Guest guest Posted October 12, 2004 Report Share Posted October 12, 2004 " HSI - Jenny Thompson " <HSIResearch Trix or Treats Tue, 12 Oct 2004 09:18:50 -0400 Trix or Treats Health Sciences Institute e-Alert October 12, 2004 ************************************************************** Dear Reader, I'm not sure if this one is a trick or a treat. You may have heard the news a couple of weeks ago that General Mills will start using whole grain in cereal products for kids. Over the next three months, Lucky Charms, Trix and other cereals will be converted from processed flour to whole grain. Meanwhile, a number of other General Mills' cereals, such as Wheaties and Cheerios, have already made the whole grain switch. Sounds good, doesn't it? And that's the way this announcement was uniformly received by the media: Great News! But while reports have implied that these cereals will be quite a bit healthier, you have to ask: Healthier? Maybe. But healthy? Lucky Charms? I don't think we've arrived anywhere near " healthy " just yet. But here's the question that really needs answering: Does this new whole grain actually qualify as genuine whole grain? --------------------------- The " whole " megillah --------------------------- In a USA Today article about the new whole grain, on toward the very bottom of the article, there's a reference to the " technology " behind General Mills' cereal changes. It seems that the whole grain won't be EXACTLY whole as we currently know it. It will be made of flour that's processed with a newly developed milling method that grinds the whole grain into particles of uniform size. Hmm. Doesn't sound quite " whole " to me. In August, a company called ConAgra (the second largest food processing company in the U.S.) announced the development of Ultragrain, which appears to be similar to the new whole grain that General Mills is using. Ultragrain is designed to be used in any type of product that calls for flour: bread, pizza, pasta, crackers, cereal, etc. The primary selling point is that it's just as healthy as whole grain, but has the look, texture and flavor of processed grain. According to an Associated Press report, Ultragrain produces a slice of white bread that's purported to be just as healthy as a slice of genuine whole wheat bread. USA Today states that General Mills executives would not discuss the new technology behind the development of their new type of whole grain. So what's the big secret? They're asking us to accept their word that it's healthier, but they're not giving us specific details. In fact, this new milling technology is so cutting edge that the only information I've been able to find consists of glowing reports about how it will transform the bread industry. Most of these reports appear to be little more than rewritten press releases. And so far no one is asking any hard questions. Such as: How did they manage to make a completely different whole grain that's just as healthy as whole grain? Or: Have trials been conduced to make sure there are no health risks? --------------------------- Whole is as whole does --------------------------- I asked HSI Panelist Allan Spreen, M.D., if he'd heard anything about this bread " breakthrough, " and he confirmed that not much is known about it so far. But he did have this insightful take on it: " Whole grains are missing one huge factor where refined grains are clearly superior, and that's shelf life. I don't see the 'big boys' ever giving that up – it's just too much money down the drain throwing out food that's gone bad too early. So, yes, I smell a rat (though at this point I can't prove it). Something fishy is going on here. " One of the fishiest things about the claims for the new cereal products is that they'll be healthier. Have you seen a bowl of Trix lately? The colors are practically iridescent. So you can be sure there are plenty of artificial colors added. Preservatives? Absolutely. Trans fatty acids? You bet. Sugar? Oh my yes: 13 grams per cup! In other words, we're quite a long way from health food here. And swapping refined flour for a new type of whole grain that mimics the qualities of refined flour provides a pretty thin assurance that we're moving in a healthy direction. ************************************************************** ....and another thing Overweight is one thing. Obesity is quite another. When I sent you the e-Alert " Sugar Shock " (9/28/04), I told you about a UK scheme to address the growing epidemic of obesity: Give tax breaks to people who purchase sports and exercise equipment. Frankly, I find this idea foolish. I don't believe a modest tax break will inspire an obese person to change his lifestyle and become a daily exerciser. In response, I received an e-mail from an HSI member named Kimberly who felt I was being insensitive about obese people. Kimberly writes: " I am overweight... I know it... I try to lose... I eat my veggies and take my vitamins but I still have to do 2-3 times as much exercise to maintain my weight and not gain than someone who is 'Fit and Healthy'. My health is very good, my blood pressure is not high, no diabetes or hyperglycemia (yes, I have had my A1c checked) so when I read in a publication I like to think is right in the face of mainstream thinking on pharmaceuticals... well it hurts just a bit when I read and I quote... " 'If obese people were in the least bit inclined to do any type of exercise...then they would be fit and healthy instead of obese.' " WRONG! This simply IS NOT the case for thousands of overweight, or as you like to say 'obese' people. I am inclined to do ANY kind of exercise, I like to get out there and move. I have a 2 and a 3 year old, and there is no time to eat a huge meal. Who sits and watches 2 hours of TV afterward when you are off chasing and playing with your kids? I exercise at least 30-45 mins EVERY DAY! " Let's try not to put all obese people in the same category as lazy slobs who do nothing but sit around, eat and watch hours upon hours of TV before falling asleep in their own potato chip crumbles. " I completely sympathize with Kimberly. Like her and millions of others, I struggle to maintain a proper weight. But Kimberly is under the impression that when I use the word " obese, " I'm referring to anyone who's overweight, and that's not the case at all. By Kimberly's own admission, she's carrying too much weight. But if she gets 30 to 45 minutes of exercise every day, then she's probably healthier than those who don't have weight problems but don't exercise. So being overweight is not necessarily a problem – it's more like a warning that something needs to be done. But being obese is a crisis. From several sources, I found these definitions of obesity: * Excessively fat * Extremely corpulent * Grossly overweight I've got a hunch that none of those definitions describes Kimberly. In her e-mail, Kimberly adds this suggestion: " So, let's find a study out there in regards to people who exercise but seem more inclined to gain instead no matter what they do. I am sure that there a lot of people out there just like me who don't eat junk, who do some sort of exercise every day and still the weight does not fall off. Have there been studies marking what kind of health these types of people are in? " Good question. I don't know of any such studies, but I'll keep an eye out, and I'll also ask the HSI team to be on the lookout for this type of research. To Your Good Health, Jenny Thompson Health Sciences Institute ************************************************************** Sources: " General Mills Cereals Go Totally Whole Grain " Bruce Horovitz, USA Today, 9/30/04, usatoday.com " New Flour Offers Nutrition of Whole Grain, Texture of White " Joe Ruff, The Associated Press, 8/12/04, thestate.com Copyright ©1997-2004 by www.hsibaltimore.com, L.L.C. The e-Alert may not be posted on commercial sites without written permission. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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