A plethora of disease control benefits of Whole grains!

In a new study it has been found that women with type 2 diabetes on a diet consisting of whole grains, bran, and cereal fibre may have a lower risk of heart disease. This study was published in the Feb. issue of Diabetes Care.

Lu QI and colleagues at the Harvard School of Public Health conducted the study and collected data from 902 diabetic women participating in the Nurses' Health Study. The purpose behind this study was to examine the association between intake of whole grains and dietary finer and certain inflammatory indicators.

The parameters used for this study were inflammatory indicators such C-reactive protein (CRP) and tumour necrosis factor-alpha receptor (TNF-R2). These are known to indicate heart defects.

The results of the study were

1. High intake of cereal fibre was associated with lower levels of CRP and NTNF- R2.

2. Compared with those in the quintile who consumed lowest amounts of cereal fibre, those in the highest quintile had their CRP and TNF-R2 reduced by 18 and 8 percent respectively.

3. Dietary glycaemic index, was positively linked with CRP and TNF-R2 concentrations.

Those in the highest quintile of dietary glycaemic index had their levels of CRP and TNF-R2 increased by 32 and 11 percent respectively, compared with those in the lowest quintile.

The conclusion by the authors was that “whole grains and a low-glycaemic index diet may reduce systemic inflammation among women with type 2 diabetes.