My Diet My Life: Truth or Consequences

"We may be gluing ourselves together on the inside." Terry Tasche

By Terry Tasche, R.N., B.S.N.

M.Photog. Cr., F-PPANI,
Founder of mydietmylife.com

Ever wonder what the term "Whole Wheat" really means?  Here are some fascinating facts about the wheat we eat.  Know the truth, or face the consequences!

1) The BRAN is the protective skin, or outer covering, of the wheat kernel.  It is high in fiber, vitamins and minerals.
2) The GERM is the nutrient-rich seed.  It is comfortably padded inside the endosperm (starch) awaiting its birth into a sprout so it can grow into a new wheat plant.
3) The ENDOSPERM contains mostly starch, the food source for the new plant sprout.

The WHEAT kernel consists of 3 basic parts:

"Whole Wheat for Wellbeing"

WHOLE WHEAT FLOUR is made up of all 3 parts, the bran, the germ, and the endosperm. WHITE FLOUR, also called "refined flour" (RF), is made from only the endosperm (starch). Here's what we lose when all but the starch are removed: the wheat kernel's life-sustaining ingredients, i.e., the fiber, basic amino acids, vitamins, minerals (including calcium, magnesium, potassium, phosphorus, sodium and iron), and antioxidant phytochemicals.  The Web site, www.horizonmilling.com, calls the starch portion "food for the growing seedling." I have a body needing nourishment, not a seedling needing to grow! Consuming products made from the plump "belly" of the wheat kernel will make me plump, too. As I fill myself with these starchy calories, new plump growth is created in me, not health.

Some may remember how when we were kids we made PASTE out of flour and water. (Some of our classmates even ate it.) Perhaps that's why foods made out of refined flour are called pasta and pastries. Sugar is often added to make the flour and water sweet and scrumptious, but a steady diet of this is deadly. The body cannot survive on starch (and sugar) alone.

According to the Microsoft dictionary, "refine" means to produce a purer form of, or to improve something by removing impurities. The wheat "refining" process is done by the mechanical removal, by grinding or selective sifting, of bran and germ, leaving only the endosperm (starch). Bleaching, mixing, and brominating are methods to further refine wheat. So, why is it called "refined" wheat? Essential ingredients of health, not impurities, are removed. Refinement" eliminates essential elements. Understanding the truth about what is stripped from the wheat kernel helps avoid the consequences of only consuming the starch that remains. Refinement sounds better than it turns out to be, because the RF products may be tempting but are bad for me. Fitness, vigor and bodily strength cannot be maintained by eating only the wheat's starch. Starch strengthens only shirts, but not my body.  We may be gluing ourselves together on the inside.

Studies have shown that the fiber and nutrients in whole grains help fight cancer, diabetes and heart disease. What is done with the needed nutrients and essential elements of health that are removed? Maybe they are sold back to me as nutritional supplements! Why not get it all in one tasty healthy bite of whole wheat!

The Whole Foods website, whfoods.com, states, "Wheat, in its natural unrefined state, features a host of important nutrients. Therefore, to receive benefit from the wholesomeness of wheat it is important to choose wheat products made from whole wheat flour rather than those that are refined and stripped of their natural goodness."

What else have I learned about refined flour? A steady diet of it won't lead to health but will lead to high blood sugar levels and insulin surges when eating refined or "stripped-down" wheat (RF). (Suggested reading: my previous article The Urge, the Splurge and the Surge.) I can expect the wheat kernel's starchy "padding" to help grow my own padding. Is that what I really want from my food? It also sets up a craving in me that is hard to get under control once I take the first bite. I have to ask myself, Who's in charge here? Me or the food? Every little bit that I don't bite helps! And, make sure that whole wheat is the first ingredient listed on the packages's "Nutrition Facts".

Sometimes I forget the fact that eating, although an enjoyable activity, is for the purpose of providing nutrition to my body. Eating things that are damaging and destructive, all the while providing more calories than I need, can lead to many disastrous health problems. Understanding reality brings clarity in decision-making and may help me to dodge the desserts. It's truth or consequences: Know the truth, improve our health, and avoid the consequences!

I created this month's image "Whole Wheat for Wellbeing" in Corel Painter 11. Tasche Tutorials are available by clicking on the image of the wheat kernel pictured above. 

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