“Eating primarily whole grains in place of white bread, white rice, and white flour baked goods has consistently been associated with a reduced risk of coronary heart disease and type 2 diabetes. New research from the Iowa Women’s Health Study shows whole grains to also protect against other inflammatory diseases such as asthma and other respiratory diseases, gout and rheumatoid arthritis, ulcerative colitis, Crohn’s disease, and type 1 diabetes.

“For these and other reasons, dietary guidelines now recommend eating the majority of our grains as whole grains, or at least 3 servings of whole grains daily. Unfortunately, the average American still eats less than 1 serving of whole grain foods daily.

“Researchers selected a group of 27,312 healthy women from the Iowa Women’s Health Study. These women were free of heart disease, cancer, and any inflammatory disease. During the next 17 years, dietary intake of whole grains was monitored along with development of inflammatory diseases. Women eating the most whole grains (3 or more servings daily) showed a 34% reduction in risk of inflammatory diseases (excluding heart disease and cancer).” (Making Healthy Choices, Issue 41, July 1, 2007)