Whole wheat cereal is a type of cereal that is made from unprocessed wheat. Cereal of this kind falls under the category of whole grains and for that reason it is often called a whole grain cereal. This kind of cereal is highly appealing for people who want to start their day with a healthy breakfast. One of the reasons for this is that whole wheat cereals are more nutritious than cereals that are made from processed wheat.
To best understand what whole wheat cereal is, it helps to know what whole grain means. Grains in cereal may be refined or unrefined. The unrefined grains are in their natural state, which means they have not undergone any processing and all the natural nutrients are still intact. Wheat cereal made from unrefined wheat is called whole wheat or whole grain cereal.
Grains that have undergone processing are called refined grains. This means that parts of the grain have been removed, and as a result it has been stripped of some of its beneficial nutrients. Wheat cereals that are made using refined wheat cannot be called whole wheat and may be labeled as simply wheat or even 100 percent wheat.
A high fiber content is just one of the nutritional benefits of eating a bowl of whole wheat cereal. They are rich in antioxidants and may help to lower ones risk of developing diabetes and cardiovascular disease. In addition, they may also help to reduce the level of bad cholesterol in the bloodstream. Eating certain types of whole wheat may also help to prevent certain kinds of cancer.
When buying whole wheat cereal, there are two general types that are available, and these are cereals that are eaten hot and those that are cold or in ready-to-eat form. Wheat berries are the entire wheat kernel and are a form of whole wheat that can be cooked and eaten as hot cereal. Another common wheat cereal that can be eaten hot is whole wheat flakes. Shredded wheat cereal is a type of ready-to-eat cereal.
There are other uses for whole wheat cereal besides breakfast consumption. Ready-to-eat cereal can be eaten alone as a snack or combined with other whole grain cereals, whole wheat pretzels and nuts for a healthy party mix to share with friends. Cereal that is whole wheat may even be crushed, seasoned and used as a crispy coating when oven frying fish or chicken.