According to research data from both the USDA and private companies, Americans consume approximately one serving of whole grain foods per day. Current guidelines recommend three or more servings a day. The health benefits of whole grains are well documented. However, convincing Americans to eat them, especially in the amount recommended, has been unsuccessful. Adults and children give a variety of reasons for not choosing whole grain foods, including these: a lack of understanding of the health benefits of whole grain foods, an inability to identify whole grain foods at the point of purchase, their taste, their cost, the time it takes to prepare them and the availability of whole grain foods in stores. This paper addresses some of the misconceptions surrounding whole grain foods and offers strategies for helping consumers choose more whole grain products. In addition, we present historical information on the consumption trends of whole grains as well as educational and promotional opportunities that industry and health professionals can use to encourage the public to eat more whole grains.

Since 1980 General Mills Inc has regularly conducted studies of the mean daily intake of 25 nutrients from nationally representative samples of 4000 American households (approximately 10,000 individuals). This paper examines trends in sodium consumption derived from these studies. Calculated estimates of both discretionary and nondiscretionary intake indicate that overall sodium consumption has declined since the early 1980s. Shifts in food sources of sodium have occurred over the 10-y study period, with the greatest amounts of sodium coming from meats and mixed dishes. Greater interest in the sodium content of the diet is predicted because of the daily value listing on the new food label and the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute's campaign to reduce sodium intake. Until an acceptable alternative for the salty taste from sodium chloride is available, offering reduced-sodium alternatives and gradually reducing the sodium content of existing products appears to be the food industry's best approach to meet consumers' concerns about sodium.

Cereal Chem. 76(1):21-24The intestinal contents viscosities of oat-based breakfast cereals and muffins were examined. Male Sprague-Dawley rats were adapted for four days to a semipurified diet (AIN-76A). Following an overnight fast, the animals were meal-fed 5 g of either the AIN-76A diet (containing 5% cellulose), the AIN-76A diet containing 2% guar gum, whole-grain oat flour, one of five cereals (corn flakes, cooked oatmeal, uncooked oatmeal, cooked oat bran, or Cheerios), or one of two types of muffins (containing whole-grain oat flour or oatmeal). Two hours after presentation of the meal, the animals were killed, the small intestines removed, and the contents collected. The contents were centrifuged, and the viscosity values of the undiluted supernatants were determined. The supernatant viscosity from rats fed the AIN-76A diet was negligible (<5 mPa·sec), whereas that from rats fed guar gum was high (396 ± 117 mPa·sec). Of the cereals fed, corn flakes resulted in the lowest viscosity (<5 mPa·sec). However, all oat-based cereals resulted in high intestinal contents supernatant viscosity levels (cooked oatmeal 368 ± 128, uncooked oatmeal 307 ± 107, cooked oat bran 301 ± 85, Cheerios 199 ± 58, mPa·sec) with no statistically significant differences. The intestinal contents viscosity values for the whole-grain oat flour muffin and oatmeal muffin were 233 ± 52 and 111 ± 26 mPa·sec, respectively, a statistically significant difference (P < 0.05). This suggests that the form of the oat within a food may influence the degree of viscosity produced within the small intestine after that food is consumed.Publication no. C-1999-0104-06R.

An increased awareness of sodium's possible relation to hypertension has resulted in many Americans trying to avoid foods high in sodium without realizing the nutritional risks taken when these foods are eliminated from the diet. A recent study shows that a significant proportion of the population is consuming less than 66% of the recommended dietary allowance for calcium, iron, magnesium, and vitamin B6. Most of the population's daily sodium intake is from foods in the meat, grain, and milk food groups. Foods contributing sodium to the diet also contribute other essential nutrients currently consumed at inadequate levels by many Americans. There is a risk in reducing foods containing sodium from the diet without considering other nutrients. Emphasis should be on eliminating discretionary salt and selecting a balanced diet from the basic five food groups.

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