First I’ll explain what whole grains are. There are three parts to a grain seed: the bran, the endosperm and the germ. The bran is the outer husk, this is where the fiber is as well as some B vitamins and antioxidants. The germ is actually the embryo of the seed (you can think of it as similar to the yolk of an egg) and this contains B vitamins, minerals, protein, and healthy fats. The endosperm is what is sold as white flour; this is the largest part of the seed and is mostly starchy carbohydrate and protein with small amounts of vitamins and minerals. You can get the idea from this that when you take away the germ and the bran, most of the micro-nutrients go with them. Processors are required to add back some vitamins and minerals but refined grains still don’t come close to the nutrition of whole grains.

When you are looking at labels in the supermarket there are a few things to look out for. Lots of companies are now putting “made with whole gains” or “multi-grain” on the front of the box or bag in an attempt to get you to buy them. These products might have only a sprinkling of whole grains in them. Take the time to turn the package around and read the ingredients list. Since Ingredients must be listed from greatest quantity to least, you want to see whole grains at the top of the list. The word whole along with whatever grain it is must be there (as in whole wheat flour) if it says wheat flour then it is refined. Some other whole grains you may see on packages include barley, corn, oats, brown rice, rye, and quinoa (to name just a few). Did you notice corn on the list? Yes, corn is a grain, and air-popped popcorn is a great whole grain snack!

How much should you be eating? For the average adult, the minimum amount is 3-4 oz per day. Since a slice of bread or 1/2 of an english muffin is a 1 oz equivalent, you can see that it’s easy to reach the minimum. The recommendation is also to make sure that half of all the grains you consume are whole grains. I’m going to stick with my usual recommendation to stay away from processed foods as much as possible. The more foods are processed, the fewer vitamins, minerals and other beneficial nutrients remain in them and I need all the nutrients I can get!

A few delicious whole grains

For more information you can visit the Whole Grain Council website. If you see one of their stamps on a product you know it contains whole grains, but don’t let that limit you! There are plenty of products out there that contain whole grains which don’t carry the stamp. In order to use the stamp each company must pay a fee as well as show that their product complies. There are some good store brands which do not bother to go through this process; the most foolproof method is to read the ingredients list.

The recommendation for fiber intake is 14 grams per 1,000 calories consumed; so if you eat about 2,000 calories per day you should be consuming about 28 grams of fiber.  What is Fiber? It is the indigestible part of the foods we eat (some people refer to it as roughage). There are two types of fiber which are typically referred to as soluble or insoluble; the big difference being that soluble fiber absorbs water and becomes gelatinous. Some types of soluble fiber can be used by gut bacteria as fuel, which is important to know because the by-product of this is gas (we all know what that is!).

Are you wondering why we need fiber if it’s something that our bodies can’t digest? Fiber actually has many health benefits. Think of fiber as the broom that helps to clean out your digestive tract, helping to eliminate waste and prevent constipation, but that’s not all! Fiber also helps to slow the rate of digestion which is helps to make you feel full longer and slows the rate of sugar entering your bloodstream which helps people maintain bodyweight and control diabetes. Fiber also helps to reduce the amount of cholesterol in your blood by binding with fatty acids which can help prevent heart disease.

So fiber is great, right? Well, not all fiber is created equal. Fibers that are naturally occurring in foods (like the fiber in vegetables, fruits, nuts, seeds, whole grains and beans) have the added benefit of supplying your body with vitamins and minerals that can improve health in other ways. Other types of fiber that are used as additives in foods just so that they can carry a high fiber label may or may not be as useful and can cause quite a bit of gastric distress if eaten in large quantities. Some words to look out for on labels include: psyllium husk, beta-glucan, inulin, resistant dextrins or resistant starch, fructans, xanthan gum, cellulose, modified starch, guar gum, fructooligosaccharides (FOS), and oligo- or polysaccharides, and various brans.

If you are one of the millions of Americans that needs to increase fiber intake, the first thing you need to remember is go slowly! If you are not used to fiber and you suddenly up your intake it could spell constipation, gas and discomfort! It is also important to increase your water consumption to help prevent constipation as your intake increases. If you focus on adding more vegetables, fruits, nuts, seeds, whole grains and beans instead of just looking at the number of grams in processed foods, your body will thank you!

Some delicious sources of fiber

I was thinking about this on Sunday while I completed my last long training run before the half-marathon I’m running on February 26th. Following the plan is the easy part – “the calendar says today I run 2 hours, so that’s what I do”. The hard part is evaluating each situation as it comes up. What happens when there is a bump in the road? There have been a few times I changed my schedule due to my body telling me that I had to, crazy weather or conflicts with my family schedule. These snafus can either totally derail you OR you can slightly alter your plan and move on. When your body is telling you to stop (and no, I’m not talking about those days that you just don’t feel like it – I’m talking about soreness that might lead to injury) sometimes you need to listen to your body and back off. This can be a very hard lesson for those Type A personalities out there (myself included)!

How about those who have already been meeting their goals? If you started out with some of the small suggestions I made before New Year’s (like adding 15 minutes of activity a day or adding one vegetable each day) you may have already met these goals and then some – good job! Now is the time to ask yourself ‘what’s the next step?’. If your current goals are no longer challenging, tweak them a little or add something else. Are the small goals bringing you closer to a larger goal?

My overarching resolution this year was to challenge myself and I have made several goals to that end. So far I have met some of those goals and added more. I’ve found ways to challenge myself both physically and professionally with every small step forward feeling like a little victory. Since goals are very individual, my goals might not seem very difficult for many of you (and vice versa) but that’s fine. This isn’t the time to worry about what other people are doing or how they perceive your goals, the important thing is that you challenge yourself.  I would love to hear about how you are doing with your goals; please feel free to email me (or comment below) and share how things are going!