Whole grain vs. whole wheat

[lauralea]

I just purchased Tosca Reno's Clean Eating book and she talks about eating whole grains. It left me uncertain as to whether whole grain is the same as whole wheat. Please inform me as to whether they are the same or if I need to start looking for whole grain labels. Thanks for your advice.

Laura

 

[mkauppil]

Whole grain is a broader term which includes whole wheat (i.e., wheat is just one type of grain.) Hope my description makes sense.

 

[kathryn]

Wheat is one type of grain, but not the best (acidifying, highly hybrdized, one of the top food sensitivities). In addition to whole wheat, "whole grain" can be whole rye, oats, barley, amaranth, or any other grain or pseudo-grains (which are actually healthier, and are usually thought of as grains): buckwheat, quinoa, millet.

Just make sure the word "whole" is in front of the first grain mentioned on the label. "Wheat" isn't the same as "whole wheat" (while flour is usually made from wheat).

 

[nancy324]

I was pigging out on Kashi TLC crackers last night thinking they were whole grain, and then I read the ingredients. The FIRST ingredient was "unbleached wheat four" and the SECOND ingredient was "Kashi Seven Whole Grain & Sesame". x( Sure fooled me. I thought all Kashi products were whole grain.

 

[kathryn]

> I thought all Kashi products were whole grain. :

A lot of companies do that : put in lots of regular old white flour as the main ingredient, and a bit of some whole grain farther down the list, just so they can say 'made with whole grains.'

I don't trust Kashi or their business practices ever since, years ago, they put "organic" on the front of their boxes (before the organic standards came into effect), but the ingredients list said nothing about organically grown ingredients, and there was no "Certified Organic by (Oregon Tilth/California Organic whatchamacallit") on the box, so I figured out that they were trying to make it sound better than it was and prey on customers' ignorance, using 'organic' to mean "no minerals or synthetic ingredients included." They stopped using the 'organic' promo pretty quickly, but I never 'forgave' them for trying to slip something past unsuspecting consumers.

 

[nancy324]

>A lot of companies do that : put in lots of regular old white
>flour as the main ingredient, and a bit of some whole grain
>farther down the list, just so they can say 'made with whole
>grains.'

I knew that, but I thought Kashi was different.

>
>I don't trust Kashi or their business practices ever since,
>years ago, they put "organic" on the front of their boxes
>(before the organic standards came into effect), but the
>ingredients list said nothing about organically grown
>ingredients, and there was no "Certified Organic by (Oregon
>Tilth/California Organic whatchamacallit") on the box, so I
>figured out that they were trying to make it sound better than
>it was and prey on customers' ignorance, using 'organic' to
>mean "no minerals or synthetic ingredients included." They
>stopped using the 'organic' promo pretty quickly, but I never
>'forgave' them for trying to slip something past unsuspecting
>consumers.

Kathryn, that is awful!!

 

[mariep]

Crap! x( I just started eating some Kashi products thinking I was finally getting better with my eating, and now I hear this! What a bummer. I've been eating their Go Lean Crunch cereal and their TLC chewy granola bars (flax almond honey or something like that). Are all their products bad or just some? Guess I need to pay more attention to the ingredients lists...

 

[nancy324]

marie, have a look at the ingredients. "Good Friends" cereal is truly whole grain, and I love it. I would avoid the crackers, though.

 

[kathryn]

I have a 'fiber rule' for determining whether I'll buy a processed grain product (crackers, cereal, baked goods, cookies even---most of the time ): does it have at least 2 grams of naturally occuring fiber per serving?

Most crackers (even 'health-food-store' ones) don't pass the test. (By 'naturally occuring,' I mean that the fiber comes from the whole ingredients, not from added fiber, like the wood-pulp-added bread that some company sold some years ago.)

I wouldn't say that Kashi is 'bad,' but some of their products are not 'best choice.'

 

[trunyon]

Laura, I've just begun the Tosca Rena clean eating....if you truly want good bread try the Food for Life bread. They make the Ezekiel (whole wheat), Genesis 1:29(which is Sprouted Grain & Seed) 7 Sprouted Grain and I believe they even have a cinnamon and raisin. No flour in it at all. I love the Ezekiel toasted w/almond butter!:9

You can go to www.foodforlife.com for more info.

Hope this helps.

 

[kathryn]

> I love the
>Ezekiel toasted w/almond butter!:9

I don't eat much bread, but when I do, it's usually Food for Life Ezekial burger buns (just like the shape and texture more than the bread). In fact, I'm about to have a tempeh mock 'chicken-or-the egg' sandwich with a side of fresh veggies from my garden/front yard!

 

[divagirl]

I love the Food for life breads and I use the ezekial tortilla wraps now too. I love the breads toasted with some flax oil...yum yum.