How Three Portions of Whole Grains a Day Could Help You Live Longer

We have long been urged to swap processed white flour for whole-grains. For those of us who have resisted the change, new research coming out of Harvard University may provide the final shove we need. According to Dr. Qi Sun, assistant professor of nutrition at the Harvard T. H. Chan School of Public Health in Boston, making that one change to whole-grains could reduce our risk of dying.

"The higher the whole grain intake, the lower the overall risk of dying, especially from cardiovascular disease." says Dr. Qi Sun, the study's author.

What are whole-grains?

Unlike refined white grains, whole-grains contain the entire grain kernel. This includes the bran (outer husk), germ (core), endosperm (middle-layer), and lots of nutrients that are usually lost in the refining process (such as fibre, iron, and B-vitamins).

In the refining process, the kernel is milled, removing the bran, germ and many of those healthy nutrients.

Whole-grain foods include bread made with whole-wheat flour, oatmeal, brown rice, and whole cornmeal.

What about this study?

Dr. Qi Sun and his colleagues reviewed the findings of a dozen studies, and examined data from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Surveys (NHANES). This provided Sun and his colleagues with data from nearly 800,000 patients, both men and women, in populations from the UK, Scandinavia and the United States.

In the period the study covered, 1971 to 2010, there were 98,000 deaths recorded.

While a direct cause-and-effect relationship wasn't proven, the study did suggest a link between eating more whole-grain foods and having a lower risk of dying.

The analysis suggested that eating three portions of whole grains every day led to a 25% reduction in the risk of dying from heart-attack or stroke, compared with patients who ate fewer or no portions of whole grains.

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Why is that?

Cardiovascular disease is the number-one killer of both men and women in the USA. Anything that cuts your risk by a quarter has to be a good thing. But why are whole-grains so heart healthy?

One factor is the lower risk of hypertension (high blood pressure). A study by Wang and colleagues found that consuming four portions of whole-grains a day reduced the risk of hypertension by 23% in men. Tighe and colleagues also reported lower systolic blood pressure (the top number) in healthy adults who ate three portions of whole-grains a day. High blood pressure is one of the earliest contributory factors to heart disease.

Mellen and colleagues noted that more whole-grain consumption leads to improvements in coronary artery intima thickness and diameter (this is one of the ways they spot coronary artery atherosclerosis, plaque in the arteries). This suggests that high wholegrain intake is associated with less atherosclerosis, a risk for deadly blood clots, heart-attack and sudden death.

Consuming whole-grains is also associated with a reduced stroke risk of 30 to 36% and a reduced risk of heart attack of 25 to 28%.

The world's leading health organisations recognise the importance of eating wholegrains to keep your heart healthy. This includes: the U.K. Joint Health Claims Initiative, the U.S. FDA, and the Sweden and Danish Dietary Recommendations. In the U.K, a product with more than 51% whole-grains can claim: "People with healthy hearts tend to eat more whole grain foods as part of a healthy lifestyle".

More about those Marvellous Whole-Grains

More Health Benefits of Whole Grains

We now know all about the cardiovascular benefits of whole grains, but are there any other health benefits to eating the whole grain rather than refined white carbohydrates?

A 2010 review by the American Society for Nutrition found that consumption of whole grains led to an approximate reduction in the risk of Type 2 Diabetes by 21%. Far from being the stereotypical minor nuisance associated with overeaters, Type 2 Diabetes can be a serious condition leading to heart disease, kidney damage, damage to nerves, foot damage leading to amputation, eye damage and even Alzheimer's disease.

A 2004 review by Joanne Slavin theorised that one reason whole-grains are so beneficial for Type 2 Diabetes is that their slow-digestibility prevents sudden spikes in blood glucose levels. Poor management of Diabetes is responsible for many complications.

The same 2004 review suggested that whole-grains are beneficial for weight management. A ten-year follow-up study by Ludwig and colleagues (1999) found that those patients who ate more whole-grains gained 3-6kg less than those who ate fewer whole-grains. Slavin suggests this may be due to the fact that whole-grains help you feel fuller for longer.

The 2010 review by the American Society for Nutrition also found a 21% reduced risk of colorectal cancer in people who eat more whole grains. Bowel cancer is the fourth most common type of cancer, and still has only a 57% ten-year survival rate. In her 2004 review, Slavin says: "Dietary factors, such as fibre, vitamin B6 and phytooestrogen intake and lifestyle factors such as exercise, smoking and alcohol use, which are controlled for in most epidemiological studies, do not explain the apparent protective effect of whole grains against cancer, again suggesting it is the whole-grain ‘package’ that is effective."

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Another benefit of eating plenty of healthy whole-grains, in Slavin's 2004 review, is that whole-grains may reduce your risk of dying of all causes. A Norwegian study by Jacobs and colleagues (1999) showed that men and women who eat wholegrain bread have a lower mortality rate, while Liu and colleagues (2003) found that eating wholegrain breakfast cereal reduced your risk of dying. The same wasn't true of refined breakfast cereal.

What's a portion of whole-grain?

If you're interested in eating the recommended three of more portions (48 g) of whole grains every day, it can be hard to know where to start. Here's our useful guide to what makes one portion:

• 1/2 whole-grain bagel (45g)
• 125ml/ 1/2 cup barley (cooked)
• 1 slice of whole-grain bread (35g)
• 30g cold whole-grain cold cereal
• 150g/3/4 cup whole-grain cooked, hot cereal (e.g. oatmeal)
• 30g wholewheat/rye crackers
• 125ml 1/2 cup whole-grain/brown rice pasta/noodles (cooked)
• 125ml/ 1/2 cup quinoa (cooked)
• 125ml/ 1/2 cup brown/wild rice (cooked)
• 1/2 wholewheat tortilla

So, should I switch to whole-grains?

Switching white breads, pastas and rice to tasty whole-grain alternatives is such a small step to take, but it's one that could make huge improvements to your health, now and in the future.

As Victoria Taylor, senior dietician at the British Heart Foundation, says, "Eating wholegrains is a simple change we can make to...help lower our risk of heart and circulatory disease."

So, if you make one change today, why not make it whole-grain.