Putting the Whole Grain Puzzle Together: Health Benefits Associated with Whole Grains—Summary of American Society for Nutrition 2010 Satellite Symposium123

The symposium “Putting the Whole Grain Puzzle Together: Health Benefits Associated with Whole Grains” sponsored by the ASN brought together researchers to review the evidence regarding the health benefits associated with whole grains. Current scientific evidence indicates that whole grains play an important role in lowering the risk of chronic diseases, such as coronary heart disease, diabetes, and cancer, and also contribute to body weight management and gastrointestinal health. The essential macro- and micronutrients, along with the phytonutrients present in whole grains, synergistically contribute to their beneficial effects. Current evidence lends credence to the recommendations to incorporate whole grain foods into a healthy diet and lifestyle program. The symposium also highlighted the need for further research to examine the role of whole grain foods in disease prevention and management to gain a better understanding of their mechanisms of action

Analysis of Resistant Starches in Rat Cecal Contents Using Fourier Transform Infrared Photoacoustic Spectroscopy

Fourier transform infrared photoacoustic spectroscopy (FTIR-PAS) qualitatively and quantitatively measured resistant starch (RS) in rat cecal contents. Fisher 344 rats were fed diets of 55% (w/w, dry basis) starch for 8 weeks. Cecal contents were collected from sacrificed rats. A corn starch control was compared against three RS diets. The RS diets were high-amylose corn starch (HA7), HA7 chemically modified with octenyl succinic anhydride, and stearic-acid-complexed HA7 starch. To calibrate the FTIR-PAS analysis, samples from each diet were analyzed using an enzymatic assay. A partial least-squares cross-validation plot generated from the enzymatic assay and FTIR-PAS spectral results for starch fit the ideal curve with a R2 of 0.997. A principal component analysis plot of components 1 and 2 showed that spectra from diets clustered significantly from each other. This study clearly showed that FTIR-PAS can accurately quantify starch content and identify the form of starch in complex matrices.Reprinted with permission from Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry 61 (2013): 1818–1822, doi:10.1021/jf3042616. Copyright 2013 American Chemical Society.</p