Super Foods, the ultimate health food – Wheatgerm

If you feel tired and run down, wheatgerm is the natural way to top up your diet and give yourself a boost of almost all the B vitamins, plus some vitamin E, a healthy dose of antioxidants and many minerals - all in one. In fact, of all grain foods, it's the easiest to add a ‘tonic' to your diet - it's like taking a multi-B vitamin supplement but it's natural and got more nutrients.

What is wheatgerm?

Wheatgerm is in fact the "embryo" or developing new plant of the wheat grain and is amazingly rich in fibre and many nutrients, but particularly the B vitamins. As a group, the B vitamins (thiamin, riboflavin, niacin, folate and pyridoxine) function to release energy from food, especially carbohydrates.

Your body can't perform at its peak without them. Too much alcohol and too much refined carbohydrates drain the body's small supply of these so they need to be topped up every day. Definitely the "must-have" topping for your daily morning cereal.

Nutrition stats

Two tablespoons wheatgerm (weighing 10g) supply:

3g protein, 1g fat, 1g sugar, 3g starch, 2g dietary fibre and 128 kilojoules (30 calories).

Per 100g:

27 per cent protein, 9 per cent fat, 16 per cent sugars, 29 per cent starch, 16 per cent dietary fibre and 1276 kilojoules (303 calories).

Ways to eat more wheatgerm

• Sprinkle a tablespoon or two over your usual cereal for a real boost.
• If you bake, replace 3 tablespoons of the flour with 3 tablespoons of wheatgerm in a bread or muffin mix.
• Stir it into a muesli or meatloaf.

Note:

Store wheatgerm in a jar or sealed bag in the fridge so it doesn't go rancid.

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