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We
are pleased to present the following
excerpt from the book
Cholesterol Down:
Ten Simple Steps to Lower Your Cholesterol
in Four Weeks -- Without Prescription
Drugs
by Janet Brill
Three Rivers Press -
December 2006
The
Whole-Grain Goodness of
Oatmeal
A patient once said to me, "My
grandfather ate oatmeal every morning of
his life and he lived to be a hundred." My
response was "Do what your grandfather
did."
Whole-grain oats are tasty and
inexpensive, and have a long history of
health benefits. This simple grain has
been shown to lower cholesterol and blood
pressure, normalize blood sugar, appease
the appetite, and ameliorate intestinal
problems. Remember the oat bran craze of
the 1980s? That phenomenon grew out of an
overwhelming amount of scientific evidence
that began to build during the 1960s,
linking oat consumption with dramatic
declines in blood cholesterol.
What Makes A Grain Whole?
Whole grains are kernels of grain that
are consumed with all three naturally
occurring components still intact: the
outer fiber-rich bran layer, the middle
energy-packed endosperm, and the inner
nutrient-rich germ layer. The outer bran
holds the mineral cache, with up to 80
percent of all the minerals found in the
kernel concentrated in this coating. The
bran also contains fiber, protein, and
some B vitamins. The endosperm is a pocket
of energy-yielding starch (complex
carbohydrate), some protein, iron, and a
minuscule amount of B vitamins, all used
to nourish the growing seedling. The germ
is packed with a gold mine of vitamins
including vitamin E (wheat germ is one of
the richest sources of vitamin E), B
vitamins (especially high in folate), some
trace minerals (iron, magnesium, selenium,
and potassium), fiber, and phytosterols
(plant hormones that lower
cholesterol).
Why whole grains are best
When grains are milled or refined, they
are stripped of the outer bran and germ
layers and thus lose many of the naturally
occurring vitamins and minerals, healthful
fats, and phytonutrients. Processing
leaves behind only the starchy endosperm.
In 1942 the U.S. government passed a law
requiring iron and B vitamin enrichment of
processed grains to combat vitamin
deficiency as a result of eating refined
products, devoid of their natural lode of
vitamins and minerals. This is why when
you purchase a refined grain product such
as white bread or white rice (made solely
from the endosperm of grains), it will by
law be "enriched," meaning a few nutrients
have been added back -- often niacin,
iron, thiamin, riboflavin, and folate.
Unfortunately, what are lost in the
processing and not required to be replaced
are wholesome nutrients such as fiber,
vitamin E, several B vitamins, potassium,
minerals such as manganese, magnesium,
copper, and zinc, and various healthful
phytochemicals such as lignans,
flavonoids, and saponins. Clearly, whole
grains are the far superior choice over
refined grains for fiber, vitamins,
minerals, and other important
nutrients.
Whole Grains for Good Health
A diet rich in whole grains -- rather
than highly processed, refined grains --
has been linked with reduced risk of heart
disease, stroke, type 2 diabetes, obesity,
and certain types of cancers, as well as
with lower blood pressure and improved
bowel function.
The connection between whole grains and
heart health is where the science is
particularly strong, with a huge body of
research backing the notion that diets
high in whole grains reduce your risk for
heart disease. Data from the Iowa Women's
Health Study have provided sound evidence
that whole grains keep a woman's
cardiovascular system in good health, even
after menopause. Researchers took detailed
dietary and health histories from 34,492
postmenopausal women between the ages of
fifty-five and sixty-nine and followed
them over a nine-year period. The women
who consumed the most servings of whole
grains had more than a 30 percent decrease
in risk of death from heart disease than
the women who ate less than one serving
per day.
Whole grains also stop inflammation of
the arteries, according to a study
published in the Journal of
Nutrition. Inflammation is related to
plaque buildup, or atherosclerosis.
C-reactive protein is a protein
circulating in the bloodstream that is
used by doctors as a marker for
inflammation and a predictor of future
cardiovascular disease (a value above 3
mg/L is considered indicative of high risk
for heart disease). Analyses of almost
4,000 American men and women showed that
the higher the fiber intake (whole grains
are one of the best sources of dietary
fiber), the lower the blood concentration
of C-reactive protein.
What's good for the heart is also good
for the brain, according to a study by
researchers at Harvard Medical School. As
part of the famed Nurses' Health Study,
75,521 women nurses between the ages of
thirty-eight and sixty-three were followed
for ten years, providing dietary and
health data at four separate intervals.
The study found that nurses who ate two to
three servings of whole grains daily were
43 percent less likely to have an ischemic
stroke (blockage of the artery feeding the
brain) than those women eating less than
one serving per day.
The benefits of whole grains are not
just for women -- eating whole grains
helps men live longer and healthier lives,
too. Boston researchers examined
associations between whole-grain cereal
intake and risk of death from all causes
in data drawn from 86,190 U.S. male
physicians participating in the
Physicians' Health Study. Researchers
followed the physicians over a period
averaging five and a half years. Higher
whole-grain cereal consumption compared to
refined grains was found to significantly
reduce the risk of dying not only from
heart disease but in fact from all
causes.
How much whole-grain food should you
eat?
The most recent U.S. Department of
Agriculture (USDA) food guide pyramid
(http://www.mypyramid.gov)
recommends consuming three whole-grain
servings daily. If you're like most
Americans, though, your whole-grain intake
is woefully short of this goal. According
to the USDA, on average we barely even get
in one wholegrain serving per day, with
only roughly 7 percent of Americans eating
three a day. The reason, say some
nutrition scientists, is that Americans
have become lazy about cooking and eating
whole grains because they take longer to
cook, chew, and digest than refined
grains. Perhaps it is also true that
outside of your grocery or health food
store, whole grains are nearly impossible
to find. When is the last time you ordered
quinoa at McDonald's?
My advice is that you don't follow the
path of the 46 percent of all adults who
eat no whole grains at all. Instead, try
to get in at least three servings each day
to increase your fiber and nutrient intake
and begin reaping the plethora of health
benefits. Eating a morning bowl of oatmeal
is a great first step to get you a third
of the way there.
The Cholesterol-Lowering Power of
Oats
Scientists have long recognized that
oats lower cholesterol, especially "bad"
LDL cholesterol, and have proven it in at
least fifty studies in humans over forty
years of research. Furthermore, oats
reduce LDL cholesterol without a
concurrent reduction in the level of
"good" HDL cholesterol -- and may even
raise HDL. Some time ago, researchers at
the University of California, Davis,
performed a study in which 84 grams
(roughly 3 ounces) of oat bran (the most
soluble fiber-rich portion of oats) were
added to the subjects' usual low-fat diet.
LDL cholesterol fell an amazing 17 percent
in just six weeks.
Why should you choose oatmeal over a
refined wheat cereal such as Special K for
breakfast? Researchers at Colorado State
University showed that eating oats can
change the characteristics of LDL
particles to a more desirable fatter and
fluffier shape. Thirty six subjects were
given either an oat cereal or a wheat
cereal for twelve weeks. Not only did the
amount of dangerous small, dense LDL
particles drop considerably in the
oat-eating group, but members also showed
beneficially altered LDL particle size.
This change protects you against heart
disease because the smaller or denser LDL
particles are more susceptible to
oxidation, have less of an affinity for
the liver LDL receptors (recall that the
receptors are the only way out of the
bloodstream for LDL), remain in the
bloodstream longer than larger LDL
particles, and can slip into the arterial
wall easier.
Copyright
© 2006 Janet Brill, PH.D. and
reprinted with permission.
Janet
Bond Brill, Ph.D., R.D., LDN, is a
registered and licensed
dietitian/nutritionist, exercise
physiologist, and certified wellness
coach. She has been published in the
International Journal of Obesity
and the International Journal of Sport
Nutrition, as well as in the popular
press.
Read Dr.
Dolhenty's Review of this Book
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