Whole grain bread is good for everyone

Reported by Susan Aldridge, PhD, medical journalist

Older adults who eat whole grain bread, cereal and brown rice have a lower risk of metabolic syndrome
The benefits of whole grain foods have already been demonstrated for middle aged adults. Now, for the first time, a team at the University of Maryland shows that those over 60 can enjoy health advantages. They had a group of 500 older adults, of average age 72, keep food diaries and found those including whole grain bread, cereal and brown rice in their diets were less likely to develop metabolic syndrome.

Characterized by abdominal obesity, hypertension, and elevated blood sugar, metabolic syndrome raises the risk of heart disease and diabetes. In this study, those eating three servings of whole grains had a lower prevalence of metabolic syndrome than those on less than one serving a day. Whole grains have fiber, minerals and vitamins which are removed during processing. Therefore whole grain bread and brown rice are better choices for health than the refined versions.

Source
American Journal of Clinical Nutrition January 2006

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