Vegan Thickeners - The Vegetarian Resource Group

NUTRITION HOTLINE
REED MANGELS, PhD, RD
This issue’s Nutrition
Hotline examines
what “whole wheat”
and “whole grain”
statements on food
packages mean and
explains why protein
values for similar
products may differ
considerably.
QUESTION: “I heard that some ‘whole
wheat’ pastas do not have enough
fiber. Are the labels misleading?”
S.H., via e-mail
ANSWER: With increasing evidence
of the health benefits of whole
grains, food labels are much more
likely to include information about
whole wheat and whole grain than
they did even a few years ago.
In February 2006, the Food
and Drug Administration (FDA)
issued draft guidance on use of the
term “whole grain” at . This
guidance says, by law, food producers
can use terms like “100%
whole grain” or “10 grams of whole
grain” as long as these statements
are not false or misleading. The
FDA recommends that products
indicating “whole grain” or “whole
wheat” are labeled as such when
they contain whole grains or whole
wheat flour and no refined versions
of these ingredients.
The FDA has not defined
“whole grain,” so you may find
some packages with misleading
labels. Some products labeled
“whole wheat” or “whole grain”
have no more fiber than similar
products made with refined white
flour. To see if a product labeled
“whole wheat” or “whole grain” is
a good source of fiber, check the
Nutrition Facts part of the label.
Refined pasta averages approximately
1 gram of fiber per serving.
A good whole wheat pasta should
have between 3 and 6 grams of
dietary fiber per 2-ounce serving.
You can also check the ingredient
listing to be sure that the first listed
ingredient is whole wheat.
Thanks to Blythe Tucker,
a dietetics student at the University
of Houston, for his help in
responding to this question about
food labeling.
QUESTION: “I just found your site
today and was reviewing the protein
information for vegans. I am trying
to eat vegan, but I am having some
difficulty. My question is this. The
information from the USDA (U.S.
Department of Agriculture) says
that 1 cup of cooked lentils yields
only 18 grams of protein. My organic
green lentils say on the package that
1
/4 cup is 11 grams of protein; thus,
a cup would be 44 grams. What
is going on here?”
C.H., via e-mail
ANSWER: There are a couple of
possibilities that could explain
the difference between the values.
It’s most likely that the package
values are for raw lentils while
the USDA values are for cooked
lentils. Since lentils increase in size
with cooking, the protein in 1 cup
of cooked lentils will be lower than
in 1 cup of raw lentils.
If you are buying uncooked
lentils, and the Nutrition Facts
label does not specify that nutrient
content is for cooked lentils,
chances are that the values are for
uncooked lentils. There’s a small
possibility that differences in the
type of lentil or in processing or
growing conditions could lead
to different protein values.
See an article on The VRG’s
website at for more information
on protein.
2 Issue One 2007 VEGETARIAN JOURNAL