ES
Whole Grains May Work as Well as Drugs
The consumption of three portions of whole grains a day appears as powerful as high blood pressure medications in alleviating hypertension.
Below is an approximation of this video’s audio content. To see any graphs, charts, graphics, images, and quotes to which Dr. Greger may be referring, watch the above video.
An analysis of a bunch of randomized drug trials suggests that taking a blood pressure-lowering medication for high blood pressure may reduce the risk of getting a heart attack by 15%, and the risk of getting a stroke by about 25%.
What a coincidence; a recent study found that we may achieve similar benefits eating just three portions of whole grains a day: “The observed decrease in systolic blood pressure could decrease the incidence of coronary artery disease and stroke by…15% and 25%, respectively.”
While whole grains are good, refined grains may not just be neutral. Out of Harvard: “White rice, Brown rice, and Risk of type 2 diabetes.” In these 3 prospective cohort studies of US men and women, [they] found that regular consumption of white rice was associated with higher risk of [type 2 diabetes], whereas brown rice intake was associated with lower risk.”
An interesting wrinkle is that they found other whole grains may be even better than brown rice. Eating white rice was associated with a 17% greater risk of diabetes; replace it with brown, and instead, apparently get a 16% drop in risk. And, replace white rice with other whole grains, such as oats and barley? A 36% lower diabetes risk. Just a single serving a day of oats or barley may lower our cholesterol.
See, whole grains are more than just refined grains with a fiber coat. With white flour, you just get this, but all the rest of the nutrition is stripped away—which includes most of the compounds responsible for whole grain contributions to the health of our bowels, weight, blood sugar, cancer prevention, bones, brain, and heart.
The powerful effects of whole grains aren’t lost on the food industry marketing teams, who now offer a whole grain guarantee, on foods like this.
Please consider volunteering to help out on the site.
- Tiwari U, Cummins E. Meta-analysis of the effect of β-glucan intake on blood cholesterol and glucose levels. Nutrition. 2011 Oct;27(10):1008-16.
- Sun Q, Spiegelman D, van Dam RM, Holmes MD, Malik VS, Willett WC, Hu FB. White rice, brown rice, and risk of type 2 diabetes in US men and women. Arch Intern Med. 2010 Jun 14;170(11):961-9.
- Law MR, Morris JK, Wald NJ. Use of blood pressure lowering drugs in the prevention of cardiovascular disease: meta-analysis of 147 randomised trials in the context of expectations from prospective epidemiological studies. BMJ. 2009 May 19;338:b1665.
- Tighe P, Duthie G, Vaughan N, Brittenden J, Simpson WG, Duthie S, Mutch W, Wahle K, Horgan G, Thies F. Effect of increased consumption of whole-grain foods on blood pressure and other cardiovascular risk markers in healthy middle-aged persons: a randomized controlled trial. Am J Clin Nutr. 2010 Oct;92(4):733-40.
Images thanks to Dr. Rebecca York and Mattie Hagedorn via flickr
Below is an approximation of this video’s audio content. To see any graphs, charts, graphics, images, and quotes to which Dr. Greger may be referring, watch the above video.
An analysis of a bunch of randomized drug trials suggests that taking a blood pressure-lowering medication for high blood pressure may reduce the risk of getting a heart attack by 15%, and the risk of getting a stroke by about 25%.
What a coincidence; a recent study found that we may achieve similar benefits eating just three portions of whole grains a day: “The observed decrease in systolic blood pressure could decrease the incidence of coronary artery disease and stroke by…15% and 25%, respectively.”
While whole grains are good, refined grains may not just be neutral. Out of Harvard: “White rice, Brown rice, and Risk of type 2 diabetes.” In these 3 prospective cohort studies of US men and women, [they] found that regular consumption of white rice was associated with higher risk of [type 2 diabetes], whereas brown rice intake was associated with lower risk.”
An interesting wrinkle is that they found other whole grains may be even better than brown rice. Eating white rice was associated with a 17% greater risk of diabetes; replace it with brown, and instead, apparently get a 16% drop in risk. And, replace white rice with other whole grains, such as oats and barley? A 36% lower diabetes risk. Just a single serving a day of oats or barley may lower our cholesterol.
See, whole grains are more than just refined grains with a fiber coat. With white flour, you just get this, but all the rest of the nutrition is stripped away—which includes most of the compounds responsible for whole grain contributions to the health of our bowels, weight, blood sugar, cancer prevention, bones, brain, and heart.
The powerful effects of whole grains aren’t lost on the food industry marketing teams, who now offer a whole grain guarantee, on foods like this.
Please consider volunteering to help out on the site.
- Tiwari U, Cummins E. Meta-analysis of the effect of β-glucan intake on blood cholesterol and glucose levels. Nutrition. 2011 Oct;27(10):1008-16.
- Sun Q, Spiegelman D, van Dam RM, Holmes MD, Malik VS, Willett WC, Hu FB. White rice, brown rice, and risk of type 2 diabetes in US men and women. Arch Intern Med. 2010 Jun 14;170(11):961-9.
- Law MR, Morris JK, Wald NJ. Use of blood pressure lowering drugs in the prevention of cardiovascular disease: meta-analysis of 147 randomised trials in the context of expectations from prospective epidemiological studies. BMJ. 2009 May 19;338:b1665.
- Tighe P, Duthie G, Vaughan N, Brittenden J, Simpson WG, Duthie S, Mutch W, Wahle K, Horgan G, Thies F. Effect of increased consumption of whole-grain foods on blood pressure and other cardiovascular risk markers in healthy middle-aged persons: a randomized controlled trial. Am J Clin Nutr. 2010 Oct;92(4):733-40.
Images thanks to Dr. Rebecca York and Mattie Hagedorn via flickr
Republishing "Whole Grains May Work as Well as Drugs"
You may republish this material online or in print under our Creative Commons licence. You must attribute the article to NutritionFacts.org with a link back to our website in your republication.
If any changes are made to the original text or video, you must indicate, reasonably, what has changed about the article or video.
You may not use our material for commercial purposes.
You may not apply legal terms or technological measures that restrict others from doing anything permitted here.
If you have any questions, please Contact Us
Whole Grains May Work as Well as Drugs
LicenseCreative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International (CC BY-NC 4.0)
Content URL
Doctor's Note
In my live 2012 presentation, Uprooting the Leading Causes of Death, I address the role diet may play in preventing, treating, and even reversing our top 15 killers, including high blood pressure. Whole grains may, in fact, extend our lifespan; see What Women Should Eat to Live Longer. What about the phytates in whole grains? See New Mineral Absorption Enhancers Found. And, how can we make our oatmeal even healthier? See Antioxidants in a Pinch.
For more context, check out my associated blog post: Plant-Based Diets for Metabolic Syndrome.
If you haven't yet, you can subscribe to our free newsletter. With your subscription, you'll also get notifications for just-released blogs and videos. Check out our information page about our translated resources.
Subscribe to NutritionFacts.org Videos
By subscribing, you will automatically receive the latest videos emailed to you or downloaded to your computer or portable device. Select the subscription method below that best fits your lifestyle.
Or subscribe with your favorite app by using the address below:
iOS (iPhone, iPad, and iPod)
For PodcastsTo subscribe, select the "Subscribe on iTunes" button above.
For E-mail SubscriptionsTo subscribe, select the "Subscribe via E-Mail" button above.
Mac and Windows
For PodcastsTo subscribe, select the "Subscribe on iTunes" button above.
For E-mail SubscriptionsTo subscribe, select the "Subscribe via E-Mail" button above.
Android and Amazon Fire
For PodcastsTo subscribe, select the "Subscribe on Android" button above.
For E-mail SubscriptionsTo subscribe, select the "Subscribe via E-Mail" button above.
Using Your Favorite Application
Copy the address found in the box above and paste into your favorite podcast application or news reader.
Bookmarking NutritionFacts.org
To bookmark this site, press the Ctrl + D keys on your Windows keyboard, or Command + D for Mac.
