This month, many of our senior participants learned about whole grains and fiber. Most of them have heard that fiber is important, and that whole grains have more fiber than enriched grains. But now, that message will stick even more because of the visual they saw at their recent nutrition lesson! One of the benefits of fiber is that it keeps us feeling fuller for longer, helping to delay when we want to eat our next snack or meal. To show this, the seniors saw an experiment where a slice of white bread and a slice of whole wheat bread were each placed in their own bowl of orange juice. The orange juice represented the stomach acid in our stomachs. After a few minutes, the program assistant lifted up the pieces of bread. The white bread fell apart in her hand, while the whole wheat bread stayed intact. The fiber in the whole wheat bread kept the bread from “digesting” as fast as the white bread, showing the audience that the fiber slows down digestion and wards off hunger. The seniors were impressed with this demonstration and now have a better understanding on one of the benefits of whole grains.

S. Bresin

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