Feb 23, 2006

New Heart-healthy Oat Now Available

Health-conscious consumers can now get more of the soluble oat fiber called beta-glucan in their diets, thanks to a new oat variety developed by Agricultural Research Service (ARS) and North Dakota State University (NDSU) scientists.

Combined with a healthy diet, beta-glucan can help lower blood levels of so-called "bad" cholesterol, diminishing the risk of heart disease. In August, ARS and NDSU scientists published their joint registration of "HiFi," a new spring oat bred specifically for increased beta-glucan content.

According to Doug Doehlert, a cereal chemist with ARS' Red River Valley Agricultural Research Center in Fargo, N.D., HiFi boasts 50 percent more beta-glucan than whole-oat products now sold in grocery stores.

This means a consumer could eat less of a whole-oat product made with HiFi to get the same health benefit. Or, more of the food could be eaten to gain even more of beta-glucan's benefits, according to Doehlert, in the ARS center's Cereal Crops Research Unit.

Doehlert and Mike McMullen of NDSU have been cooperatively breeding oats since 1993. During routine grain analysis, Doehlert noticed something odd: One of the oat lines furnished by McMullen contained more beta-glucan than usual.

The oat also had good agronomic characteristics and excellent disease resistance, so its seed was made available for production in the northern Plains region. There, farmers grow oats primarily to feed livestock, and they prefer varieties with high fat content rather than high fiber.

Interest in HiFi for food products initially looked bleak, since such oats are normally imported from Canada or oat-producing regions of the United States other than the northern Plains. But health-label claims now permitted for foods containing beta-glucan have rekindled interest in HiFi, according to Doehlert. In fact, Organic Grain and Milling, Inc., of Hudson, Wis., is negotiating licensing rights with the NDSU Research Foundation to market HiFi as an organic brand.

Daniel      

Do You Read All Of Our Cancer Blogs?

Do you read all of the blogs published by medicineworld.org? Many of our bloggers are busy keeping you updated on the various health related topics. We publish the following blogs at this time.

Cancer blog: I manage the cancer blog with lots of help and support form other bloggers. Through this cancer blog my friends and I try to bring stories of hope for patients with cancer. The cancer blog often republishes important blog posts from other cancer related blogs at Medicineworld.org. If you are searching for a blog that covers wide variety of cancer topics, this may be the one for you.

Breast cancer blog: Breast cancer blog is run by Emily and other bloggers and they bring you the latest stories, news and events that are related to breast cancer. Increasing awareness about breast cancer among women and in the general population is the main goal of this breast cancer blog.

Lung cancer blog: Lung cancer blog is managed by Scott with the help of other bloggers. Through this blog Scott and his friends constantly remind the readers about the dangers of smoking. It's a never-ending struggle against this miserable disease with which a social stigma of smoking is associated.

Colon cancer blog: Colon cancer blog is run by Sue and other bloggers. Sue brings a personal touch to the colon cancer blog since her mother died of colon cancer few years ago. She writes about stories, research news and advances in treatment related to colon cancer.

Prostate cancer blog: Prostate cancer is the most common cancer among American men. American Cancer Society estimates that over 230,000 new cases of prostate cancer occur in the United state every year. This important blog about prostate cancer is run by Mark and other bloggers. This blog brings news, stories, and other personal observations related to prostate cancer.

Medicineworld.org publishes a diabetes watch blog and this blog is run by JoAnn other bloggers. This diabetes watch blog brings you the latest in the field of diabetes. This includes personal stories, advances in diagnosis and treatment, and other observations about diabetes. Improving awareness about diabetes is an important mission of this group.

Janet      

Heart disease
About 13 million Americans (about 7 percent of the total population) suffer from coronary artery disease. Coronary artery disease is the leading cause of death in American men and women amounting a staggering 20 percent of all causes of death. About half of all deaths related to cardiovascular diseases occur from coronary artery disease. Through this heart watch blog we will have our humble contribution towards making men and women aware of the risks of heart diseases.