What you pick from the bread basket might have an impact on your pearly whites.

You're probably (hopefully) already grabbing the whole-grain goodies for their fiber and nutrition content. But now here's another reason to be choosy: Whole grains may also help defend against gum disease.

The Grain/Gum Connection
In a 14-year study, men who ate the most whole grains were 23 percent less likely to develop periodontitis, a form of gum disease, compared with the men who failed to get even one full serving a day. The biggest whole-grain eaters chomped roughly three and a half servings daily — the equivalent of two slices of 100% whole-wheat bread, half a cup of cooked brown rice or whole-grain pasta, and half a cup of granola. (Try this hearty and healthy Whole Wheat Penne Genovese recipe for dinner tonight.)

An Oral Explanation
Exactly how eating whole grains may affect gum health isn't totally clear. But we already know that whole grains help make our hearts and our blood sugar healthier. And research on people with diabetes has found that lower blood sugar levels may mean lower gum disease risk, too. Here are a few other amazing things these foods can do:

• Whittle your waistline. Find out how replacing refined grains with whole ones helps bust belly fat.
• Say bye-bye to diabetes risk. Cut your diabetes risk by a third with the right amount of whole-grain fiber.
• Make your skin glow. Here's how the blood sugar benefits of whole grains can lead to clearer skin.

Are whole-grain white breads healthful, too? Get the answer from the YOU Docs.

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