Whole Grain Nutrition

Bleached refined white flour not only has added toxins, it also has had many of the nutrients removed. By law, refined white flour must have iron and three vitamins added back in. But these ‘enriched’ nutrients are not the natural grain nutrients that have been removed. These nutrients come primarily from coal tar and rust. Unbleached refined flour removes some of the toxins, but not the loss of nutrients. What do you lose when you use refined white flour?  You lose 77.87% of the fiber, much of the vitamins, minerals, amino acids, all of the beta carotene, and 92% of the lutein. What do you gain in bleached white refined flour?  You gain the percentage of carbohydrate and pure energy that spikes your blood sugar level followed by a dramatic drop in blood sugar levels. This increases your hunger.

(Compiled from the United States Department of Agriculture web site.)

The bran is the waxy outer coat (the epicarp) that further protects the nutrition in the grain.  Although it has little or no nutritional value, the bran is an important source of fiber. Fiber serves as a scrub brush to clean and maintain the lining of the intestinal tract.  It also helps to maintain a balanced and regular stool for the elimination of the waste products of digestion. Other parts of the grain also include both soluble and insoluble fiber to aid elimination. As long as the kernal of grain has not been broken, the grain will remain fertile for many years.  Wheat kernals from the pyramids have even been sprouted.  Once this outer layer is penetrated, the nutrients start to deteriorate as all fresh foods do. The best way to prevent the spoilage of fresh milled grain is to remove any nutrients that will spoil.  This dramatically increases the shelf life of flour, but dramatically decreases the nutritional value. The endosperm is the section of the grain that holds the starch. Without the nutrients of fresh whole grains, the starch does not activate the whole digestive process of the body. It simply turns into sugar and is released into the bloodstream. Once this sugar energy is distributed to the body (with excess sugar stored as fat), the blood sugar level falls dramatically.  This causes great stress on the body, especially those who are diabetic. The embryo or germ is one of the richest sources of vitamins and minerals. It is particularly high in antioxidants such as vitamin E. The best way to get the most of this rich nutritional source is by freshly milling your own wheat just prior to baking. The nutritional loss of processed oats is less than that of refined flour. Processed oats are the oats that have been flaked or rolled and usually packaged as a breakfast cereal for porridge or muesli.  The main nutritional loss is protein and fiber as well as certain vitamins, minerals, lipids and folate. In addition to the nutritional loss, the oat has been dried out for long term storage.  The bran is no longer the soft, supple bran of the fresh oat grain.

(Compiled from the United States Department of Agriculture web site. )