Multi-Grain Vs Whole-Grain
by Shereen Jegtvig
I think a lot of people are aware of the importance of dietary fiber for good health. Fiber keeps your digestive system functioning properly and keep you feeling full a bit longer. Some types of fiber also help to keep your cholesterol in check, like the fiber found in oats. All of the fiber in your diet comes from plants and the most important sources are fruits, vegetables and whole grains.
Whole-grains are a good source of fiber because they still contain their outer coverings, whereas refined grains such as white bread and pasta have had the outer coverings removed. While many people still prefer the flavor and texture of refined grain products, whole-grain foods are becoming more popular. Food manufacturers know this so they often use the labels to proclaim the goodness of whole-grains.
That’s fine (and better if 100% whole-grain), but don’t confuse multi-grain for whole grain. Multi-grain just means more than one type of grain was used in the product. Those multi-grains could still be refined, or even mostly made from plain old white flour with a little bit of whole grain flour tossed in.
The way to be sure you’re getting plenty of fiber from your multi-grain products is to look at the Nutrient Facts label to verify how much fiber is there. And the amount of fiber can vary widely, even in products from the same company. Take a look at these multi-grain snacks from Snyder’s of Hanover:
The lightly salted variety contains about 3 grams of fiber per serving, which isn’t bad. If you look at the ingredients list, though, you’ll still see the top ingredient is wheat flour, which isn’t the same as whole wheat flour, it’s really just refined flour, which is low in fiber. Most of the 3 grams of fiber comes from the remaining ingredients. If this multi-grain product were really a 100% whole grain product, it would probably has twice as much fiber. Still, it’s better than the products on the bottom of the fiber list.
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