Cereals, Bread, and Other Starchy Foods - Why Are They Important in Your Diet?

Carbohydrates are central sources of energy that we need for us to sustain a day's activity. They are abundant in calorie. Examples of this are bread, noodles, cereals, pasta, rice and chapatti. Apart from potatoes, all carbohydrate foods are produced from grains. It has two kinds; the unrefined and refined.

Unrefined grains
Unrefined grains are Whole Grains. They are composed of three parts, namely, endosperm, bran and the germ. The Endosperm is a starch-concentrated portion. Eighty percent of grain is composed of it. The Bran is abundant in dietary fiber, phytochemicals and Vitamin B. It is found on the outermost layer of the grain. The last component is the Germ. It is rich in proteins and healthy fats.

Whole Grains are responsible for combating Coronary Heart Disease, Type 2 Diabetes and some cancers. Examples are brown rice, cracked wheat or bulgur, wild rice, barley, oats in porridge form, popcorn and refined grains. When Grains are milled, they are refined from the bran and the germ, leaving the endosperm. They are in the form of Whites-white pasta, white rice and white bread.

Fiber and Benefits
Fruits, Vegetables and Grains are a great source of Dietary Fiber, which helps in keeping a healthy digestive system, regulates bowel movement and help lower blood cholesterol. Fiber has two groups: soluble and insoluble. Soluble Fiber dissolves in water. It is best for maintaining blood sugar level. It is readily available in beans, oat products and fruits. Insoluble Fiber goes straight to the digestive system because it cannot be dissolved in water. It is also found in other vegetables and whole grains.

Moderation
For enhancement and maintenance of health, 33.33% of our meal should contain carbohydrates and starchy foods.

The GI Factor
Carbohydrate foods are ranked according to their ability to increase blood sugar level. To do this, the Glycaemic Index is used. Low GI foods are recommended to type 2 diabetes patients. They should also be more frequently part of the diet than High GI Foods.

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What Is Gluten And Why Is It Important That Some People Eliminate It From Their Diet?

We all have heard of the fad of using a gluten free diet for weight loss, but let's analyze in this article exactly what it is and how it affects your body. Gluten is derived from the seeds of grain plants related to the grass family. What we call a gluten is actually a composite of two proteins found in these grains, called glutelin and gliadin. Glutens form around 80% of the protein found in grain plant seeds.

Plants that include true glutens which are used in food include rye, barley and wheat. Occasionally, the stored proteins in other common food grains such as maize and rice are referred to as glutens, but in actual fact these contain only glutelin, rather than the combination of glutelin and gliadin found in the grass family grains. Gluten is used a great deal in food production. One of the most common sources of gluten is in bread and pastry products, where the gluten is used to give the doughs their elasticity.

The more gluten is present and the longer the strands of gluten proteins present are, the chewier the resulting bread will be. Products like bagels and pizza bases have a lot of gluten, whereas short or flaky pastries have less. The gluten plays are large part in determining the texture of these types of baked foods. Gluten is also used as an additive. It can be used to add protein to low protein foods, and can be used as a stabilizer in foods you wouldn't expect to contain wheat derivatives, such as ice cream and tomato ketchup.

It is also often used as a meat substitute, either in "fake meat" products designed for vegetarians, or to bulk out meat products like sausages. It is desirable to eat gluten based products as a meat replacement if you live on a meat free diet, because of their protein content. For most people, gluten is a harmless protein and present in many of our staple foods. However, some people, between 0.5 and 1% of Americans, have an intolerance to gluten which is generally known as celiac disease, gluten sensitive enteropathy or gluten intolerance (gluten intolerance and wheat intolerance are different conditions, however wheat does contain gluten).

The gluten protein that causes an adverse response in celiac disease sufferers is gliadin, so celiac disease is only affected by true glutens containing both gliadin and glutelin. The disease occurs in genetically predisposed subjects, and can appear at any time in the sufferer's life. The only treatment for celiac disease is for the patient to maintain a gluten free diet for the rest of their lives. Due to the rise in diagnosis of celiac disease, many food brands now label their products as "gluten free."

The FDA limits the use of this labeling to products containing less than 20 parts per million of gluten, so in actual fact these products can still contain very small amounts of gluten, which are often the result not of the ingredients but of a tiny amount of gluten being introduced in manufacturing, for example where flour is used to stop products sticking to the production lines. Now that you know what it is, you'll be able to understand the real reason why people go on a gluten free diet, and how it can be beneficial towards your weight loss goals.

Cassie Getty is a 20 year expert at living gluten free. A painful trip to the emergency room revealed that I wasn't having a heart attack, I was having esophageal spasms due to wheat intolerance! Now I've learned how to control my symptoms through diet. I feel healthier, have my weight under control and don't miss eating wheat products at all. Click Gluten Free Diet and find out how tasty and satisfying being gluten free can be. Recipes. products, reviews, tips and more.

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Healthy Breakfast - The Most Important Meal of the Day

Almost everyone treats breakfast as the least important meal of the day. It never gets the attention it deserves. Dinner, on the other hand, is the kind of meal that should always be light and healthy, but we end up overeating at the dinner table (great way to gain weight since the body does not burn the calories readily, after all, you will be going to bed soon). Furthermore, we wake up the next morning 'not feeling hungry' for breakfast. This is the single biggest mistake for anyone trying to lose weight. A meal that is grossly underrated, breakfast 'breaks your overnight fast' and is therefore the most important meal for the day. It allows you to begin the day with energy and vitality.



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3 Important Differences Between White Bread and Whole Wheat

For any kid who grew up eating doughy, thick Wonder Bread for
lunch, the encouragement by dietitians and nutritionists to
switch to whole wheat bread can be a tough transition.

Bread, like any other part of our diet, is an acquired taste.
Starting out early helps since children are much more adaptable
to accepting foods than adults. This does not mean that children
LIKE as many foods as adults - children are renowned picky
eaters. But if you only expose them to healthy, whole grain foods
they won't have the opportunity to develop a taste for white
bread or other non-nutritious foods.

Adults, however, must learn to change their diet preferences
because of knowledge. Understanding why whole wheat is superior
to white bread can help you feel good about the compromise and
encourage you to make it the standard for your children. Who
knows - you may even like it!

WHAT IS THE DIFFERENCE?

The two biggest differences between white bread and whole wheat
are the processing and the nutritional value.

Flour is made from wheat berries. The wheat berry is made up of
the bran, the germ and the endosperm. All parts are filled with
nutrients and are used in whole wheat flour.

White bread on the other hand, uses only the endosperm - the
starchy inner layer. There is a total of 30 nutrients missing in
white bread. The nutritional difference is immense and has
measurable impact on our health.

WHAT IS THE IMPACT OF SWITCHING?

The fiber content of whole wheat bread has several health
benefits.

Fiber helps the digestive system. It also creates a 'full'
sensation and thus can help with weight control. Research has
been conducted by Harvard and other organizations that shows men
and women who eat high-fiber foods have less heart attacks and
strokes than those who don't.

There is also an increased risk of diabetes in children who eat
refined white flour - a risk that has been proven by the increase
in cases of childhood diabetes.

WHAT DO I LOOK FOR?

Watch out for words like 'wheat flour' or 'enriched wheat flour'
as they can be mostly made from white flour with just a small
amount of whole wheat added in.

Look for 'whole wheat' or other whole grains, like oat. And don't
be mislead by the name of the product. Names like wheat, whole
bran, stoned wheat, 12 grain and others are still mostly white
flour. The only way to know for sure is to read the label.

The information contained in this article is for educational purposes
only and is not intended to medically diagnose, treat or cure any
disease. Consult a health care practitioner before beginning any
health care program.

Emily Clark is editor at Lifestyle Health News and Medical Health News [http://www.medical-health-news.com] where you can find the most up-to-date advice and information on many medical, health and lifestyle topics.

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