Whole grains for healthy

If your goal is to lose weight whole grains are not the best things to eat. In fact, studies suggest grains don’t have much nutritional benefit to begin with when compared to other healthy foods.

For many people they cause digestive issues because they contain “antinutrients,” which cause absorption problems with many nutrients in the grain.

Also, most grains contain gluten and gluten has become a common allergen. I personally have family members who are on gluten-free diets. I don’t see much of a nutritional benefit to consuming gluten and it contributes to weight gain.

The real benefit that grains bring is that they feed the world. Obviously, nothing to sneeze at. Grains have played a major role with our population boom over the last tens of thousands of years. There simply wasn’t enough food to be hunted for and gathered to feed the world. The great thing about agriculture is that it has fed the population. Naturally our body make up is meant for foods that are suppose to be hunted and gathered.

Nutrionally, however, grains are a different story. It’s argued that grains contributed to obesity, high blood sugar, and diabetes. Eating fruits and vegetables will likely give you far more vitamins and nutrients than grains without a lot of the negatives that grains have.

If you are going to eat grains, you generally want to look for “whole” versus “refined” grains. “Refined” grains tend to contain less fiber. This is because the refining process remove many of the nutrients contained in them. Keep in mind, that whole grains are refined to a certain extent.

Oatmeal

Good: Oatmeal is the main exception, in that it has true nutrional benefits versus other grains. It’s high in dietary fiber and protein and can help reduce the risk of heart disease. It’s low in cholesterol and saturated fat and helps boost the immune system.

Not so good: Some brands contain gluten. Look for gluten-free brands and try to avoid the instant oats. Instant oats tend to be processed way too much, stripping them of the many health benefits.

Preparations Ideas: I generally like to add a fruits to my oatmeal, like bananas, strawberries, or blueberries.