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Review
. 2015 Oct;4(3):178-202.
doi: 10.1002/fes3.64. Epub 2015 Aug 14.

The contribution of wheat to human diet and health

Peter R Shewry  1 , Sandra J Hey  2
Affiliations
Review

The contribution of wheat to human diet and health

Peter R Shewry et al. Food Energy Secur. 2015 Oct.

Abstract

Wheat is the most important staple crop in temperate zones and is in increasing demand in countries undergoing urbanization and industrialization. In addition to being a major source of starch and energy, wheat also provides substantial amounts of a number of components which are essential or beneficial for health, notably protein, vitamins (notably B vitamins), dietary fiber, and phytochemicals. Of these, wheat is a particularly important source of dietary fiber, with bread alone providing 20% of the daily intake in the UK, and well-established relationships between the consumption of cereal dietary fiber and reduced risk of cardio-vascular disease, type 2 diabetes, and forms of cancer (notably colo-rectal cancer). Wheat shows high variability in the contents and compositions of beneficial components, with some (including dietary fiber) showing high heritability. Hence, plant breeders should be able to select for enhanced health benefits in addition to increased crop yield.

Keywords: Diet and health; dietary fiber; grain composition; phytochemicals; wheatwheat.

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Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Changes in the availability of wheat (kcal/day) in nine countries between 1961 and 2011. Data from the FAO Food Balance Sheets (http://faostat3.fao.org/faostat-gateway/go/to/download/FB/FBS/E).
Figure 2
Figure 2
Summary of the heritability of dietary fiber and other components in wheat grain, based on the HEALTHGRAIN study. “Other” includes variance ascribed to Genotype × Environment interactions and/or error.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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