STUDIES SHOW EATING WHOLE GRAINS REDUCES BELLY FAT NATURALLY

Post Foods, LLC

The Battle of the Bulge    

It is well known that as we age our weight begins to creep up and up.   A combination of age, heredity and hormonal influences all play a role in our expanding middles.   It becomes harder as the years pass to keep off those extra pounds and they often seem to collect right around our waistline. (Anderson et al., 1999)  It is important to keep your weight in check because if you are overweight you are at higher risk for health problems, including high blood pressure, high blood cholesterol, diabetes, heart disease, stroke and certain types of cancer. Many of us are in the same boat, as more than one third of U.S. adults—more than 72 million people — and 16% of U.S. children are obese. (http://www.cdc.gov/obesity/index.html)

How much is too much? 

So how do you know how much fat is too much fat?  One way is to measure your BMI (body mass index).  BMI  is a measure of your overall body weight related to your height.  A BMI of 18.5 - 24.9 is considered normal.  Anything above 24.9 increases your risk of chronic disease.  

An even simpler way to check your status is to use your tape measure.  Measure your waist at the level of your navel.  In general, men with waists wider than 40 inches and women whose waists exceeded 35 inches are at greater risk of having an unhealthy amount of belly fat and increasing their risk of disease. (http://www.americanheart.org/presenter.jhtml?identifier=4489)  The chart below from the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute, Obesity Education Initiative, shows the risk of disease by looking at both BMI and waistline measure.  An elevated BMI along with a large waist circumference increases your risk above that of just a high BMI alone.

*     Disease risk for type 2 diabetes, hypertension, and CVD.
+     Increased waist circumference can also be a marker for increased risk even in persons of normal weight.

Source:  National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute, Obesity Education Initiative ; www.nhlbi.nih.gov/about/oei/

Can you change the equation?-----Try adding Whole grains!

Fortunately, a recent study from Penn State found that adding whole grains in a weight-loss plan could help dieters drop belly fat as well as overall weight! (Katcher et al, 2008)

Fifty obese men and women with metabolic syndrome (a collection of symptoms that increase your chance for heart disease, diabetes and stroke) took part in this study.  They were divided into two groups—one group ate all of their grain servings from refined grains and the other group chose only whole grains.  Both groups lost a similar amount of weight on the diet, but the group eating whole grains lost more belly fat. 

Even more impressive, the whole grain group showed a 38% decrease in CRP (C-reactive protein) level, a known marker for heart disease and diabetes risk.  The group consuming refined grains saw no such decrease in CRP levels.  In fact, in other studies, increased CRP levels have been linked to consuming refined grains such as those in white flour, white bread, white rice, pretzels and spaghetti. [Katcher et al, 2008)

The researchers at Penn State suggested that the dramatic drop in CRP levels may have been due to the effect of whole grains acting to stabilize blood sugar and possibly the antioxidants in whole grains.  Both of these effects would be absent in a diet filled with refined grains.  The study was published in the January 2008 issue of the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition.

Another study from the U.K. (Harland, 2007) supports these findings.  They also found that a higher intake of whole grains was associated with a lower BMI and less belly fat.

Our whole grains contain natural fiber and antioxidants - that’s the Post Natural Advantage

        Post Shredded Wheat®……………..Post Grape-Nuts®……………………Post Raisin Bran®

References:

Anderson et al., J. Nutr. 129: 1457S–1466S, 1999. Impact of Nondigestible Carbohydrates on Serum Lipoproteins and Risk for Cardiovascular Disease1

Katcheret al, Am J Clin Nutr 2008;87:79 –90,The effects of a whole grain–enriched hypocaloric diet on

cardiovasculardisease risk factors in men and women with metabolic syndrome1–3

Harland, Public Health Nutrition, Nov 16, 2007; 1-10) Whole-Grain intake as a Marker of Healthy Body Weight and Adiposity