A Whole Lot More "Whole" Grains??

We've all heard and/or seen the ads and recommendations telling us how important it is to incorporate plenty of "healthy" whole grains into our diets.  Fiber-rich, heart healthy, cancer preventing and even cholesterol lowering they say; (although the cholesterol claim got Cheerios in a little trouble last year...). But, is that truly the "Whole" story?  The government, healthcare system, and food industry would like us to believe so, just take a look at the Food Pyramid.  And the Dietary Guidelines emphasize the importance of whole grains saying we need at least 48 grams or 3 servings of them per day.  Bear in mind, these "whole" grains are part of the 6-11 carbohydrate servings the USDA says you "should" be eating each day as part of a "healthy" diet...

I am going to assume that most reading this post are at least semi-educated on Paleo Diet principles; if not - FYI: there are no grains (not even "whole" grains) on this plan.  ALL grains, to varying degrees, have the potential to (READ:  DO.) result in some undesirable effects and/or diseases including autoimmune conditions, diabetes, leaky gut and MANY more.  While the effects may not be immediately evident, and are often blamed on an alternate cause, the reality is that grains, whole or otherwise, are not all they're "cracked" up to be.

Unfortunately the groups responsible for setting dietary standards and deciding what's healthy want us to believe that grains are great.  (Just read my post regarding the recommendations for the 2010 Dietary Guidelines here.)  In fact, the food industry is predicting an INCREASE in whole grain consumption as a result of the "New" guidelines.  A report titled "Whole Grain and High Fiber Foods: A Global Strategic Business Report" projects that the market for whole grains will reach 24 billion dollars by 2015.

Great - this is EXACTLY what the world doesn't need!!  In the past 50 years per capita grain consumption in the US has increased 24.5% while the incidence of overweight, obesity and weight related diseases has risen right along with it.  Is increasing the consumption of grains (whole or otherwise), really going to make things better?  Or are we just going to keep getting a "whole" lot larger and sicker?

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