Generality

What are cereals?

The term cereals refers to a group of herbaceous plants belonging to the Gramineae family (or Poaceae), from whose fruit (or caryopsis) the edible parts are obtained, that is:

  • Endosperm (rich in starch)
  • Germ (rich in "good" fats)
  • Bran (rich in dietary fiber).

Starting from the endosperm, the germ and the bran (together or separately), the food industry produces a series of foods and ingredients of the highest nutritional value.

Most likely, cereals were the first plants to be cultivated by man, which since ancient times has been able to grasp its dietary importance and versatility of use.

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Cereals VS Pseudocereals

Most common cereals

The most widely consumed cereals are wheat (also kamut), maize, barley, rice, spelled (also spelled) and rye, while oats, sorghum and millet are mainly used in cattle feeding .

Note : the consumption of the latter, also called "poor cereals", is increasing progressively because they are considered (more or less correctly) as having a higher nutritional value.

At our latitudes the most widespread cereal is wheat, followed by corn, barley and rice (more widespread in the hot-humid climates of Southeast Asia).

Cereals "rare"

They are the least used cereals or used in the cultures of isolated or minor populations; they too, like cereals dedicated to feeding livestock, are gaining more importance worldwide. Two indicative examples are teff and wild rice.

pseudocereals

Usually, buckwheat is also included in the category of cereals, which however is not a real cereal, as it is foreign to the Gramineae family and belongs to that of the Polygonaceae; it is therefore more correct to call it pseudocereal, since - like the "real" cereals - the grain is still used to obtain flours.

Other plants also belong to the group of pseudo-cereals, such as amaranth, quinoa, hemp, chia etc.

Also in the pseudocereals, the part of the plant used for food purposes is the dry fruit, which, however, unlike the caryopsis of the Gramineae, is typically indehiscent (ie it does not peel, as the integuments are well adherent to the grain).

Note : this last statement is valid for many pseudocereals but not for all. Regardless of the botanical characteristics, in nutritional terms, all grains different from cereals, legumes or oily achenes are included in this group; the result is a great physical, chemical and nutritional inequality, which does not allow us to establish characteristics common to all products.

Nutritional Features

Carbohydrates of cereals

The cereal kernels are distinguished by the high starch content, which is the reserve polysaccharide typical of many higher plants. For humans, the starch of cereals represents a source of energy (3.75 kcal / 100 g) mainly "slow release", which can therefore be used more gradually over time than simple sugars (such as those of honey, sugar, very sweet fruit etc); this property, which corresponds to the term "low-medium glycemic index", is however very generic. Since the glycemic index of cereals varies considerably based on some factors, we could say that it remains moderate when the seed is:

  • Integral, ie not deprived of the fibrous coating and of the naturally present germ
  • Cooked to the right point, so not totally boiled and / or roasted. The al dente pasta has a lower glycemic index than the totally cooked one. Similarly, bread crust has a higher glycemic index than bread crumbs.
  • Eaten together with other foods that slow down digestion (rich in fiber, protein and fat).

Note : we recall that the glycemic index, now largely supplanted by the insulin index, is a parameter that affects the metabolic balance of the human being MA subordinates to other elements such as: the glycemic load (the amount of carbohydrates per meal), the state of muscle and liver glycogen stores, oxygen debt and anabolic window, insulin sensitivity etc.

Cereal proteins and fats

Cereals also boast a low lipid content and a reasonable protein content (good from a quantitative point of view, less from the qualitative one, since they lack some essential amino acids, such as lysine).

The concentration of lipids and proteins in cereals / derivatives changes substantially according to the level of refining. They increase in whole grain products and decrease in purified ones.

The biological value of peptides (presence and ratio of essential amino acids) is medium, which means that cereals cannot constitute the only protein source in the human diet.

In whole grains, the "quality" of fats is excellent; the germ usually contains high amounts of essential molecules such as alpha linolenic acid and linoleic acid (omega 3 and omega 6), and other unsaturated chains. These are very important nutrients for development (cell membranes, nervous system, etc.) and for maintaining metabolic health (blood pressure, cholesterolemia, triglyceridemia, etc.). However, the unsaturated fats of whole grains are potentially responsible for the poor shelf life of these foods (integrals become rancid easily).

Cereals also contain certain "lipophilic" molecules (similar to fats) different from fatty acids, but still very useful to the body; they are antioxidant polyphenols (higher in whole grains), phytosterols (generally not abundant and appreciable only in whole grains) and fat-soluble vitamins (see below).

We remind you that good quality fats must be superior in food than saturated fats, mainly animals or industrially processed or derived from tropical foods (palm fruits, etc.).

Cereal fibers and anti-nutrients

Cereals, especially whole grains, are also excellent sources of dietary fiber. They contain soluble and insoluble matter, with greater importance than the latter.

The fibers create mass and gel water, slowing digestion; if in excess they can bind some nutrients and compromise the nutritional absorption not only of fats and bile juices, but also of vitamins and minerals.

The fiber, above all soluble, is largely prebiotic, meaning that it is a source of sustenance for the intestinal bacterial flora which, feeding properly, is selected in favor of beneficial strains and contributes to the release of molecules useful for the body (vitamins, nutritional molecules). for intestinal cells etc).

Insoluble fiber significantly increases the fecal volume, peristalsis of the intestine and therefore both the quantity of faeces and the number of evacuations; exerts an anti-constipation action.

Obviously, if in excess, the fiber can produce unwanted effects such as:

  • Diarrhea and flatulence
  • Malabsorption.

Malabsorption is also emphasized by the presence of certain anti-nutrient molecules such as phytates, molecules associated with fibers that reduce the absorption of minerals (calcium, magnesium, zinc, copper, iron).

The presence of digestive enzyme inhibitors (proteases) is less important than in legumes, but not entirely negligible. Fortunately, cooking can break down the vast majority of phytates in inhibitors.

Grain vitamins

The vitamin complex of cereals is rich, especially in whole wheat ones. Both water-soluble and liposoluble molecules abound:

  • Complex B vitamins : mainly thiamine (B1), niacin (PP), pantothenic acid (B5), pyridoxine (B6), folic acid (however lost during cooking); they are all abundant in the germ or embryo and partly in the fibrous lining
  • Vitamin E or tocopherols : especially alpha tocopherol, abundant in the seed or embryo of the seed.

Cereal minerals

Whole grains contain more salts, but they are also richer in phytates.

The minerals contained in valuable quantities in whole grains are:

  • Iron: little bioavailable
  • Magnesium and zinc: both subject to the acidity of phytic acid
  • Selenium.
  • Phosphorus, potassium and sodium: quantitatively abundant compared to the rest of the minerals, even if, compared to other foods, they do not represent the most indicative source.

Gluten: where is it?

Gluten is a protein composed of glutenin and gliadin. In flour, activated with the addition of water, gluten forms an elastic mesh necessary for natural leavening.

On the other hand, if on the one hand it allows bread-making, on the other it can be the object of adverse reactions in hypersensitive subjects.

Celiacs who are constantly exposed to gluten can manifest the so-called celiac disease; due to a severe food intolerance, this pathology has as its primary clinical sign the impairment of the intestinal mucosa, due to the immune reactions of certain immunoglobulins (IgG and IgA, different from those of allergies).

Other people suffer, it seems, from poor nutrient tolerance; on the contrary, this does not determine the specific intestinal clinical sign but sometimes leaves traces in the blood profile of the immunoglobulins mentioned above. A final category of subjects complains of symptoms not confirmed by laboratory tests.

Gluten is present in the seeds and derivatives of cereals called: durum wheat, wheat, spelled, kamut, triticale, spelled, barley, rye and in some varieties of oats.

Cereals and Mediterranean Diet

Positive dietary role

Thanks to their important nutritional characteristics, cereals have been the basic food of Mediterranean populations for millennia; not by chance these foods and their derivatives (bread, pasta and products from formo) are placed at the base of the food pyramid, accompanied by high quantities of fresh fruit and vegetables.

The cereals are therefore:

  • The main source of calories, derived from carbohydrates
  • A primary source of fiber
  • As for wholegrain products, an important resource of vitamins and minerals.

Negative dietary role

On the other hand, cereal-based foods are also the object of numerous criticisms for their role in collective nutritional abuse.

Pizza, bread, various baked goods, desserts and even pasta are a range of foods strongly involved in the onset of:

  • Overweight and obesity
  • Hyperglycemia and type 2 diabetes mellitus
  • Hypertriglyceridemia
  • Other pathologies aggravated by obesity and diabetes (metabolic imbalances, atherosclerosis, etc.).

As much as we tend to blame industrial refining processes, the only big truth is that people "eat too much".

Pasta and white bread certainly have inferior nutritional characteristics compared to wholegrain but, counting in hand, these do not make the difference. The energy difference is not such as to be able to bridge the gap between a "normal" and an "excessive" portion or an "ordinary" consumption frequency with a "huge" one.

Certainly you do not become obese and diabetic by increasing the portion of pasta and bread by 10 g at a time and, usually, the abuse of cereals is inadequate and harmful for both refined grains and whole grains.