CPMA - Health and Pasta News

Mia Fairley was suffering from a persistent case of hives and her physician recommended a restrictive diet — chicken, rice and water only for several weeks — in a bid to rule out food allergies.

"I was on a ridiculous diet and I paid a big price for that, and my baby paid a big price," Ms. Fairley said yesterday from her home in Port Perry, Ont.

Because her diet was lacking in folic acid — a vitamin essential to healthy fetal development in the days and weeks after conception — her son Hayden was born with spina bifida, a characterized by under-development of the spine.

Ms. Fairley was recounting her story yesterday after reading of the concern of scientists that the popularity of low-carbohydrate regimes like the Atkins diet could lead to a resurgence of birth defects.

The worries are based on the fact that many Canadians get their folic acid from white bread, baked goods, breakfast cereals and pasta made with fortified flour, and from orange juice.

Since 1998 when fortification of white flour, white pasta and cornmeal began, the incidence of neural tube defects has fallen by half (with the incidence of some conditions, like spina bifida, falling 75 per cent) and the incidence of the common childhood cancer neuroblastoma has dropped by 60 per cent.

Ms. Fairley said her experience, although it occurred 10 years ago, before the low-carb craze, should serve as a cautionary tale for every woman of childbearing age. "How much more convincing do people need that a balanced diet makes sense, and that restrictive diets don't?"

In the past year Ms. Fairley has lost 30 pounds, with a combination of healthy eating and exercise. While fad diets may work, she said, they are not worth the risk.

"Whenever I meet someone who's on South Beach or Atkins, I want to shake them and say: 'What the hell are you doing?'."

Derryn Gill, chairwoman of the Spina Bifida & Hydrocephalus Association of Ontario, was equally blunt.

"Vanity should not get in the way of having a healthy child," she said. "If people stop eating baked goods, pasta and orange juice, we will slide back to the terrible situation we had before fortification."

It is recommended that women of childbearing age — whether they are trying to get pregnant or not — get at least 400 micrograms of folic acid daily.

In addition to foods made with fortified flour and corn meal, folic acid is found in leafy greens and legumes like lentils and kidney beans. Most multivitamins contain 400 micrograms of folic acid as well.

Because most low-carb diets encourage the consumption of leafy greens, legumes and multivitamins, in theory, folic acid insufficiencies should not be a problem.

However, Nancy Green, medical director of the March of Dimes, said she is worried that dieters rarely follow a regimen to the letter, and that many people, intrigued by media reports, are simply cutting carbohydrates out of their diets without ensuring they replace essential micronutrients by eating more fruits and vegetables and taking supplements.

She noted that surveys show fewer than one-third of women of childbearing age take a daily multivitamin, and that tremendous reductions in birth defects came only after fortification, an indication that North Americans are getting their folic acid from carbohydrates like bread and pasta.

Ms. Gill said that while she actively urges women to take supplements, she worries that it may not be enough, particularly if they are shunning carbs.

Given that consumption patterns are changing, she also believes that fortification should change to include higher doses of folic acid and a wider variety of foods. For example, only white bread is fortified, not other varieties.

"Our taste in breads and other carbs is changing so our approach to fortification should change," Ms. Gill said. "We have to do everything in our power to maintain the gains we've made."

Susan Walsh, the mother of a seven-year-old boy with spina bifida, agrees. She has battled to keep weight off her whole adult life, and sympathizes with people on low-carb regimes, but said much more has to be done to inform them of the risks of inadequate folic acid.

"I don't want to hear any more 'I should have knowns,'." Ms. Walsh said. "If anyone wants to know how important this issue is I will tell them what it feels like to hand over your 10-week-old child for spinal surgery.

Helen Goddard was overweight and, when blood tests taken during her annual checkup showed she was developing insulin resistance and was well on her way to diabetes, she got scared. She also decided to start eating healthy.

But, instead of latching on to one of the crop of fad diets such as Atkins or Sugar-Busters, she decided to adopt a low-glycemic diet, eating foods that are digested gradually, releasing blood glucose slowly and steadily.

"I don't think of it as being on a diet," Ms. Goddard said. "I just look at the food I eat and what the GI effect will be."

Being a resident of Sydney, Australia, that is quite easy because Australia has become the first country in the world to routinely label food products based on their glycemic index.The glycemic index is a measure of the speed at which food is digested and converted into glucose, the body's source of energy.

Now when she is shopping, Ms. Goddard simply reaches for the foods labelled "low GI" and avoids those that are high GI.

As a result, she has cut down on white breads and replaced them with whole grains. And she is eating more pasta and rice than she ever has, foods that in many diets are shunned because of their high carbohydrate content.

At a time when cereal and pasta makers are reeling from the impact of carb-shunning diets, and consumers are more confused than ever, Jennie Brand-Miller, a professor of human nutrition at the University of Sydney, believes that labelling foods based on GI content is the perfect compromise.

"Low GI foods are the happy medium. They meet everybody's desire to lower insulin levels — and that's one of the main reasons the low-carb diets are promoted — but you can still eat healthy carbs," Dr. Brand-Miller said.

"You can have your cake and eat it too if you use low-GI carbs."

GI labelling began in the summer of 2002, and over the past 18 months, as an ever-growing number of products have begun to carry the circled G symbol, it has become familiar to Australian shoppers. The approach is also actively promoted by Diabetes Australia, which embraced the GI concept after studies showed a low-GI diet worked as effectively as drugs in controlling blood glucose levels.

"The goal of the program is to get people to make healthy food choices and, ultimately, to create a healthier food supply," said Alan Barclay, manager of research and development at Diabetes Australia.

It is also a key component of an aggressive program to tackle the obesity epidemic, one that has been bolstered by the fact that companies who jumped on the GI bandwagon early are being rewarded with sharply increased sales of low-GI products.

Mr. Barclay estimated that Canada is five to 10 years behind Australia in terms of consumer awareness of healthy food choices and thinks labelling for GI would be a big step forward.

While the GI concept was developed in Canada, there are no plans to do labelling for it here. However, the concept is now entering the mainstream.

For example, popular cookbook author Anne Lindsay, in her new book Light Cooking, includes the glycemic index for each recipe that contains more than 10 grams of carbohydrates.

Tom Wolever, a professor of nutritional sciences at the University of Toronto and one of the pioneers of the glycemic index, said one of the problems is that there is not yet an international standard for measuring GI, and that means there are confusing variations in the way products are listed from country to country.

"We have to get it right because if we're going to move forward we need to have something of value which is reproducible and can be relied on to be right," he said.

But Dr. Wolever said the current anti-carb craze is going to speed up this process, as food manufacturers try to show their products are loaded with good carbs, not bad carbs.

"Carbohydrates are here to stay, and glycemic responses are here to stay," he said. "The low-carb approach may not go away very quickly, but it's going to force people who produce carbohydrate foods to start trying to figure out how they can sell their products and show them in a good light. . . . GI is a way to get some ammo on their side."

With reports from Avis Favaro, medical reporter at CTV News, and Jenny Wells, a CTV producer

Last in a series.

With three young children, his spouse working full-time, and shift work to juggle, Mark Stewart has a busy life. So there is little hesitation when it's his turn to prepare dinner: He gets the water boiling, cuts the vegetables for the sauce, and has a big batch of spaghetti on the table in no time.

"Pasta is definitely a staple in our family's diet," he says. "It's an easy meal to make; it's healthy, and we enjoy it a lot."

In this anti-carbohydrate era, when it has become gospel that carbs are the express lane to obesity, these are the words of a heretic: doubly so because he shuns red meat and more than half his diet consists of carbs including pasta, whole-wheat breads and fresh fruits and vegetables.

But Mr. Stewart, a Toronto firefighter, has many things that the Atkinsites, the South Beachers, the Zonies and followers of other trendy diets can only long for: a trim, buff body, boundless energy, good blood pressure and rock-bottom cholesterol.

What he has realized is that carbohydrates are not the monolithic evil they are made out to be: There are good carbs and bad carbs.

The good ones are those that break down slowly in the body and provide a steady source of energy. The bad ones give you a quick rush and leave you feeling hungry again not long after.

What he is doing, almost unwittingly, is choosing food based on its glycemic index, a measure of the speed at which food is digested and converted into glucose, the body's source of energy. It is a Canadian theory that has a devoted and growing following in scientific circles, and that is now entering the mainstream as a counterbalance to carbless mania.

GI has also spawned some of the hottest new entries in the diet book wars, with titles including The New Glucose Revolution, by University of Toronto professor Tom Wolever, and The GI Diet, by Rick Gallop, past president of the Heart and Stroke Foundation. What distinguishes GI from its competitors, however, is that it is more a scientific theory than a weight-loss fad.

"It's not a diet; it's a way of thinking of food," said David Jenkins, a world-renowned nutritional scientist and director of the Risk Factor Modification Centre at St. Michael's Hospital in Toronto.

He published the first research on the glycemic index in 1981, but, in his words, "it sank like a stone." Over the years, however, the evidence slowly accumulated as Dr. Jenkins and others published groundbreaking work on how dietary choices influenced rising rates of obesity, diabetes, heart disease and some forms of cancer.

Today, the GI approach is being hailed as the missing piece of the nutritional puzzle, the underlying explanation for why the high-carb, low-fat and carb-free approaches have all failed.

"This is emerging as one of the most promising, if not the most promising nutritional development ever," said Simin Liu, an assistant professor in the department of epidemiology at the Harvard School of Public Health.

The body converts all carbohydrates -- bread and sugar alike -- into sugar molecules that are burned or stored. The faster carbs are broken down by the digestive system, the quicker blood sugar goes up and the higher the GI of a given food. The GI value of pure glucose is set at 100, and every other food is ranked on a scale of 0 to 100 based on the actual effect on blood glucose levels.

Almonds rate a 0, apple juice 30, spaghetti 38, cheese pizza 60, Coca-Cola 63, a white bagel 72, a baked potato 85, and a fruit roll-up 99.

The blast of sugar that comes from high GI foods makes insulin levels go up and stresses the pancreas, our body's insulin factory. Insulin is a hormone that activates cells to absorb sugar in the form of glucose. This, in turn, leads to insulin resistance, a precursor of diabetes and heart disease.

"At least 25 per cent of the population is insulin-resistant, and half are overweight or obese," Dr. Liu said. "This indicates they can't handle the high glycemic load."

In modern times, we have adopted a diet of soft, chewy, processed foods that go down smoothly. We tend to think of these easily digestible foods as good, but in scientific terms, they are not. The body processes them quickly, demanding massive insulin production and leaving us hungry again only hours later.

Over time, this leads not only to unhealthy weight gain but to pancreatic burnout, a key contributor to many chronic diseases.

The glycemic index is the underlying rationale for limiting carbs in popular diets like Atkins, South Beach, the Zone and Sugar Busters, but Dr. Jenkins believes the idea has been perverted.

"To cut out carbs from the diet, that was sad," he said. "But they are revising their statements so that now they are not carbohydrate-exclusion diets but more selective carbohydrate diets."

In fact, most foods on the banned lists of these popular diets are high-GI foods. Low-GI carbs such as peas, beans and lentils are actually encouraged.

While there are now detailed lists of foods based on their glycemic index, Dr. Jenkins doesn't encourage tedious bean-counting. Common sense, he says, is a fairly good guide, and by that he means eating primarily unprocessed, fresh foods, including whole grains, nuts and lots of fruits and vegetables.

"I encourage people to revisit the foods which, over the last 100 years, we've thrown out of our diets: Try some pumpernickel bread, beans, peas, lentils; try a barley stew, or some oat bran muffins."

Jean Dumenil, a Quebec City cardiologist, tried treating patients with a low-GI diet and was amazed by the results.

Within a week, patients' cholesterol and triglycerides dropped sharply, and blood glucose levels remained steady and low. Even though the patients were allowed to eat as much as they wanted, their caloric intake also fell, even compared to an already healthy diet.

"The patients were eating 25 per cent less calories than they were eating on the American Heart Association diet. We were amazed by this," Dr. Dumenil said.

No one is claiming that GI is the magic formula for turning the obesity epidemic around.

But GI is helping us understand why many weight-control methods have failed. It is also proving a key element in understanding how to regulate blood sugar levels and control appetite.

A look at what the glycemic index is and the differences between a high and low glycemic meal.

The glycemic index is the measure of a food's natural or artificial sugar. Carbohydrate sugar, or glucose, is what our bodies use for energy, and our brains use for fuel.

High glycemic meals overwork the pancreas. The pancreas senses blood sugar and sends insulin to pack it away into muscle and fact cells.

If there is a surge or sugar, there is a surge of insulin. And if there is a surge of insulin, there is a suppression of glucagons. That's the hormone responsible for pulling sugar back out of muscles and fact cells to fuel the brain or give the body energy.

Impaired glucagons results in feelings of hunger. Overeating can result. In addition to weight gain, if repeated high glycemic meals are your habit, the repeated spikes of insulin in your bloodstream can create insulin resistance. That's a precursor to diabetes.

Low glycemic meals provide slowly released sugars into the bloodstream. So instead of spikes of insulin, a steady, moderate balance between insulin and glucagons allows for the steady, moderate metabolism of these sugars both into - and out of - their storage cells.

(globeandmail.com, November 17, 2003)

Canadian researchers have made a startling discovery about the benefits of folic acid. The nutrient, which is added to foods to prevent neural-tube defects such as spina bifida, also appears to prevent one of the most common forms of childhood cancer.

In fact, the incidence of neuroblastoma, a cancer of the nervous system, has fallen by more than 60 per cent since Canada's fortification of flour and pasta became mandatory in 1998.

"We're very excited by this finding because it's the first time we've prevented a pediatric cancer with a very simple change to maternal diet," said Gideon Koren, director of the Motherisk program at the Toronto Hospital for Sick Children.

He said it also raises the possibility that neuroblastoma could be treated with folic acid, forcing the cancer to disappear.

The research, published in the medical journal Clinical Pharmacology & Therapeutics, will also spur interest in the benefits of folic acid for prevention and treatment of a wide range of conditions.

There is evidence, for example, that folic acid supplementation may also prevent heart malformations in children, prevent some people from developing colon cancer later in life, and even ensure that baby girls are born with healthier eggs, which could reduce the incidence of conditions such as Down syndrome in the next generation.

"Because it's used in the production of DNA, I would not be surprised if it has other implications, including many we have not even yet considered," Dr. Koren said.

Folate -- vitamin B-9 -- is found in leafy green vegetables such as spinach, and in legumes such as lentils and kidney beans. The synthetic version, folic acid, is found in commercially prepared grain products and can be bought in supplements.

The recommended daily dose is .4 milligrams, though many scientists are now suggesting that be raised to 1 milligram. A woman would have to eat about eight slices of white bread daily to reach that minimum level. Because almost half of all pregnancies are unplanned, supplements are recommended for all women of child-bearing age.

Folate is required for the creation of nucleic acids -- the building blocks of deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA). It is particularly important in the first month after conception, when the neural tube forms in the embryo (the neural tube later becomes the baby's spinal cord, spine and brain.)

Without sufficient folate, the neural tube fails to close properly, leaving the brain or spine exposed to amniotic fluid. This, in turn, can lead to neural-tube defects such as spina bifida (when the spinal cord and backbone do not develop properly), anencephaly (when the brain does not fully develop) and encephalocele (when a portion of the brain protrudes from the skull).

Neuroblastoma is a cancer of the nervous system, so it is biologically plausible that it is influenced by folate levels.

Studies have shown that, since the fortification of flour, pasta and cornmeal became mandatory, women have doubled their intake of folic acid and the rate of neural-tube defects in Canada has fallen by half.

The incidence of neuroblastoma has fallen even more sharply, to 6.2 cases per 1,000 births, from 15.7 cases per 1,000 births.

But Dr. Koren thinks the benefits could be even greater if women consumed more folic acid. His research has shown that the majority of Canadian women do not get adequate folic acid from fortified food alone.

"The typical Canadian woman is getting only 200 to 300 micrograms, well below the protection level," he said. "It is perhaps time to consider raising the levels in flour."

While supplements such as a daily multivitamin would do the trick, polling has shown that only about 4 per cent of women who are planning to have a child know they should be taking folic acid to prevent birth defects.

"The benefits are so great, I'm not sure we should be leaving this to chance," Dr. Koren said.

"It's a very timely question and we are anxiously awaiting the reports," Dr. Whiley said.

Screening is usually a two-step process. A stool sample is submitted annually for fecal occult blood screening. The test, which can be done at home and submitted to a lab, can detect hidden or "occult" blood in a stool that could be evidence of a polyp or tumour.

Those who have a positive test then undergo a barium enema, in which the colon is coated with barium, which allows polyps to be detected with an X-ray, or a full colonoscopy, in which a flexible scope is inserted into the colon, allowing a full visual inspection.

Critics say population-based screening is costly and inefficient. A Canada-wide screening program would cost about $100-million.

It is estimated that 134,100 Canadians will be diagnosed with some form of cancer in 2001, and 65,300 will die of cancer. Only heart disease kills more. (Related Web site: http://www.cancer.ca/stats)

Statistical highlights An estimated 134,100 new cases of cancer and 65,300 deaths from cancer will occur in Canada this year.

Cancer costs the Canadian economy about $14.5-billion annually.

The most frequently diagnosed cancers will continue to be breast cancer and prostate cancer.

19,500 women will be diagnosed as having breast cancer and about 5,500 will die from the disease.

17,800 men will be diagnosed as having prostate cancer and about 4,300 will die.

Lung cancer remains the leading cause of cancer death for both men and women. One-third of cancer deaths in men and one-quarter in women are because of lung cancer.

Lung-cancer incidence and mortality rates among women are half as high as rates among men. However, they are four times as high as rates in 1971.

Cancer is the leading cause of premature death in Canada, being responsible for almost one-third of all potential years of life lost.

It is estimated that the number of new cancer cases will increase by 70 per cent by the year 2015.

The vast majority of cancer diagnoses and deaths occur in people over 50.

Cancer mortality rates for men have been declining slowly since 1988. For women, cancer mortality rates have been declining steadily since the early 1970s -- with the exception of lung cancer.

(National Post, April 16, 2001)
Michael Higgins, with files from The Daily Telegraph

A university professor has discovered the secret of eating spaghetti gracefully without splashing yourself and other diners: Use a spoon.

Professor Colin Humphreys, who conducted laboratory experiments during his lunch breaks, said the spoon can be used to collect the pasta, shield the sauce from splashing, and also be the tool that conveys the spaghetti to the mouth.

Mr. Humphreys, a professor of material science at the University of Cambridge in England, claims the safest way to eat spaghetti is to first use a vertically held fork to collect a few strands.

Then rotate the spaghetti against the concave surface of the spoon while the spoon is parallel to the plate. Finally, when the spaghetti roll is suitable, remove the fork and eat the pasta off the spoon.

He made his discovery after carrying out experiments in his departmental tearoom and laboratories to calculate the "kinetic energy, centrifugal force and co-efficient of friction" for different kinds of pasta.

The scientist and his team, which specializes in semiconductors and electron microscopy, were commissioned by Tesco, a British supermarket chain, to research the tidiest and most efficient way of eating pasta.

They also studied pasta sauce patterns on white tablecloths to establish the average distribution of escaped sauce and immediately reached their first conclusion: A pasta sauce's viscosity influences the distribution of splatter.

Thick Italian cheese sauces and cream-based sauces have higher levels of viscosity than lighter tomato-based sauces, which means they stick firmly to the pasta and are less likely to spray the surroundings.

Mario Phan, manager of Ciao Bella restaurant in downtown Vancouver, disagrees with the learned professor.

"The fork should be at an angle of 90 degrees when it is put in the mouth," he said. "I never use a spoon to eat it. I wouldn't enjoy it."

As to the question of splashing he added: "If you are wearing white, use the spoon and a fork. But if you are just using a fork, then be prepared to get splashed."

Jenny Marino, chef of Jenny's restaurant in Calgary and originally from southern Italy, also disagrees with Mr. Humphreys, saying the fork should be used to eat the spaghetti.

But she did agree on the amount of spaghetti to put on the fork.

"You only put two, or three or four pieces of spaghetti on the fork." She also warned: "You are going to get dirty if you don't know what you are doing."

Philip Oliver, manager of Bellini's Ristorante, in Toronto, was firm: "It should be eaten off the fork, which is how most Italians eat it." However, Mr. Oliver already knew what Mr. Humphreys had found out by detailed research.

"If you have a liquidy, tomato sauce and eat it with a spoon then it does retain some of the sauce but if the sauce is thicker than it stays on the spaghetti and is easier to eat on the fork."

Mr. Humphreys said a common mistake was to hold the spoon vertical, which failed to use its dish-like qualities to shield diners when the last bit of pasta was being rotated.

The laboratory experiments proved that the risk of sauce splatter is highest as the last 4.3 inches of spaghetti are rolled on to the fork: A final flick of the wrist can accelerate the speed of the spaghetti tip to almost three metres per second, producing enough centrifugal force to make the sauce fly 1.3 metres.

THREE TECHNIQUES:

1. THE TIDY ROLL
Twirl a few strands slowly, holding the fork vertically and using the spoon as a splatter shield.

2. THE TRADITIONAL
Purists frown on using a spoon and insist a few strands should be slowly rolled with the fork held horizontally.

3. THE SPIN AND SPLATTER
Maximum splatter occurs when you twirl quickly with the fork held horizontally against the spoon. A deft flick of the wrist as the final few centimetres of spaghetti are taken up can propel sauce as far as 1.3 metres.

Evidence linking regular physical activity with a reduced risk of colon and breast cancer is strong enough to warrant making physical activity an integral part of cancer prevention strategies, according to a report published in the journal Chronic Diseases In Canada. “We now have the consensus of scientific experts that physical activity should be a key component of cancer prevention,” said Dr. Loraine Marrett, one of the report’s authors and a senior epidemiologist at Cancer Care Ontario.

The report, prepared for Cancer Care Ontario’s Division of Preventive Oncology, is based on an evaluation of existing scientific evidence as well as the recommendations of an expert panel.

Dr. Christine Friedenreich, a research scientist at the Alberta Cancer Board and a recognized expert on the links between physical activity and cancer, evaluated existing scientific evidence using criteria developed by the World Cancer Research Fund/American Institute for Cancer Research on nutrition and cancer prevention.

The evaluation assessed the frequency, intensity and duration of physical activity associated with cancer risk reduction as well as physical activity intervention research.

Evidence was ranked in the following categories:

convincing - evidence that is conclusive;
probable - evidence that is strong enough to conclude that a causal relation is likely;
possible - evidence that demonstrates that a causal relation may exist; and
insufficient - evidence that suggests a relationship but is not of a sufficient quantity

The expert panel, made up of 11 Canadian, American and European scientists with expertise in the areas of epidemiology, physical education and health, exercise science and behavioural science, reviewed Dr. Friedenreich’s evaluation and concluded that existing scientific evidence is convincing for the role of physical activity in preventing colon cancer; probable for breast cancer; possible for prostate cancer and insufficient for other types of cancer.

The expert panel recommended that:

physical activity be promoted in public health messages and primary prevention interventions for cancer. Specifically, it is recommended that people get 30-45 minutes of moderate to vigorous activity on most days of the week;

in future research, physical activity be comprehensively assessed, including measurements of the multiple dimensions and types of physical activity; biologic mechanisms; and behavioural and population factors;

Cancer Care Ontario incorporate physical activity messages in its primary prevention programming around nutrition and healthy body weight. Cancer Care Ontario's Prevention Unit is currently developing provincial cancer prevention strategies focused on diet, healthy body weight, and physical activity. Strategies will be developed in partnership with the Canadian Cancer Society and other voluntary agencies, public health units, community health centres and other partners. The programs will provide practical guidelines for people who want to reduce their risk of cancer through diet and exercise.

“This review contributes to our understanding of the causes of cancer,” said Mr. John Garcia, Director of Cancer Care Ontario’s Prevention Unit. “The evidence presented in the report clearly points to the need for greater investment in primary prevention including strategies to increase physical activity and the consumption of fruits and vegetables, maintain health body weight and reduce tobacco use.”

Increased physical activity also can help prevent other chronic diseases and supports Cancer Care Ontario’s collaborative work with other organizations to reduce the incidence of heart disease, stroke, diabetes, cancer and other chronic diseases.

Cancer is one of Ontario’s most important health problems. More than 50,000 Ontarians are diagnosed with cancer each year and more than 25,000 people die from the disease. Cancer prevention is one of the best opportunities to reduce cancer deaths because the majority of cancer is preventable.

(World-Grain.com, January 2001)
Washington, D.C., U.S.

A resounding vote of confidence was delivered to the grain-based foods industry in a U.S. government research analysis that raises serious questions about the effectiveness of high-protein diets.

The disclosures, and additional information strongly affirming the value of high-carbohydrate diets, were part of a U.S. Department of Agriculture white paper examining existing scientific literature on weight reduction.

Reacting to the report, Judi Adams, president of the U.S. Wheat Foods Council, said the group agreed with USDA's findings that a "moderate-fat, high-carbohydrate regimen" was the key to weight control. She added that the nutrition community needed to proactively combat the multibillion-dollar fad-diet industry that played off consumers' desire to lose weight.

"Good health and weight management come from following an exercise program and a well-balanced eating plan, which includes the consumption of grains," Adams said. "Grains play a key role in delivering essential nutrients and represent the base of the USDA's Food Guide Pyramid."

The Wheat Foods Council is a nonprofit organization formed in 1972 to help increase public awareness of grains, complex carbohydrates and fiber as essential components of a healthful diet. The Council is supported voluntarily by wheat producers, millers, bakers and related industries.

Other leaders in the grain-based foods industry also were elated with the USDA report. Paul C. Abenante, president of the American Bakers Association, said the findings confirmed the industry's position on the healthiness of its products.

"It finally takes a scientific, nutrition-based shot at the Atkins and like high-protein diets and pigeonholes them to what they are, a fad approach to nutrition," Abenante said.

At the heart of the USDA findings was the simple observation that "diets that reduce caloric intake result in weight loss." Noting that obesity remains a significant problem in the United States, the summary said, "It is important to note that weight loss is not the same as weight maintenance."

(National Institute of Nutrition, No. 2, 1999)

Deep down, you probably know that grains are “good for you.” But if you’re like most Canadians, you don’t give them much thought. You could be missing out on some great opportunities!

No doubt you’re aware of the virtues of the carbohydrate and fibre in grain products. The unsung hero is starch, particularly “resistant starch,” so-called because it resists digestion until reaching the colon.

Grain products also provide important amounts of protein, B vitamins and minerals. In fact, with meat intake declining, enriched grain products are becoming a greater source of iron. As a bonus for women, many grain products are now also fortified with the B vitamin folic acid, recommended before and during early pregnancy to reduce the risk of certain birth defects.

With their action on blood sugar, intestinal function, blood cholesterol and appetite, grain products can be thought of as the “great regulators.”

— Some foods cause only a small rise in blood sugar after eating them. These generally include minimally refined whole grain products, and pasta with its slowly digestible starch. Eating such foods may improve blood sugar control and reduce the body’s need for insulin, a plus for people with diabetes as well as those at risk of developing the disease.

— Some grain products help to prevent constipation and may reduce the risk of colon cancer. The types with mainly insoluble fibre (e.g. wheat bran, rye, corn bran) tend to pass through the colon undigested, with a bulking effect that aids bowel regularity. The types with soluble fibre (e.g. oats, barley) and resistant starch serve as food for bacteria in the colon, producing protective substances as well as aiding bowel regularity.

—Foods high in soluble fibre, such as oats and barley, can lower blood cholesterol levels, particularly in people with high levels. Lower levels may help reduce the risk of heart disease.

— People who eat high carbohydrate, high fibre diets (which likely include many grain products) tend to eat fewer calories and have lower body weights. Such diets provide more bulk so it’s possible to feel full for a longer time on fewer calories.

Canadians still eat about the same amount of grain products as 30 years ago — but not always up to the 5 to 12 daily servings advised by Canada’s food guide. We’ve made some changes in our choices, though, which are worth sticking with:

Focus on breakfast cereals that are high in fibre and made with whole grains such as whole wheat, oats or barley. Try them as a snack.

Experiment with the many varieties of pasta and rice available on the market, especially whole grain types.

Make whole grain bread your number one choice. Bread is not fattening — just be careful what you spread on top.

Look for lower fat choices when selecting baked goods. But watch the portion size — calories still count.

(NIN, Ottawa, July 1999)

Grain products get an “A+” for their healthful qualities in a report released by the National Institute of Nutrition (NIN), Canada’s premier source of objective, credible nutrition information. However, the report confirms that many Canadians need to boost their intake to merit a passing grade.

“Canadians are missing out on some great opportunities to enjoy food while enhancing their health,” affirms the primary author of the report, Alison Stephen, Ph.D., a professor in the College of Pharmacy and Nutrition at the University of Saskatchewan. “The good news is that grain products are something Canadians should eat more of, not less.”

The NIN report reviews the latest research on the role of grains and grain products in health and disease, and compares Canadians’ current eating habits with nutrition recommendations for optimal health.

Aside from their well-known carbohydrate and fibre content, enriched grain products like bread, pasta, rice and breakfast cereals are important sources of protein, B vitamins and minerals. In fact, with meat intake declining, enriched grain products are becoming a more significant source of iron for Canadians.

As a bonus for women, many grain products are now also fortified with the B vitamin folic acid, which is especially important during the child-bearing years to reduce the risk of certain birth defects such as spina bifida.

“But the unsung hero in grain foods is starch, particularly ‘slowly digestible’ and ‘resistant’ starch,” explains Stephen. Many of the healthful qualities of grain products are due to their different kinds of starch.

Grain products can be thought of as the “great regulators”, having positive effects on the control of blood sugar, intestinal function, blood cholesterol and appetite.

- Some foods cause only a small rise in blood sugar after eating them. These generally include minimally refined whole grain products, and pasta with its slowly digestible starch. Contrary to the myth that high carbohydrate diets increase insulin resistance, eating such foods may actually improve blood sugar control and reduce the body’s need for insulin. This is a plus for people with diabetes as well as people who are at risk of developing the disease.

- Some grain products help to prevent constipation and may reduce the risk of colon cancer. The types with mainly insoluble fibre (e.g. wheat bran, rye, corn bran) pass through the colon largely undigested, with a bulking effect that aids bowel regularity. The types with soluble fibre (e.g. oats, barley) and resistant starch (which resists digestion until reaching the colon) serve as food for bacteria in the colon, producing substances that may protect against colon cancer, as well as aiding bowel regularity.

- Foods high in soluble fibre, such as oats and barley, can lower blood cholesterol levels, particularly in people with high levels. A high blood cholesterol level is a risk factor for heart disease.

- Despite the fattening image of grain products, people who eat high carbohydrate, high fibre diets actually tend to eat fewer calories and have lower body weights. Such diets provide more bulk, so it’s possible to feel full for a longer time on fewer calories.

“Canadians still eat about the same amount of grain products as 30 years ago — but not always up to the 5 to 12 daily servings advised by Canada’s food guide,” says Stephen.

NIN advises Canadians to:

- Focus on higher fibre and whole grain breakfast cereals made from whole wheat, oats or barley.

- Experiment with the many varieties of rice, such as brown or basmati, and different types of pasta, including whole wheat options.

- Choose whole grain or multi-grain specialty bread most often.

- Enjoy smaller portions of baked goods and treats such as croissants or donuts, and choose lower fat options such as bagels more often.

The report, “The Role of Grains in the Canadian Diet”, was commissioned by NIN and reviewed by members of NIN’s Scientific Advisory Committee as well as other key Canadian experts.