MyPlate: Grains

Any food made from wheat, rice, oats, cornmeal, barley, or another cereal grain is in the Grains Group.

• True

• False

Answer explanation

Foods made from these grains – which include bread, pasta, oatmeal, breakfast cereals, tortillas, and grits – are examples of foods in the Grains Group. Grain products with high levels of solid fats and/or added sugars (e.g., donuts, cakes) should be chosen less often.

Folate (from foods such as spinach and black-eyed peas) and folic acid (from fortified foods such as enriched grains and from supplements) are especially important for which of the following groups?

• Children under 2 years old

• Athletes

• Women of childbearing age

• All of these

Answer explanation

Women of childbearing age who may become pregnant should consume adequate folate from foods, and in addition 400 mcg (micrograms) of synthetic folic acid from fortified foods or supplements. This reduces the risk of several serious birth defects.

What is the most common food from the Grain Group eaten in the United States?

• Tortillas

• Bread

• White Rice

• Popcorn

• Pancakes

Answer explanation

Bread is the most common food from the Grains Group eaten in the United States.

What is the best way to know that the bread you are buying is a whole-grain bread?

• The bread tastes "grainy."

• Bread is brown in color.

• The label says "100% wheat."

• Another customer says so.

• Any ingredient includes the word "whole."

Answer explanation

Breads labeled with the words "multi-grain," "stone-ground," "100% wheat," "cracked wheat," "seven-grain," or "bran" are usually not whole-grain products. Look for the word "whole" in the ingredient list. Also, you cannot rely on the color or texture of a bread to show that it is a whole grain. Whole grain examples of grain products include brown rice, oatmeal, popcorn, quinoa, rolled oats, whole-grain barley, whole-grain corn, whole oats, whole rye, and wild rice.

What food made from grains is pictured here?

• Corn bread

• Pita bread

• Flour tortilla

• Flour tortilla

  English muffins

Answer explanation

Flour tortillas are usually made from refined wheat, but may be made with whole wheat. Check the ingredients list for the words “whole grain” or “whole wheat” to decide if they are made from whole grains. Some foods may be made from a mixture of whole and refined grains.

Flour tortillas contain gluten, corn tortillas are gluten free!

Refined grains are grains that have been milled, a process that removes the bran and germ. This is done to give grains a finer texture and improve their shelf life, but it also removes dietary fiber, iron, and many B vitamins. Which of these foods is a refined grain?

• Oatmeal

• Bulgur (cracked wheat)

• White rice

• Popcorn

• All of the above

Answer explanation

White rice is a refined grain. Choose brown rice, wild rice, or quinoa for a whole grain alternative to white rice.

The Grains Group could also be called the Carbohydrate Group because all foods that contain carbohydrates are in the Grains Group.

• True

• False

Answer explanation

Though carbohydrates (“carbs”) are present in all foods in the Grains Group, carbohydrates are also present in the other MyPlate food groups (fruits, vegetables, proteins, and dairy foods) as dietary fibers, sugars, and starches.

Maria does not consume enough whole grains in her daily diet. For breakfast she had grits and eggs, lunch consisted of baked chicken and white rice, and dinner consisted of vegetarian fajitas with black beans, sauteed vegetables, and flour tortillas. Swap out the refined grains for whole grains.

• -Add fruit to her breakfast, swap out the white rice for baked potatoes, and flour tortillas with whole grain bread.

• -Add oatmeal to her breakfast, swap out the white rice for wild rice, and flour tortillas with gluten free tortillas.

• -Swap out grits for oatmeal, white rice for brown rice, and flour tortillas with whole grain tortillas.

• -Swap out the grits for oatmeal, white rice for baked potatoes, and flour tortillas with gluten free tortillas.

Answer explanation

Making some substitutions such as eating whole grain tortillas instead of flour tortillas or having brown rice instead of white rice, can add important whole grains to your diet.

How much of your grains should AT LEAST be whole grain of your daily intake?

• None

• One quarter or 25%

• Half

• All of your grains should be whole grain

Answer explanation

"Make at least half your grains whole grains" is a key nutrition message of MyPlate and the Dietary Guidelines for Americans. Among several other nutrients -- such as selenium and B vitamins -- whole grains provide fiber which has been linked to reducing blood levels of cholesterol, which reduces heart disease risk.

Which of these grain products is available in both refined and whole grain varieties?

• Bread

• Pasta

• Crackers

• Tortillas

• All of the above

Answer explanation

All of these grain products are available in both refined and whole grain varieties. Check the ingredient list for terms like "whole grain", "whole cornmeal", or "whole wheat" to help you choose food products made from whole grains. Some foods are made from a mixture of whole grains and refined grains.