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April 2020

Why Eat a Specific Food?

Generally food falls into 2 major categories: the macronutrients (foods in which the amount [weight and volume] is relatively large) and the micronutrients (foods which come in very small amounts, weight-wise and volume-wise). This is a different method of categorization than most adults learned in elementary school. Most adults still remember the list of nutrients being the following 5: proteins, carbohydrates, fats, vitamins, and minerals. Some maybe were even taught a 6th category: water. Today the 3 macronutrients are proteins, carbohydrates, and fats, and the vitamins and minerals are known as micronutrients. Remember that micro means “very small,” only as it relates to amounts (weight and volume.) It does not mean unimportant. It just means that it takes only microscopic amounts of nutrients such as iron, zinc, or even the very crucial mineral calcium to keep the body in good health.

Nutrient Roles

Just exactly what nutrients do you want to get from any particular food item? (Look at the ‘‘Nutrient Content” number on the next page.) How would you react to a breakfast cereal that contained the following list of nutrients? Does it look like it has any nutrient value and should be included in your daily eating routine? The percentages are for the daily recommended intake of a particular nutrient, and they are for a single serving. Remember that breakfast cereals have been food for “growing children” and thus have been fortified with many vitamins and minerals for years. This particular cereal has only 1 ingredient: whole wheat. It is not fortified. It is whole wheat with nothing added or taken out. It has been processed to make its texture and taste more appealing for human consumption.

Nutrient Content:

Vitamin A	0%
Vitamin C	0%
Vitamin D	0%
Calcium	2%
Riboflavin	2%
Copper	8%

This is the part of the nutrition information directly off the box of Spoon Size Shredded Wheat. Does this look nutritious? Would you rank it at the top of the preferred breakfast cereal list for boxed and processed varieties?

Why Spoon Size Shredded Wheat?

Why does this particular breakfast cereal get such high marks? With all the focus on vitamins, minerals, and the need for protein, one of the most important reasons for eating a particular food frequently gets overlooked. Even the promoter of shredded wheat frequently forgets to mention the major reason one should eat it. The focus of the advertising is on what it does not have, because it is pure, 100 percent whole wheat. Shredded wheat does not have any added salt, it does not have any added sugar, and it does not have enough fat to hardly be measured. They do stress one thing in the positive: It is high in fiber. But why is this item considered at the top of the list for recommended boxed, processed breakfast cereals? Energy. That is the reason. It is a clean-burning complex carbohydrate. It is almost a pure starch. It provides energy that will carry most people all the way from breakfast to lunch. It is great to be high in fiber, have no fat or added salt and sugar, but the number 1 reason to eat shredded wheat is for energy.

More Great Energy Foods

Look at the nutrient lists of the following foods. Note the amount of several key micronutrients (many zeroes). But mainly remember the reason that all these are recommended for great (not just good) nutrition!

Oatmeal. Look at the label on the oatmeal package. Here is what you will find:

• Vitamin A	0%
• Vitamin C	0%
• Calcium	0%
• Iron	10%

Why does oatmeal rank right at the top with shredded wheat? Same reasons, and not because of what it does not have much of—fat, sodium, and added sugar. Rather, oatmeal is eaten for energy. Important note—oatmeal boxes are legally allowed to carry the claim that they do, indeed, lower cholesterol levels, because of their high amount of soluble fiber. It will be interesting to see if this old favorite energy source that grandmas always recommended for breakfast will have a big jump in sales when Americans find out that it really does lower cholesterol, even without any reduction in dietary fat intake.

Rice. How about the rice that you frequently have for dinner? Read the labels and note the following nutrient information from every kid’s favorite grain, good old quick-cooking minute rice.

• Vitamin A	0%
• Vitamin C	0%
• Calcium	0%
• Iron	2%

Why eat rice? Energy!

Pasta. Read the label on the whole wheat spaghetti package. You will find:

• Calcium	0%
• Vitamin A	0%
• Vitamin C	0%
• Riboflavin	8%

Pasta is a highly recommended food item not because it is without salt and sugar and it is almost without fat, as well as being high in fiber. Rather, it is recommended because it is a great energy source. It is almost a pure starch. It is filling (satisfying). We describe it as a “nutrient dense” food item.

Many Nutrients: Many Sources

If you read the labels of packaged, processed food items that are marketed and sold as supplements (these may come in a “candy bar” form or in a can, and thus you drink your meal), you will notice that the attempt is to try to provide you with 100 percent of every possible positive nutrient. It will not have fat or salt, but it will have 100 percent of almost every known vitamin and mineral. It may also have an entire day’s worth of fiber. This is also what makes the fortified breakfast cereals look so good from a “nutrition label” standpoint. You may recall a television commercial with an extremely vivid visual impression made by one of the super-vitamin/mineral­fortified breakfast cereals as it was being compared to Spoon Size Shredded Wheat. If comparing only the added (fortified) vitamins and minerals, it was obvious that you would need to eat over 10 bowls of shredded wheat to get the same nutrition as was in the fortified wheat flake. Remember that it is not necessary to get 100 percent of every nutrient in a serving of every single food item. Eat shredded wheat, rice, pasta, and oatmeal for energy. There are many other ways to get vitamins and minerals.

Final Advice

Today most people know that all the nutrients have a role to play in good nutrition. They know that a variety of fruits, vegetables, and grain-type foods will provide the micronutrients (vitamins and minerals). Also, remember that there is a very close connection between the elements that compose the 3 macronutrients (carbohydrates, proteins, and fats) and that the body can break down 1 nutrient and build the others from it. If this is a new concept, remember that one can become overweight (store fat on the body) without ever eating fat. The body knows how to take extra carbohydrates and extra protein and turn it into fat. All nutrients are important, but be sure to avoid overlooking foods that may address only one single need: energy.