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The Whole Grain Campaign

Well, here it is! The Whole Grain Campaign that Tristi suggested we start.

Penn State in University Park has conducted yet another useless study to tell us what we all already know but ignore: Whole grain diets lower chronic disease risk and aid weight loss. Well, duh.

According to co-brainiac Penny Kris-Etherton, professor of nutritional sciences at Penn State in University Park, ”Consumption of whole grains has been associated with a lower body weight and lower blood pressure.”
Gee, folks. How many times to we need to be told before we start eating some oatmeal and kicking the Wonder Bread to the curb?

According to the study, fifty obese adults (25 male and 25 female) between the ages of 20 and 65 were chosen for the study. All of them had metabolic syndrome which is a group of symptoms that increase the risk of developing cardiovascular disease and diabetes. There were two groups, one had all their grain servings from whole grains and the other had all of their grain servings from refined grains.

Over the 12-week study period, the participants received dietary advice on weight loss and were encouraged to participate in moderate physical activity. In addition to their whole grains or refined grains, they were asked to consume five servings of fruits and vegetables, three servings of low-fat dairy products, and two servings of lean meat, fish or poultry every day.

According to the results that were published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, waist circumference and body weight decreased significantly in both groups (8-11 pounds) but the whole grain group lost a significantly greater amount of weight in the abdomen. Trying to trim the fat on your abs? Try whole grains.

To incorporate whole grains in your diet, look for foods that contain at least 51 per cent of the grain from whole grain. The best way to find them is to read labels. If a whole grain is the first ingredient mentioned, chances are it is a safe product. Some easy whole grains to look for are oatmeal, whole grain cereal, brown rice, whole-wheat pasta and snacks like granola bars, popcorn and whole-wheat crackers.

Now, that being said:

Try to go with less processed oatmeal like the kind you find in big red tub rather than the packet.

Read the labels of your whole grain cereals. Granola is amazingly calorie dense and can ruin a diet regardless of how many oats, twigs, seeds and nuts it has in it.

Brown rice is as easy to prepare and tastes just a good as white rice. Long grain and wild rices are great too.

Whole wheat pasta is another easy one. Very few of us eat pasta without some sort of sauce on it. I slid some whole wheat spaghetti in under my husband’s nose last week and his only comment was “This spaghettis is really good. What’s different?”

Before you get goofy about granola bars, check their calorie content. These are usually loaded with sugar.

When preparing popcorn, don’t forget about the extra calories you add with butter and cheese toppings as well as the added sodium from that salt shaker.

There are tons of whole grain crackers available these days. The varieties are endless. What you do need to take a look at and pay attention to is serving sizes. If the serving size in 5 crackers and you eat a whole box, you aren’t doing yourself any favors.

Good luck!

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Body-for-Life and Weight Loss

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