Specifically, the long-term study, recently published in the journal JAMA Internal Medicine, showed that eating whole-grain foods lowers risk of death by an incredible 15 percent.
The study is based on an examination of 74,000 women and 43,000 men who agreed to fill out health surveys every 2-4 years between the mid-1980s and the 2000s. Researchers involved in the study found that, for every one-ounce serving of whole grains consumed by an individual, they could see a 9 percent drop in the risk of death related to cardiovascular disease.
Interestingly, the research also showed that cutting one serving of red meat in favor of one serving of whole-grain foods reduced risk of death from cardiovascular disease by an incredible 20 percent.
Qi Sun, the study’s lead author, says the project shows just how important it is for people to consume whole-grain foods on a regular basis. “This study further endorses the current dietary guidelines that promote whole grains as one of the major healthful foods for prevention of major chronic diseases,” Sun said.
However, it’s worth noting that while consuming whole grains appeared to impact death associated with cardiovascular disease, it did not affect death from cancer.
