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Two Simple Steps for a Healthy Weight and Heart

Cutting calories and boosting whole grains could work wonders.

Here’s another reason to upgrade to a cereal that’s made with whole grain: A 2008 study revealed that making lower-calorie, whole grain switches could help protect your heart and shrink your waistline.

In a study of 50 obese adults, researchers had half of the participants avoid whole grains, while the others always chose whole grains over refined ones. Both groups were also put on a lower-calorie diet. The results: Though both groups lost pounds, inches, and body fat, the participants who ate whole grains shed more belly fat than the others did. (Extra abdominal fat also raises heart disease risk.) What’s more, those who ate whole grains experienced a 38% drop in levels of C-reactive protein or CRP. (High levels of CRP are linked to heart disease and type 2 diabetes.)

Another recent study supported these results—and also revealed that whole grains may have a positive impact on cholesterol and after-meal blood glucose levels.

The USDA says that the problem isn’t that we don’t get enough grains—most of us do. We just need to make sure at least half of them come from whole grains.