I was just browsing through Marion Nestle's wonderful blog and came across some disheartening news.It appears whole grain consumption is far below what it should be.
This surprises me. With so many more convenient whole grain options out there (i.e.: whole wheat pastas, whole grain English muffins, whole grain waffles, etc.) , I was under the impression more people had integrated them into their diets.
I personally love whole grains for their taste alone. I wonder if people are shunning them out of dislike, unfamiliarity ("quinoa? no clue what that is. I'll just buy white rice."), or another reason I'm failing to see.
Posts
2 comments:
It's nice that there are a lot more whole grain choices available, but I think unfamiliarity/uncertainty is the issue. For example, with something like quinoa, not only do people not know what it is, they also don't know how to prepare it. Even with stuff like whole wheat pastas or muffins, people might worry that it won't taste the same as what they're used to (which I think is pretty silly).
Other possible reasons could be that it's cultural--I'm Chinese, and I can't imagine having anything but white rice when I eat Chinese food--or, there are still a lot of people out there living out the remnants of the low-carb fad.
One final possibility is that instead of buying actual whole grain products, people are snapping up all those "white with the same goodness of whole wheat" products. I personally am kind of sketched out by them because if they're not actually whole wheat they've got to be missing something somewhere, right?
I think it may be a matter of unfamiliarity (and not being sure how to cook things) and what you're used to/grew up with. It took me years to be able to switch my dh from Wonder bread to whole wheat, which he still doesn't like as well.
I love whole grains, but I can't convice my kids that whole wheat bread is delicious no matter what I say. I refuse to buy white bread and, as a result, my 10-year-old won't eat bread. Curiously, they love quinoa and bulgar, and never comment on whole wheat pasta or brown rice.
Post a Comment