Macro partitioning
High intake of refined grains (≥350 g/day) is associated with a significantly higher risk of total mortality and major cardiovascular disease events compared to low intake (<50 g/day).
If you eat a lot of refined grains (like white bread, pasta, or pastries), try to reduce your intake. This study suggests that eating less than 50g per day (very low) is associated with the lowest risk, while eating 350g or more (about 7 servings) is linked to higher death and heart disease risk. You don't necessarily need to cut out whole grains or white rice, which showed no significant association in this study, but reducing refined grains is a key step for heart health and longevity.
The highest category of intake of refined grains (≥350 g/day or about 7 servings/day) was associated with higher risk of total mortality (hazard ratio 1.27, 95% confidence interval 1.11 to 1.46; P for trend=0.004), major cardiovascular disease events (1.33, 1.16 to 1.52; P for trend<0.001), and their composite (1.28, 1.15 to 1.42; P for trend<0.001) compared with the lowest category of intake (<50 g/day).
Why this rating
Large prospective cohort (n=137,130), multi-country, long follow-up (median 9.5 years), and rigorous adjustment for confounders, though observational design limits causal inference.
Source
Associations of cereal grains intake with cardiovascular disease and mortality across 21 countries in Prospective Urban and Rural Epidemiology study: prospective cohort study
Sumathi Swaminathan et al. · BMJ · 2021
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