Closer to a wholegrain of truth?
Researchers from the University of Hertfordshire have made a breakthrough in identifying the nutritional quality of loaves, which could pave the way for a standard definition for wholegrain foods.
Angela Madden and Bahar Ghodsian, from the university’s Department of Biological and Environmental Sciences tested 162 different industrial loaf products from four UK supermarket chains, comparing the ratio of carbohydrates to fibre in each loaf.
The researchers concluded that loaves with a ratio of ten parts or fewer of carbohydrates to one part of fibre (≤10:1) have better nutritional quality, typically containing medium fat, low saturated fat, low sugar and medium sodium. They found that loaves with a higher ratio of carbohydrates to fibre (>10:1) contain more fat. They also found nutritional benefits to breakfast cereals with a ≤10:1 ratio.
Madden and Ghodisan suggest that “this ≤10:1 criterion has potential as a standard definition for wholegrain foods.”
The impact of standardisation could have far-reaching consequences for public health. Many studies have shown that an increase in the consumption of whole grain foods can reduce a person’s risk of cardiovascular disease, diabetes, and cancer.
Unlike countries including the USA, Australia and Canada, however, the UK has does not have a recommended daily intake of wholegrain foods. As the Real Bread Campaign noted in its 2013 A Wholegrain of Truth? report, the term does not even have a legal definition in the UK and so shoppers are at risk from misleading marketing using the ‘healthy halo of wholegrain’. Other countries have definitions but they vary.
This latest recommendation follows the Real Bread Campaign’s 2013 call for a UK legal definition for wholegrain and calls for a globally-standardised definition of whole grain foods from the UK Scientific Advisory Committee on Nutrition and the US Dietary Guidelines Technical Advisory Committee.
Published Wednesday 24 January 2018
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