Why ‘whole grain’ is not always healthy. Current standards for
classifying foods as ‘whole grain’ are inconsistent and, in some
cases, misleading, according to a new study in Public Health
Nutrition by Harvard School of Public Health researchers. One of
the most widely used industry standards, the Whole Grain Stamp,
actually identified grain products that were higher in both
added refined sugars and calories than products without the
Stamp. ‘Given the significant prevalence of refined grains,
starches, and sugars in modern diets, identifying a unified
criterion to identify higher quality carbohydrates is a key
priority in public health,’ said first author Rebecca
Mozaffarian. However, no single standard exists for defining any
product as a ‘whole grain’. For this study, Mozaffarian and
colleagues assessed five different (US) industry and government
guidelines for whole grain products: - The Whole Grain Stamp, a
packaging symbol for products containing at least 8 grams of
whole grains per serving (created by t