Grains and Nutrition

Featured Research

 

Perspective: Refined Grains and Health: Genuine Risk, or Guilt by Association?

When evaluated as a distinct food category, 11 meta-analyses of prospective cohort studies, which included a total of 32 publications with data from 24 distinct cohorts, demonstrated that refined grain intake was not associated with all-cause mortality, T2D, CVD, coronary heart disease (CHD), stroke, hypertension, or cancer.

Refined grain consumption up to 6–7 servings/d (1 serving = 30 g) was not associated with higher risk of CHD, T2D, hypertension, or all-cause mortality. Moreover, total grain intake was not associated with risk of CVD, CHD, stroke, or cancer, but was associated with lower risk of all-cause mortality.

Full Meta-Analyses
 

Filling America's fiber intake gap: summary of a roundtable to probe realistic solutions with a focus on grain-based foods

The public health implications of inadequate fiber intake prompted the roundtable session "Filling America's Fiber Gap: Probing Realistic Solutions," which assembled nutrition researchers, educators, and communicators to identify challenges, opportunities, and realistic solutions to help fill the current fiber gap. The roundtable discussions highlighted the need for both consumer and professional education to improve acceptance for and inclusion of grain-based foods with added fiber as one strategy for increasing fiber intakes within daily energy goals.

Entire Summary

National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey

The National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) is a program of studies designed to assess the health and nutritional status of adults and children in the United States. The survey is unique in that it combines interviews and physical examinations. NHANES is a major program of the National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS). NCHS is part of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and has the responsibility for producing vital and health statistics for the Nation.

National Health Survey

Additional Research

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  2. Papanikolaou Y, Fulgoni V. Certain Grain Food Patterns Are Associated with Improved 2015 Dietary Guidelines Shortfall Nutrient Intakes, Diet Quality, and Lower Body Weight in US Adults: Results from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, 2005-2010. Food and Nutrition Sciences. 2016,7(9), 772-781.

  3. Papanikolaou Y, Fulgoni V. Modeling changes in daily grain foods intake: An analysis to determine the impact on nutrient intakes in comparison to the USDA ideal food pattern. Abstract. FASEB J. 2015;29(suppl):741.8.

  4. Nicklas T, O’Neil C, Fulgoni V. Nutrient intake, introduction of baby cereals and other complementary foods in the diets of infants and toddlers from birth to 23 months of age. AIMS Pub Health 2020, 7(1): 123-147.

  5. Smith J, Zhu Y, Vanage V, Jain N, Holschuh N, Hermetet Agler A. Association between ready-to-eat cereal consumption and nutrient intake, nutritional adequacy, and diet quality among infants, toddlers, and children in the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey 2015-2016. Nutrients 2019; 11(9): 1989

  6. Papanikolaou Y. Pasta consumption is linked to greater nutrient intakes and improved diet quality in American children and adults, and beneficial weight-related outcomes only in adult females. Front. Nutr. 2020. 7:112.

  7. Smith JD, Jain N, Bailey RL. Ready-to-eat cereal fortification: a modeling study on the impact of changing ready-to-eat cereal fortification levels on population intake of nutrients. Public Health Nutrition 2020; 23(12): 2165-2178.

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  9. Papanikolaou, Y and Fulgoni V. Grains Contribute Shortfall Nutrients and Nutrient Density to Older US Adults: Data from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, 2011–2014. Nutrients. 2018,10(5),534; https://doi.org/10.3390/nu10050534.

  10. Papanikolaou Y, Fulgoni V. Certain Grain Foods Can Be Meaningful Contributors to Nutrient Density in the Diets of U.S. Children and Adolescents: Data from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, 2009–2012. Nutrients. 2017,9(2),160; https://doi.org/10.3390/nu9020160.

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  14. Papanikolaou Y, Fulgoni V. Certain Grain Food Patterns Are Associated with Improved 2015 Dietary Guidelines Shortfall Nutrient Intakes, Diet Quality, and Lower Body Weight in US Adults: Results from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, 2005-2010. Food and Nutrition Sciences. 2016,7(9), 772-781. DOI: 10.4236/fns.2016.79078.

  15. Papanikolaou Y, Jones JM, Fulgoni V. Several grain dietary patterns are associated with better diet quality and improved shortfall nutrient intakes in US children and adolescents: a study focusing on the 2015–2020 Dietary Guidelines for Americans. Nutrition Journal. 2017,16:13. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12937-017-0230-0.

  16. Bailey RL, Pac SG, Fulgoni VL, Reidy KC, Catalano PM. Estimation of Total Usual Dietary Intakes of Pregnant Women in the United States. JAMA Netw Open. Published online June 21, 20192(6):e195967. doi:10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2019.5967.

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  19. Aune D, Keum N, Giovannucci E, Fadnes LT, Boffetta P, Greenwood DC, et al. Whole grain consumption and risk of cardiovascular disease, cancer, and all cause and cause specific mortality: systematic review and dose-response meta-analysis of prospective studies. BMJ. 2016;353:i2716. Epub 2016/06/16. doi: 10.1136/bmj.i2716. PubMed PMID: 27301975; PubMed Central PMCID: PMCPMC4908315.

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  22. Benisi-Kohansal S, Saneei P, Salehi-Marzijarani M, Larijani B, Esmaillzadeh A. Whole-Grain Intake and Mortality from All Causes, Cardiovascular Disease, and Cancer: A Systematic Review and Dose-Response Meta-Analysis of Prospective Cohort Studies. Adv Nutr. 2016;7(6):1052-65. Epub 2017/02/01. doi: 10.3945/an.115.011635. PubMed PMID: 28140323; PubMed Central PMCID: PMCPMC5105035.

  23. Chen GC, Tong X, Xu JY, Han SF, Wan ZX, Qin JB, et al. Whole-grain intake and total, cardiovascular, and cancer mortality: a systematic review and meta-analysis of prospective studies. Am J Clin Nutr. 2016;104(1):164-72. Epub 2016/05/27. doi: 10.3945/ajcn.115.122432. PubMed PMID: 27225432.

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  25. Hajihashemi P, Haghighatdoost F. Effects of Whole-Grain Consumption on Selected Biomarkers of Systematic Inflammation: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials. J Am Coll Nutr. 2019;38(3):275-85. Epub 2018/09/06. doi: 10.1080/07315724.2018.1490935. PubMed PMID: 30183552.

  26. Jacobs DR, Jr., Marquart L, Slavin J, Kushi LH. Whole-grain intake and cancer: an expanded review and meta-analysis. Nutr Cancer. 1998;30(2):85-96. Epub 1998/05/20. doi: 10.1080/01635589809514647. PubMed PMID: 9589426.

  27. McRae MP. Health Benefits of Dietary Whole Grains: An Umbrella Review of Meta-analyses. J Chiropr Med. 2017;16(1):10-8. Epub 2017/02/24. doi: 10.1016/j.jcm.2016.08.008. PubMed PMID: 28228693; PubMed Central PMCID: PMCPMC5310957.

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  30. Schwingshackl L, Schwedhelm C, Hoffmann G, Knuppel S, Iqbal K, Andriolo V, et al. Food Groups and Risk of Hypertension: A Systematic Review and Dose-Response Meta-Analysis of Prospective Studies. Adv Nutr. 2017;8(6):793-803. Epub 2017/11/17. doi: 10.3945/an.117.017178. PubMed PMID: 29141965; PubMed Central PMCID: PMCPMC5683007.

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  32. Schwingshackl L, Schwedhelm C, Hoffmann G, Lampousi AM, Knuppel S, Iqbal K, et al. Food groups and risk of all-cause mortality: a systematic review and meta-analysis of prospective studies. Am J Clin Nutr. 2017;105(6):1462-73. Epub 2017/04/28. doi: 10.3945/ajcn.117.153148. PubMed PMID: 28446499.

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  38. Lin B, Guthrie J, Smith T. Dietary Guidance and New School Meal Standards: School children’s Whole Grain Consumption Over 1994-2014. Amer J Prev Medicine. July 2019, Vol 57, Issue 1, 57-67. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.amepre.2019.01.010

  39. Papanikolaou, Y, Fulgoni, V. Grain Foods in US Infants are Associated with Greater Nutrient Intakes, Improved Diet Quality and Increased Consumption of Recommended Food. Nutrients. 2019, 11, 2840; doi:10.3390/nu11122840. https://res.mdpi.com/d_attachment/nutrients/nutrients-11-02840/article_deploy/nutrients-11-02840.pdf 39. The study defined grain consumers as those infants consuming grain foods (with the exclusion of mixed dishes) and breastfeeding during the 24-hour dietary recall as defined by the USDA’s Food Patterns Equivalents Database

  40. Bowman, S.A.; Clemens, J.C.; Friday, J.E.; Lynch, K.L.; Moshfegh, A.J. Food Patterns Equivalents Database 2013–2014: Methodology and User Guide [Online]. Food Surveys Research Group, Beltsville Human Nutrition Research Center, Agricultural Research Service; U.S. Department of Agriculture: Beltsville, MD, USA, 2017.