Perspective: Why Whole Grains Should Be Incorporated into Nutrient-Profile Models to Better Capture Nutrient Density. Issue 3 (28th January 2021)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Drewnowski, Adam; McKeown, Nicola; Kissock, Katrina; Beck, Eleanor; Mejborn, Heddie; Vieux, Florent; Smith, Jessica; Masset, Gabriel; Seal, Chris J
• Is Part Of: Advances in nutrition. Volume 12:Issue 3(2021)
• Page Start: 600
• Page End: 608
• Publication Date: 2021-01-28
• Subjects: dietary guidelines -- whole grains -- cereal fiber -- nutrient profiling -- Nutri-Score -- Nutrient Rich Food index -- Health Star Rating -- energy density -- nutrient density -- food groups; Nutrition -- Periodicals; Diet therapy -- Periodicals; Nutrition; Nutritional Physiological Phenomena; Nutritional Sciences; Periodicals; 613.205
• DOI: 10.1093/advances/nmaa172
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 2161-8313

Abstract

ABSTRACT: Healthy eating patterns, as described by dietary guidelines, typically favor whole grains, low-fat dairy, vegetables, fruit, legumes, and nuts and seeds. Nutrient-profiling (NP) models capture nutrient density of individual foods and can inform healthier food choices. Although whole grains are prominently featured in most dietary guidelines, they are not included in most NP models. Healthy foods, as identified by most NP models, are those that contain limited amounts of energy, saturated fat, total or added sugar, and sodium. As global dietary guidance turns to foods and food groups as opposed to individual nutrients, future nutrient-density metrics may need to do the same. Potential methods to incorporate whole grains into the overall concept of nutrient density and into selected NP models are outlined in this review. Incorporating whole grains into the Nutri-Score, Health Star Rating, or the Nutrient Rich Food index will require further analyses of dietary nutrient density in relation to health outcomes across diverse population subgroups. We present the rationale for how the inclusion of whole grains in NP models can assist in the implementation of dietary guidance.