What About Wheat helps nutrition professionals and consumers learn more about wheat
By Diego Flammini
Staff Writer
Farms.com
A grain industry group has developed a new resource for nutrition professionals and consumers to consult to help learn more about wheat.
Cereals Canada, along with provincial crop organizations and the Canadian National Millers Association, has launched What About Wheat.
Work on this started about two years ago, said Ellen Pruden, director of communications with Cereals Canada.
“They wanted to have something science-based and directed towards health professionals and dieticians to help them convey health messages around wheat to their clients,” she told Farms.com.
The website includes pages discussing the three parts of a wheat kernel, the types of wheat flour and the differences between some flours. It also has an area dedicated to research outlining the health benefits of wheat, and a section discussing the wheat industry within Canadian agriculture.
What About Wheat also includes a Science Advisory Council.
The council is made up of five researchers, professors and dietitians who are ensuring any information posted onto the website is accurate.
“They look at the nutrition research and provide their expertise around it and how wheat fits into our diet,” Pruden said.
Dr. Alison Duncan, a professor and associate director of research in the human nutraceutical research unit, in the department of human health and nutritional sciences at the University of Guelph, is a member of the advisory council.
Having resources based on science is crucial to dispelling misinformation, Duncan said.
“We live in a sea where information is coming at us from different angles,” she told Farms.com. “We need to be able to separate that information into what is trustworthy and what isn’t. The information people find on the (What About Wheat) website is rooted in the scientific process, is core information and vetted by experts in the area.”
Online searches can lead users to find articles and other material highlighting wheat’s potential dangers.
But this versatile crop, however, is important to a healthy diet, Duncan said.
“Wheat-based foods in the Canadian diet are great opportunities to add nutrients to overall diets,” she said. “The cornerstone of a healthy diet is moderation and variety, and wheat plays an important role in that.”