In some countries, whole wheat products contain nothing more than white flour with some bran added back in. Replace grain flour — Use almond or coconut flour. There are hundreds of online recipes using these flours. Soak and sprout nuts and seeds and grind into flour — Nuts and seeds contain enzyme inhibitors that stop them from sprouting too early. To soak: Soaking releases the enzyme inhibitors so they help us digest these foods. It also neutralizes phytic acid, a component of plant fiber in grains, legumes, nuts, and seeds that reduces mineral absorption.
Make your own sprouted granola — Soak almonds, pecans, macadamia nuts, and chia seeds in water for 8 hours then set them out for a day on a paper towel. Toss them in a small amount of raw local unpasteurized honey, and add organic raisins, coconut flakes, cinnamon and sea salt. Place them in a dehydrator or oven and you have a great tasting metabolism boosting snack.
New science is shedding some light on the problems caused by this popular food group, but of all the habits that you can develop regarding your health, dropping the grains from your diet is probably the one that will pay off the most.
Learn Start. Paleo Keto Paleo Beginner? The history of wheat Wheat is the third largest crop in the world after rice and corn mainly because it can withstand severe climates. Wheat is used mainly as a human food because it can be stored for years in kernel form, is easily transported and can be processed into a wide variety of foods. The per capita consumption of wheat in the United States exceeds any other single food. Wheat flour, germ, bran, and malt are also added to packaged foods, baby food, soups, gravies, and sauces as a fillers, binders, and thickeners.
The downfall of the modern diet: Modern industrial milling Modern grain milling the steel roller mill is fast and efficient. Modern milled wheat was the first processed food. It allows shelf stable foods to be manufactured many months in advance of distribution, often thousands of miles from the end user. It eliminates the richest source of nutrients including proteins, vitamins, lipids, and minerals found in the bran, germ, shorts fine bran particles, germ and a small portion of floury endosperm particles , and red dog mill streams the middle grade into which flour and meal are classified and which are the richest in proteins, vitamins, lipids, and minerals.
Manufacturers replace natural nutrients with just a few manmade replicas, all of which are without their whole food complex. According to the Weston A. The Green Revolution of the mid s saw the development of a system that gave high yielding varieties of grains. Irradiation Wheat was the one of the first foods approved by the Food and Drug Administration for irradiation as a way to control insects.
In , the consequences were as yet unknown. Irradiated food lowers immune resistance, decreases fertility, damages the kidneys, depresses growth rates, and reduces vitamins A, B complex, C, E and K. Chemicals, for the betterment of our food supply For every synthetic chemical insecticide used in farming practices today, there is at least one species of insect that has developed a resistance to it.
This also depends on the type of grain. Some grains like oats and whole wheat are loaded with nutrients, whereas others like rice and corn are not very nutritious, even in their whole form. Keep in mind that refined grains are often enriched with nutrients like iron, folate and B vitamins, to replace some of the nutrients that were lost during processing 7. Refined grains are nutrient poor, but some whole grains like oats and wheat are loaded with many important nutrients.
Nothing is left except the high-carb, high-calorie endosperm with lots of starch and small amounts of protein. For this reason, they get broken down fast , and can lead to rapid spikes in blood sugar levels when consumed. When we eat foods with refined carbohydrates , our blood sugars go up rapidly, and then drop again soon after.
When the blood sugar levels drop, we become hungry and get cravings 8. Numerous studies show that eating these types of foods leads to overeating, and may therefore cause weight gain and obesity 9 , Refined grains have also been linked to numerous metabolic diseases. They can drive insulin resistance and are linked to type 2 diabetes and heart disease 11 , 12 , They are low in nutrients, fattening, and harmful, and most people are eating way too much of them. Very few people in Western countries eat significant amounts of whole grains.
Refined grains are high in carbs that get digested and absorbed very quickly, leading to rapid spikes in blood sugar and subsequent hunger and cravings. They are linked to obesity and many metabolic diseases. Whole grains tend to be high in fiber and various important nutrients, and they do NOT have the same metabolic effects as refined grains. The truth is, hundreds of studies link whole grain consumption to all sorts of beneficial effects on health 14 , 15 , 16 :.
Looks impressive, but keep in mind that most of these studies are observational in nature. They can not prove that whole grains caused the reduced risk of disease, only that people who ate whole grains were less likely to get them.
That being said, there are also controlled trials real science showing that whole grains can increase satiety and improve many health markers, including markers of inflammation and heart disease risk 32 , 33 , 34 , 35 , 36 , 37 , Numerous studies show that people who eat the most whole grains have a lower risk of obesity, heart disease, diabetes, colon cancer, and tend to live longer. This is supported with data from controlled trials. Many people are intolerant to gluten.
This includes people with celiac disease , a serious autoimmune disease, as well as people with gluten sensitivity Celiac disease affects 0.
This still amounts to millions of people in the US alone, and should not be taken lightly. Some grains, especially wheat, are also high in FODMAPs , a type of carbohydrate that can cause digestive distress in many people 42 , Gluten, a protein found in several grains especially wheat , can cause problems for people who are sensitive to it. However, there are many other grains that are naturally gluten free.
For this reason, they can cause problems for people who do not tolerate a lot of carbohydrates in the diet. This is particularly true of diabetics, who tend to do very well on a low-carb diet When diabetics eat a lot of carbs, their blood sugars skyrocket, except if they take drugs like insulin to bring them down. People who have insulin resistance, metabolic syndrome or diabetes may therefore want to avoid grains, especially the refined variety.
However, not all grains are the same in this regard, and some of them such as oats may even be beneficial 45 , Grains are high in carbohydrates, so they are unsuitable for people who are on a low-carb diet. Diabetics may not tolerate a lot of grains, because of the large amount of carbohydrate. However, in industrialized nations, with a plentiful and diverse food supply, as well as food fortification, mineral malabsorption from phytates is much less of a problem.
There are some illnesses—like celiac disease—that call for the elimination of specific foods. Similarly, a meta analysis in the European Journal of Epidemiology combining results from 16 observational studies found an inverse relationship between whole grain intake and risk of diabetes—increased whole grain intake correlated to decreased risk of diabetes. But what exactly is it about whole grains that helps prevent chronic diseases like cardiovascular disease and diabetes?
Research suggests that the increased soluble fiber content of whole grains may help lower blood lipids by preventing cholesterol reabsorption in the gut, and may promote good gut health by providing prebiotics, a type of fiber that feeds healthy gut bacteria. And, in some studies, participants on diets rich in whole grains have shown better results in insulin sensitivity , blood pressure , and blood cholesterol compared with those who ate diets higher in refined grains.
Whole grains also naturally contain several B vitamins and minerals , which are removed in refined carbohydrates although in most refined flour products in the U. Overall, the presence of lectins and phytates in whole grains are not a problem in a balanced diet one with sufficient calories and micronutrients when foods are properly prepared. She writes about nutrition at thenutritionwonk.
She currently an employee of Conagra Brands, maker of consumer food products including several whole grain foods. SELF does not provide medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Any information published on this website or by this brand is not intended as a substitute for medical advice, and you should not take any action before consulting with a healthcare professional. Thanks for reading Scientific American. Create your free account or Sign in to continue.
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