This morning I went to a local farmer's market. There was a new vendor selling all "whole grain" foods. I asked which of their breads were whole wheat and she told me that everything they had was made from whole wheat. I thought that was great, so I picked out a loaf of bread and, as a treat for me and my son, bought a small pack of peanut blossom cookies. I asked the women if even the cookies were whole grain and she again replied that everything on the table was. So imagine my surprise when I get home and read the ingredient list on the cookies -- the first ingredient was "enriched white flour" and that was the only type of flour in there. On one hand, I feel like I was duped. I had been so swayed by their "Whole Grain Bakery" sign and the salesperson's words, that I neglected to read the label for myself. On the other hand, they're cookies -- even with whole-wheat flour they certainly wouldn't have been "healthy." So, live and learn.

The problem I had this morning is a problem we all face every time we shop for food. Sometimes the front of the packaging can be deceiving. The Center for Science in the Public Interest has a list of "food frauds." While I don't know if I'd go so far as to call them frauds (that just seems a bit alarmist and conspiracy-theory-ish to me), the foods they list certainly are misleading. Take Kellogg's Special K Fruit and Yogurt for example: it claims the crunch of whole wheat, the smooth creaminess of yogurt, and the sweet taste of berries. Those statements are all true... but they're misleading. The cereal has more refined rice than whole wheat. The taste of yogurt comes from a sweetened yogurt powder that has been heat treated (killing all beneficial bacteria in the process), and the "berries" are actually dyed and artificially-flavored pieces of apple.

Take a peek at CSPI's list, and then be on the lookout for other foods of this type when you're grocery shopping. Unless you're buying fresh foods in their natural state, you're usually getting a little more than you bargained for. And many foods try to market themselves as healthy when they really aren't.

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It turns out, we really are what we eat and researchers now can tell how much of certain kinds of food you're eating, just by looking at a strand of hair. And if we really are what we eat, then according to this article from CNN, we're mostly corn and soybeans. High fructose corn syrup and soybean oil have made their way into nearly every type of processed food we eat. Because the American diet is so heavily reliant on processed foods, we're getting a high percentage of our calories from soy and corn.

While on their own, those two food products aren't bad for you, the way they are processed is, and high fructose corn syrup and soybean oil are thought to be part of the obesity problem in our country. The answer? Adding more fresh, whole foods to your diet like fresh fruits and veggies, whole grains, and lean proteins. When you do eat a processed food item, aim for products with less than five ingredients and make sure HFCS and soybean oil aren't on the list. Even your favorite loaf of bread may have them, so look past the claims made on the front of the package and read the fine print.

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Hot or cold, cereal's not just for kids anymore. A recent study that followed over 10,000 doctors found that eating whole grain cereal seven times a week reduced a person's risk of developing heart failure by 28%. Want to take a day off? Eating whole grain cereal six times a week reduced risk by 22%, and eating it up to once per week reduced risk of the illness by 14%. Whole grains are thought to lower blood pressure and bad cholesterol and even reduce the risk of heart attack.

For the sake of this study, the cereal had to contain at least 25% whole grains. Read food labels to find out if the cereal you're eating contains whole grain. Here's an excellent list of cold cereals that not only contain whole grains, but are free of partially hydrogenated oils and excess added sugars. That link also includes a list of cereals to stay away from. And don't forget...oatmeal is an excellent whole grain cereal as well.

For more detailed information about whole grains, check out this article from MyPyramid.com.

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