Whole grains are good for your heart. How do you know if you’re eating enough?

By Amanda Schupak, CNN

The secret is out: Eating whole grains is good for you.

Extensive research in the past two decades has shown that a diet rich in whole grains is associated with lower risks of heart disease, high blood pressure, high cholesterol and type 2 diabetes and helps people maintain a healthy weight.

In a new analysis, researchers reviewed dozens of studies to drill down on how whole grains contribute to cardiovascular and metabolic health at a molecular level — and how much you have to eat to make a difference.

The results, published Tuesday in the European Heart Journal, suggest that the benefits start at about 90 grams, or three servings, per day — about as much as you’d get from two slices of whole wheat bread and a bowl of oatmeal. Eating four to six servings per day is even more powerful, according to the study.

The researchers found evidence that people who ate three to six servings of whole grains for a prescribed period of time — as little as two weeks and up to two years — had slightly improved levels of about a dozen markers of health, including total cholesterol, LDL (low-density lipoprotein or “bad”) cholesterol, blood pressure, body weight and waist circumference, all of which are associated with a greater risk of cardiovascular disease. Though the effects were small, taken together, the findings back up what large population studies have found, said Dagfinn Aune, a coauthor on the meta-analysis.

Therefore, there is “likely a causal effect” from eating whole grains, and “this may translate into a reduced risk of cardiovascular disease,” Aune, a research fellow in the department of epidemiology and biostatistics at the Imperial College London’s School of Public Health, concluded.

But that doesn’t mean you can add two pieces of whole wheat toast to your morning bacon and eggs and expect to improve your heart health.

Taking results with a (whole) grain of salt

Doctors recommend choosing whole grains over products made with refined grains for heart health.

Whole grain foods — such as oatmeal, brown rice, whole wheat bread, farro, popcorn and quinoa — include all the parts of a grain as it exists in nature. Refined grains (think white rice and anything made with white flour) are processed to remove the less palatable parts, which are also where most of the fiber and other nutrients are found.

Eating whole grain food is important, but a single dietary swap is not going to prevent heart disease, Alice Lichtenstein, a professor at the Friedman School of Nutrition Science and Policy at Tufts University in Medford, Massachusetts, told CNN.

“If you eat a cinnamon bun made of whole grain, as opposed to a cinnamon bun made with refined grain, I’m not sure you’re going to see a benefit,” said Lichtenstein, who was not involved in the new meta-analysis.

And just adding more carbs to your diet to achieve a whole grain target could lead to weight gain, she added.

Up your whole grain IQ

Most people in the United States don’t eat the two to four servings of whole grains a day suggested in the federal government’s latest Dietary Guidelines for Americans. A serving could be a single slice of whole wheat bread, or half a cup of cooked oats, brown rice or quinoa.

The American Heart Association recommends eating foods made with whole grains, but it doesn’t specify a target amount to aim for each day. That’s because there’s no one amount that’s clearly most effective or that is right for every person’s body, genetics and lifestyle, said Lichtenstein, who was lead author of the nonprofit’s dietary guidelines published in March. Rather than nail down a magic-bullet number of any particular good-for-you food, “we’re trying to keep the focus on the dietary pattern.”

In addition to whole grains, the guidelines emphasize eating a variety of vegetables and fruits and limiting saturated fat, added sugar and salt, ultraprocessed foods and alcohol.

If it helps to have a goal in mind, replacing three servings of refined grains with whole grains every day could be a good place to start.

“My suggestion is as items run out in the pantry, replace them with whole grain versions,” Lichtenstein said.

That’s not always as easy as it sounds, she warned. Dark brown breads and products labeled as “multigrain” or “made with whole grain” may be predominantly made up of refined flour.

“Turn the package over and look at the ingredient list,” she said. “The first ingredient should be a whole grain.” If it’s not, she advised, leave it on the shelf.

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