How Much Do You Know About Ancient Grains? Are They Better for You Than Modern Grains? Here’s What You Need To Know
Did you or your family eat cereal for breakfast, or toast? How often do you eat pasta? Bread, pasta, and cereals are all made from grains. Most modern grains are not particularly healthy, especially if you eat a lot of them, and breakfast cereals are often loaded with sugar. But ancient grains have numerous health benefits.
What IS an Ancient Grain?
Well, the Whole Grain Council defines them as grains that have not been altered or genetically changed.
Most ancient grains come from Africa, the Middle East and Asia.
Wheat is an ancient grain and we’re all familiar with bread made from wheat. However, wheat, like other grains such as barley, rye and corn were all eaten whole.
Once modern milling became widely available, the outer layers of the grain kernels were stripped away – together with much of the important nutrition.
Whole grains carry proteins, vitamins, healthy fats and minerals, while heavily milled and processed grains lose most of those valuable nutrients.
What’s the Problem With Modern Grains?
- Lack of nutrition (as mentioned above) due to modern milling and production techniques
- Many grains have been genetically modified to improve the yield in the field and also prolong the shelf life of grain products. This is great for farmers and food producers, but we consumers get much less nutrition.
- Modern crops such as corn and wheat and not only milled and modified, but they’re also grown as mono-crops (which is bad for the soil and the environment), fed chemical fertilizers and have chemicals sprayed onto them to help stop weeds and insects.
Why Do Some People Get Ill from Modern Grains?
One reason is that today’s bread, made from modern, milled and altered wheat, contains a lot more gluten than ancient grains. Gluten makes bread fluffier. The more gluten that’s added, the softer the bread will be. But many people feel uncomfortable or ill after eating gluten.
(Side note – just because a product says it’s gluten-free, it’s not necessarily healthy! Check for other additives, always read the labels, don’t assume!
Even if you are gluten intolerant, it’s possible that you’ll be able to eat ancient grains without feeling ill. Ancient grains have much less gluten and plenty of nutrients (but of course, speak to your medical professional if you have any concerns).
Most Popular Ancient Grains
Amaranth is a seed from South America that is naturally gluten-free, high in protein and fiber and is good to combine with quinoa or millet.
Whole Barley (not highly polished pearl barley) is high in fiber, nutrient-rich and delicious in soups. (When I was a child a favorite aunt used to make Scotch Broth soup for me with loads of barley, it was lovely!).
Buckwheat is a seed with a nutty flavor that is great as a side dish. It’s high in protein, fiber, antioxidants and minerals.
Quinoa is an ancient grain that’s now popular in the US because it’s high in protein and is often considered a superfood because it’s so high in nutrients. Quinoa is a great food to add to your pantry when you are looking for plant-based protein.
These are the more popular ancient grains – but there are also Farro, Kamut and Teff
How to Enjoy Ancient Grains
The easiest way to get used to ancient grains instead of modern, is to cook them in familiar ways. Here are some ideas –
- For a nice big bowl of pasta, try quinoa or brown rice with your favorite sauce.
- Use quinoa as a side dish instead of white rice, add it to salads for extra protein, and enjoy it with yogurt and fruit for breakfast.
- Add nutty, delicious barley to soups.
Ancient grains have so much more flavour as well as health benefits!
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Warm regards,
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