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03 Issues & Trends
Cereal Foods World, Vol. 64, No. 3
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1094/CFW-64-3-0030
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The Importance of Whole Grains in Improving Diet Quality: Is it a Valid Public Health Policy Goal?
Chris Seal1

Newcastle University, Newcastle upon Tyne, U.K.

1 E-mail: Chris.seal@ncl.ac.uk; Twitter: @Foodmanseal


© 2019 AACC International, Inc.

Abstract

Numerous press reports have highlighted the importance of whole grains in a healthy diet. These have been prompted by recent high-profile publications highlighting the health benefits of consuming whole grains and their central role in sustainable plant-based diets. Foods made from whole grain flours are more nutrient dense than those made from refined flours, because whole grain flours retain the bran and germ components of the grain, adding a range of nutrients such as dietary fiber, vitamins and minerals, and plant phytochemicals (polyphenols) otherwise lost during the refining process. Increased consumption of whole grain foods, therefore, improves overall intake of vital nutrients and has the potential to improve overall diet quality, and high whole grain consumers are more likely to achieve intake targets for fiber and micronutrients. This provides the rationale for public health agencies to include more overt whole grain recommendations in their dietary guidelines to increase whole grain consumption at national and global levels.




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