling
• Usually available as flour
Types of Grains
• Teff
• Smallest grain in the world
• 150 teff grains weigh the same as one grain of
wheat
• Available as whole grain or flour
• Used as thickener
Types of Grains
• Triticale
• Hybrid grain created from crossing wheat and
rye
• Can be cooked as whole grain, ground into
flour, or processed into cereal flakes
Types of Grains
• Wheat
• The “Staff of Life”
• Comes in several varieties:
– Durum – used to make pasta and couscous
– Bulgar – precooked and can be used in place of rice
– Cracked – similar to bulgar but not precooked
– Farina – coarsely ground and primary ingredient in
hot cereals
Eat More Grains!
•
Eat 6 oz everyday from the grain group
•
At least 3 of the 6 oz should be whole grain breads, cereals, pasta,
crackers, or rice everyday
•
•
What to Look for on the Food Label:
Choose foods that name one of the following whole-grain ingredients first
on the label’s ingredient list:
“brown rice”
“bulgur”
“graham flour”
“whole-grain corn”
“whole oats”
“whole rye”
“oatmeal”
“whole wheat”
“wild rice”
– Foods labeled with the words “multi-grain,” “stone-ground,” “100%
wheat,” “cracked wheat,” “seven-grain,” or “bran” are usually not wholegrain products.
– Color is not an indication of a whole grain. Bread can be brown
because of molasses or other added ingredients. Read the ingredient
list to see if it is a whole grain.
Great Grain Nutrients
• CHO
• Body’s preferred fuel source
• On the food label, dietary fiber and sugars are
listed below CHO
– Why don’t they always equal the total CHO?
» Missing CHO are the complex carbs, the longer,
branched chains of sugar molecule
Great Grain Nutrients
• Fiber
– Insoluble:
• Adds bulk to diets by filling us up and preventing overeating
and obesity
• Adds “bulk” to fecal matter, increasing clearance time and
decreasing risk of colon cancer
• Does not separate in water and “passes” almost completely
in tact
• Found in less processed grain foods, such as whole grains
• Recommended to eat 20-35 grams of fiber each day but
most Americans eat about 12 grams
• Examples: fruit skins, whole wheat products, nuts &
seeds
Great Grain Nutrients
• Fiber
– Soluble:
• May reduce blood cholesterol levels and help reduce heart
disease risk
• Slows stomach emptying which is beneficial in controlling
blood sugar
• separates in water and binds with fatty acids during
digestion
• Examples: dried beans and peas, flax, carrots
Great Grain Nutrients
• Protein
• Grains are great sources – spaghetti has about 7 grams per
serving
• Proteins are not “complete” which means they are missing
one or more amino acids
• Only animal products are complete
•
Vitamins and Minerals
• Many V&Ms found are important for converting food into energy,
building tissues, and repairing cells
• Some nutrients are found naturally in grains and some are added
during fortification
• Thiamin helps the body use the energy it gets
• Riboflavin and niacin help body use protein to build new cells and
tissue
Grains for Health
• Heart Health – a diet low in fat and high
in soluble fiber can help reduce the risk of
heart disease
• Cell health – grains high in insoluble fiber
can reduce the risk of colon cancer
• Healthy weight – A diet high in grains can
help maintain a healthy weight.
Grains for Sports
• Energy – carbs are the bodies preferred sense
of energy
– Night before an event, it is best to eat a meal high in
carbs.
– This will fill up the muscles and liver with stored
glycogen which can be used as energy the next day.
– Pre-game meal – eat a high carb meal providing
300-1000 calories, 2-4 hours before the competition
to top off your glycogen stores and prevent hunger
during the event
Grains for Sports
• After your workout – eating a high carb
meal after is just as important as before to
help replenish your glycogen stores
– Sports drinks like Gatorade are high in carbs
and can help replenish lost fluid and used
glycogen stores but no more effectively than
water and eating a high carb snack
Grains for Sports
• Carb Loading:
• Practiced by some athletes involve din endurance
sports
• One regimen includes a gradual increase in dietary
carbs beginning 6 days before competition
• CHO intake starts at ~45% of intake and on final day is
at ~ 65-75% intake
• One drawback is that additional water weight is stored
in the muscle
• CHO loading may improve performance in marathons,
long-distance swimming, tournament play, and
triathlons but not in most single events
Grains for Weight Loss
Myth #1: Eating bread will make you gain
weight.
Grains for Weight Loss
• Myth #1: Eating bread will make you
gain weight.
• FALSE: Most calories in grain products come from
CHO.
• If you are active, your body uses CHA as its
primary source of fuel
• Fat is more easily stored as fat and less easily
burned during activity
Grains for Weight Loss
Myth #2: Diet bread helps you lose
weight.
Grains for Weight Loss
• Myth #2: Diet bread helps you lose
weight.
• FALSE – Diet bread is just regular bread that
contains more air, sometimes more fiber, and is
sliced extra thin.
• Although you will save calories, many more
calories can be saved by skipping high-fat foods.
Grains for Weight Loss
Myth #3: White bread and white rice are
worthless and filled with empty
calories
Grains for Weight Loss
• Myth #3: White bread and white rice are
worthless and filled with empty
calories.
– FALSE
• Even though whole grains high slightly more
nutritional value than white counterparts, thanks to
fortification, are still healthy and contain nutrients.
• The one down fall is that white bread and rice is
low in fiber.
Grains for Weight Loss
Myth #4: Pita bread is better to eat than
regular bread.
Grains for Weight Loss
• Myth #4: Pita bread is better to eat than
regular bread.
– False
• Pita bread is low in fat, but so are most breads
• Pita bread offers no healthy advantages
Grains for Weight Loss
Myth #5: all grain products are created
equal.
Grains for Weight Loss
• Myth #5: all grain products are created
equal.
– False
• After comparing all breads we see that there is a
difference between whole wheat, white, and pita
bread even though they are not a big difference.
• Baked goods are usually higher in fat than a plain
loaf of bread and not all cereals are healthy even
though they are made of grains.
Questions?
references
• “Great Grains!” by Catherine Macpherson,
MS, RD; Learning Zone Express