Picture in your mind your favorite wheat foods — a pasta dish, a loaf of warm bread or a pizza crust. However you like to eat your wheat, the latest dietary guidance and expertise want you to make every bite count by including a mix of whole and refined grain foods in your diet.
“Wheat foods, whether they are whole or refined, are part of a happy and healthy life,” said Cindy Falk, Kansas Wheat nutrition educator. “Both types of wheat foods give your body quality energy by providing essential nutrients like fiber, vitamin A and iron.”
Whole wheat products, which contain the entire seed of the plant, have proven benefits for weight control, reduction in heart disease and prevention of Type II diabetes. Enriched or refined flour starts with the flour produced from just the endosperm, one of three distinct parts of the seed that contains protein. But, some nutrients lost in the milling process are added back to the flour in addition to fortifying flour with added nutrients like iron and folic acid.
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