Transcript Dietary Benefits of Pasta/ A Current Perspective

Dietary Benefits of Pasta/
A Current Perspective
Patricia T. Berglund, Ph.D.
Director
Northern Crops Institute
Fargo, ND USA
Eating – one of life’s
greatest pleasures
How does pasta fit into a healthy
diet and lifestyle?
What’s New in Nutrition???
Dietary Guidelines for Americans, 2000
 A — Aim for fitness
 B — Build a healthy base
 C — Choose sensibly
Dietary Guidelines
for Americans, 2000
Developed for the American public,
many are overweight
Low calorie and low fat recommendations
less important for some countries
Today’s Focus
B — Building a
healthy base
and
C — Choose
sensibly
A HEALTHY BASE
The Food Guide Pyramid
Guide for daily food choices
Base - 6 to 11 servings of bread, cereal,
rice, and pasta daily
Serving size - ½ cup of pasta, cereal or rice
Many countries have food guides, most
have grains as the base or main foundation
Why grains?
Grains:
 Complex carbohydrates
 Provide vitamins and minerals
 Good source of protein
 Low in fat and sodium
Pasta:
 Complex carbohydrates
 Provide vitamins and minerals
 Good source of protein
 Pasta protein contains 6 of 8
essential amino acids
 Provide all essential amino acids
when combined with meat, poultry,
cheese or dairy products
 Low in fat and sodium
 Low calorie
 Calories from carbohydrates
(82%), protein (14%) and
fats (4%)
Nutritional Value of Pasta,
Rice and Corn Tortilla:
Calories
Carbohydrates, g
Protein, g
Fat, g
Cholesterol, mg
Fiber, g
Sodium, mg
Iron
Zinc, mg
Pasta
Rice
Tortilla
(1/2 cup)
(1/2 cup)
(1)
98
20.0
3.4
0.5
0.0
1.0
0.7
1.0
0.4
111
25
2.1
0.1
0.0
0.0
300
0.9
0.0
67
12.8
2.1
1.1
0.0
1.0
53
1.4
0.43
Folic Acid (Folate)
60.0
0.0
mcg
Niacin, mg
1.2
1.1
Riboflavin, mg
0.07
0.0
Thiamin, mg
0.14
0.12
Pasta and Rice are cooked
Enriched
0.57
6.0
1.5
0.14
0.2
0.4
0.03
0.5
Exciting News in Nutrition
Folic Acid Fortification
U.S. produced pasta
fortified with folic acid,
also called folate or
folacin
Effective January 1998
Imagine
being able to reduce serious
birth defects
Folic acid (B vitamin)
prevents:
 Neural tube defects such as spina bifida
 Anencephaly (a fatal defect in which part of
the brain never develops)
 Oral and facial birth defects such as cleft
palate
 May protect against some types of cancer
and heart disease
The U.S Center for Disease Control
estimated reduction of spina bifida and
anencephaly by 50 to 70 percent with
sufficient folic acid intake
Who Needs Folic Acid?
 Required by males and females of all
age levels
 Most important for females of
child-bearing age
Fortification level of
Folic Acid
 0.7 mg folic acid per pound of flour
 ½ cup serving of cooked pasta has
60 micrograms
 Six or more servings daily from bread and
grains group needed to meet the
Recommended Dietary Allowance of 400
micrograms
An Exciting Future??
Healthier Infants
Healthier Children
Healthier Adults
So what’s exciting about
pasta nutrition?
Pasta, along with other grain products, forms
the foundation of a healthy diet
 Good source of protein
 Complete protein containing all the essential
amino acids when combined with meat,
poultry, dairy products or beans
 Good source of many vitamins and minerals
 Excellent source of folic acid, when
fortified
 Low calorie and low in sodium
 Many shapes, as many as 350 to 600
 Tastes great
 Adds variety to the diet
 Convenience food
What more can we ask for??
Nutrition, Taste,
Convenience, and
Variety all wrapped
into one product…
PASTA
Resources:
www.wheatfoods.org
www.usda.gov/cnpp/index.htm
www.ilovepasta.org/nutrition.html
www.dakotagrowers.com