The term “refined”
may evoke notions of knowledge, wealth, and sophistication.
When it comes to food, however, this term is a euphemism
at best. Once upon a time, “white foods”
or refined carbohydrates were considered a delicacy
in the West. Brown bread and other whole grains were
looked down upon as the food of the poor. In actuality,
people were paying more money for less nutrition.
Refinement is a process by which the two outer layers
of a grain, know as the bran and germ, are stripped
away. Most of the nutrients in grains, such as fiber,
iron, calcium, vitamin E, and the B vitamins, are
stored in these outer layers. In order to make up
for this nutrient loss, many refined foods are “enriched,”
by the addition of small amounts of nutrients back
into the food. An increased shelf life is the primary
economic motive for such refinement. The stripped
away nutrients also receive a premium in today’s
booming supplement market.
According to Ayurveda, refined foods disrupt the
normal course of metabolism. A diet high in refined
foods creates ama in the body. Foods such as white
flour, white rice, and white sugar are also often
bleached, increasing their toxicity. The lack of fiber
and roughage in such foods also makes it more difficult
to them to pass through the digestive tract, as evidenced
by the widespread problem of constipation in the West.