[caption id="attachment_6690" align="alignright" width="300"] Yellow grain ready for harvest growing in a farm field[/caption] Extending your life can be as easy as eating whole grains according to the NY Times Living longer is partly genetic, partly our lifestyles, and partly what we eat. Gut health has been in the news the past year and one of the things that feeds the gut are the grains we eat. The quality of grains may help the bugs in our gut bring in nutrients as well as maintain its health as a barrier to substances that may enter the bloodstream and result in auto immune type diseases. Recent studies now suggest that these grains are an integral part of our health, and possibly our longevity. According the British Medical Journal, whole grain consumption was associated with a reduction in the risk for death from cancer, coronary heart disease, respiratory disease, infectious disease and diabetes. Think about it; should health care policy in our country be about eating better, rather than which medication we should be taking? Check out this fascinating article. Eat Whole Grains, Live Longer? By Nicholas Bakalar June 14, 2016 Two large review studies have reached the same conclusion: Eating whole grains is associated with significant reductions in the risk for premature death. One report, in BMJ, found that whole grain consumption was associated with a reduction in the risk for death from cancer, coronary heart disease, respiratory disease, infectious disease and diabetes. Using data from 45 studies, researchers calculated that compared with eating none, eating 90 grams of whole grains a day reduced the risk for all-cause mortality by 17 percent. The other analysis, in Circulation, used data from 14 prospective studies with 786,076 participants and found that compared with those who ate the least whole grain foods, those who ate the most had a 16 percent reduced risk for all-cause mortality and an 18 percent reduced risk for cardiovascular mortality. Each 16-gram increase in whole grain intake reduced mortality risk by 7 percent. A slice of 100 percent whole grain bread contains about 16 grams of whole grains, and current dietary guidelines recommend 48 grams or more of whole grains daily. Read more