The wholegrain intake of Danes has increased significantly since 2004. So has the proportion of Danes who meet the recommendation about eating sufficiently wholegrain. This is shown in a new study conducted by the National Food Institute, Technical University of Denmark.
Together with The Danish Wholegrain Campaign, the National Food Institute has investigated how much wholegrain Danes eat.
Easier to choose wholegrain
The study shows that the wholegrain intake of Danes has increased from 32 grams to 55 grams per day. Children eat almost as much wholegrain as adults, while boys and men eat slightly more wholegrain than girls and women.
“Our study indicates that Danes do not eat more bread and grain products than earlier. The increase is due to the fact that today foods like coarse wheat bread and pasta contain more wholegrain. Furthermore, it has become easier to choose wholegrain products”, says senior adviser Heddie Mejborn from the National Food Institute.
More Danes meet the recommendations
Besides the fact that Danes on average eat more wholegrain, the proportion of Danes who meet the recommendation of eating 75 grams of wholegrain per 10 mega joules has increased as well. The proportion has increased from 6% to 27%, this new study shows. Today, more children than adults eat enough wholegrain. More than one third of children meet the recommendation compared to one fourth of adults. In 2000-2004, only 5% of children and 7% of adults met the recommendation.
“It is very positive that more Danes now meet the wholegrain recommendation. Wholegrain contains dietary fibres, vitamins, minerals and health-improving substances which are important for reducing the risk of diseases like diabetes, heart diseases and certain cancers”, says Heddie Mejborn.
Read more
Read the e-news article: Wholegrain intake of Danes 2011-2012 (pdf).
See also the press release from The Danish Wholegrain Campaign: Doubling of wholegrain intake (pdf, in Danish).
The calculations in this study are based on new data about Danish dietary habits and new information about the content of wholegrain in foods on the Danish market. Data were collected from April 2011 to July 2012. 1,872 Danes from 7 to 75 years participated in this study.
The previous study of the wholegrain intake of Danes is from 2000-2004.