Breads & Cereals

Breads & Cereals

Which foods fit into the breads and c ereals group?

• The grains themselves - wheat, rice, oats, corn, barley, rye
• Food made from grain flours - breads and crispbreads of all kinds,breakfast cereals like porridge, muesli and cornflakes, pasta products like spaghetti and macaroni.

How many servings of breads and cereals should we eat each day?

It is recommended that adults eat at least 6 servings of breads and cereals each day. For 2-5 year olds we recommend at least 4 servings each day and at least 5-6 serves a day for the over fives.

Some examples of servings are:

• 1 cup of cornflakes 
• 1 slice of bread
• 1 cup of cooked rice or pasta
• 1 cup of porridge
• 2-3 crackers
• 1 muffin

Remember that with young children a serving may be made up of a larger number of smaller portions of these foods, for example, half a slice of toast and 1/2 a cup of pasta.

Fibre

Foods made from breads and cereals are a good source of dietary fibre. We all know that fibre is good for us, but what exactly is fibre, how much is enough and which foods are rich in fibre?

Fibre is very important for our health as it helps prevent several chronic diseases such as diabetes, heart disease and some forms of cancer. Some effects of fibre include regulating bowel movements, binding with cholesterol and slowing the release of sugar into the bloodstream.

Because a lot of the fibre we eat cannot be digested and absorbed by the body, fibre rich foods are lower in energy. This can be a problem when fed to young children - see the under fives page.

Here is a well known "rule of thumb" for fibre recommendations for children - take the child's age and add five to it. The combined total indicates the recommended number of grams of fibre that child should eat each day. For adults, the recommendation is 25-35 grams of fibre each day.

Fibre is found only in plant foods such as whole grains, fresh fruts and vegetables, beans, lentils and dried peas. Eating foods with skin, seeds, and foods with the "whole of the grain" increases our fibre intake.