What are Whole Grains?
Whole grains are the complete seeds of cereal plants. Each grain has three essential parts:
- Bran: the outer layer packed with fibre, vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants called phytonutrients.
- Endosperm: the largest part, providing energy-rich starch and some protein.
- Germ: the embryo that can grow into a new plant, rich in essential fatty acids, vitamin E, B vitamins, minerals, and phytonutrients.
When all three parts are present in their natural proportions, the grain is considered “whole.” This includes intact grains as well as milled or processed forms where these components remain in balance.
Why Choose Whole Grain?
Whole grains are nutritional powerhouses that offer many benefits, including:
- Whole grains are nutritional powerhouses that offer many benefits, including:
- Rich in essential vitamins, minerals, and protective phytonutrients
- High in dietary fibre to support healthy digestion
- Naturally low in saturated fat and salt
- Provide sustained energy through quality carbohydrates
- Help lower the overall glycemic index (GI) of your diet, aiding blood sugar control
Scientific studies show that regularly eating whole grains can reduce your risk of:
- Weight gain and obesity (by 20–30%)
- Heart disease
- Type 2 diabetes
- Bowel (colorectal) cancer
The Australian Dietary Guidelines recommend choosing mostly whole grain or high-fibre grain foods as part of a healthy diet.
What are Whole Grain Foods?
Whole grain foods include a wide variety of options made from the entire grain kernel kept in natural balance. They can be enjoyed in many forms:
- Whole grains: brown rice, oats, barley and freekeh.
- Breakfast cereals: whole grain breakfast cereals, rolled oats, whole grain muesli and biscuits.
- Breads: Whole grain wraps, bread and English muffins.
- Other: Whole grain pasta, crispbreads and brown rice cakes.
Whole grain content can vary widely between products, from small amounts in some breads to very high amounts in certain cereals and intact grains.
Tips for Choosing Whole Grain Foods
To increase whole grain intake, look for labels that say:
- Contains whole grain
- High in whole grain
- Very high in whole grain – the highest level of whole grain
Look for the whole grain Daily Target Intake statement – the higher the percentage the better. i.e. ‘One 45g serve of Sunrise cereal contributes 70% towards the 48g whole grain Daily Target Intake’
Look for the Grains & Legumes Nutrition Council Whole Grain Certification Stamp, which guarantees whole grain content.
When checking to see if a food contains whole grain ingredients look for these words in the ingredient list:
| Words in Ingredient List | Is this Whole Grain? |
| whole grain [name of grain], whole wheat / whole [other grain], stoneground whole [grain], wholemeal, brown rice, oats, oatmeal, multigrain, sprouted, whole grain, malted whole grain, sorghum, quinoa, buckwheat | Yes, these are whole grain |
| wheat, or wheat flour, semolina, durum wheat, organic flour, stone ground | No, these are usually not whole grain |
| enriched flour, de-germinated (corn) bran, wheat germ, legumes such as soybeans, lupins, lentils, seeds like chia, linseed, sesame seed, etc. | No, these are not whole grain |
For more information on choosing whole grain foods and the recommended amount of whole grain check our page The Whole Grain Daily Target Intake.