Den nordiske kostholdsmodellen — fra Bladet Forskning, september 2008

The journal "Forskning" (Research) which is published by the Norwegian "Forskningsrådet" (Research Council), in September 2008 published an article about the HELGA project.

The whole grain bread is replaced by white pasta, ciabatta and baguettes. Will that lead to higher incidence of cancer?

A high intake of whole grain is probably the most prominent characteristics of the Nordic diet, but in the recent years we have turned to the Mediterranean diet. We eat more fruits and vegetables, but also pasta, ciabatta and baguettes based on white flour. In several countries these foods have displaced the traditional Nordic intake of whole grain products. "That is a shame", says Anne Tjønneland, Head of Department of Diet, Cancer and Health in the Danish Cancer Society I Denmark and Leader of the Nordic Centre of Excellence "HELGA — Nordic Health — Whole Grain Food". "We have good reasons to believe that the whole grains have even better cancer-preventive effects than fruits and vegetables, but to develop recommendations on whole grain intake, we need to understand the biological mechanisms behind the health effects of whole grains", says Anne Tjønneland.

Read the full article (pdf, in Norwegian): Den nordiske kostholdsmodellen