Fiber vs. whole grains    What's the difference between fiber and whole grains?    Fiber, found in plant foods, gives the plants structure and cannot be digested by humans. While it's not a requirement for life, it aids in health by reducing the body's cholesterol levels, controlling blood sugar levels and preventing constipation.    Fiber can be found in whole grains. A whole grain is the entire edible part of any grain, including wheat, corn, barley, oats and rice. In a plant, it is considered the seed from which a new plant would grow and contains a bran, endosperm and germ. These are high in complex carbohydrates and are rich in soluble fiber. They contain large amounts of B and E vitamins, iron, zinc, selenium and magnesium.    When grains are processed or refined, the bran and germ portions are removed, so are 80 percent of the nutrients.    Some examples of whole grains are barley, brown rice, bulgur, corn, oats, quinoa, rye and wheat. -- Virginia Linn

New labels appearing in the grocery store bread aisle touting "whole grain white" may cause consumers to do a double take, but it's the latest twist in stealth health that some folks are calling the greatest advance since, well, sliced bread.

And the efforts to pack more whole grains into America's favorite white bread appear to be passing muster with the nation's most finicky group of consumers -- children.

Most parents will tell you that it's difficult to get children to eat anything but the white, tasteless, roll-in-a-ball, squishy stuff that sticks to the roof of your mouth. But white bread's refined flour carries virtually no fiber or whole grains, which are now emphasized as part of a healthy diet. The new U.S. dietary guidelines urge Americans to consume at least three servings daily of whole-grain foods.

Moreover, the preference for white bread isn't limited to children. Judy Dodd, a registered dietitian and nutrition consultant for Giant Eagle markets, leads adult consumers through tours of the grocery store to give them tips on healthy choices.

"When I introduce the whole grain issue, they really look at me like I'm crazy," she said.

That's changing. In March, General Mills rolled out a whole wheat white flour concentrate used in the Country Hearth brand marketed here by Schwebel's bakeries. Sara Lee in July ushered in Soft & Smooth loaves that use a blend of enriched white and whole grain flours. Early next year, Interstate Bakeries Corp.'s Wonder Bread will introduce to the Pittsburgh region the first 100 percent whole grain version, Wonder White Bread Fans.

"This is a big step for the white bread consumer who is just not going to eat whole wheat bread," said Matt Hall, spokesman for Sara Lee's bakery group.

Each slice of white Sara Lee Soft & Smooth, which is 30 percent whole grain, delivers 4 grams of whole grains; Country Hearth has 8 grams per slice; and 100 percent Wonder White Bread Fans packs 16 per slice. The new dietary guidelines recommend 48 to 80 grams of whole grain products per day.

Perhaps more important than the whole grain content is the look, mild taste and texture of the new breads.

"It tastes the same," said Natalie Lurito, 21, a University of Pittsburgh communications major who compared in a blind taste test a sample of Wonder White Bread Fans with the company's regular white bread.

Amy McConnell Schaarsmith, the Post-Gazette's new food editor, said that the new version definitely has the "squish" factor.

"It's not as white and not as sweet as refined-flour white bread, but it's definitely sweeter than any of the brown whole wheat breads I've ever eaten, which have a little more bitterness to them. And when I close my eyes and chew, I'm thinking, 'This tastes like white bread.' "

Post-Gazette restaurant critic Elizabeth Downer could pick out the Wonder Bread's whole grain version in a blind taste test, but believed someone without an educated palate would have difficulty doing so.

Add peanut butter and jelly -- still the perennial favorite among school-age children -- and the feel in the mouth and taste differences are virtually indistinguishable.

"I like them both," said 6-year-old Cole Gradeck with a broad smile. The Homewood Montessori first-grader has a peanut butter sandwich in his lunch everyday and happily ate both samples in a blind taste test.

This is important, said Dodd, the Giant Eagle consultant. "It may be the healthiest thing in the world, but unless the child eats it, all that health goes right down the drain."

She said the brownish color of regular whole grain bread poses a big challenge in getting kids -- and many adults -- to eat it. "My granddaughter will say that looks dirty," she said.

"It's heavier and grainer and not appealing to kids," agreed Leslie Bonci, spokeswoman for the American Dietetic Association who overseas nutrition at UPMC Sports Medicine.

The whole grains in white bread should make people feel fuller so they don't over snack, Bonci said. There also are more calories. Regular Wonder Bread has 70 calories a slice; its whole-wheat white version has 80 calories a slice.

Food makers for years have been trying to come up with a healthier white bread. Although sales have been slipping in the last few years because of the low-carb craze and other changes in eating habits, white bread still captures the largest-selling segment of all bread sales at 47 percent, according to Information Resources Inc.

"With the increased demand for whole grain, it's really a good business opportunity, and consumers don't need to change behavior to get more whole grain in their diet," said Kirstie Foster, spokeswoman for General Mills, which makes its special mix from durum flour, the whole wheat flour found in pasta.

Australia has grown albino hard white wheat crops for years. After working for five years, ConAgra Foods Inc. of Omaha, Neb., in August 2004 introduced Ultragrain, finely milled flour with the taste and texture of enriched flours that preserved the whole-grain kernel. It has three and a half times as much dietary fiber as refined, unenriched flour, as well as more vitamin E, niacin and magnesium.

This is used in the Sara Lee Soft & Smooth brand and the flour is showing up in cookies, crackers, pasta and other products.

Mall of Sara Lee said the company tested many flour combinations before reaching its current blend (30 percent whole wheat/70 percent refined), that has been the No. 1 seller in the parts of the country where it's been sold since July.

The company first tested 100 percent whole wheat with Ultragrain.

"The texture was close to white bread, but the taste still had a whole grain taste. We knew that was not going to be an option," he said.

It kept reducing the percentage of whole grain until it came to 4 grams of whole wheat per slice. "When we tried a version of 5 grams per slice, consumers, particularly adults, said, 'That's not white bread. It doesn't taste like white bread.' "

Hall believes 100 percent whole wheat white bread will appeal only to a niche market. It's not for the "mainstream tried and true white bread lover," he said.

Wonder Bread hopes to disprove that. Since Interstate Bakeries rolled out its 100 percent whole grain white bread in six test markets -- San Francisco and Sacramento, Calif.; Kansas City, Mo.; Omaha, Neb.; Memphis, Tenn.; and Little Rock, Ark. -- sales are meeting expectations, said Stan Osman, company spokesman.

"What is unique about Wonder Bread White Fans is that it's the first white bread I'm aware of that is 100 percent whole grain, but that is specifically designed to have the taste and texture of white bread," he said.

Makers of the new breads are hoping to win discerning consumers such as Becca Sirocca, 12, of Regent Square, a lifelong white bread eater. In her blind taste test, she said she liked the whole grain sample better.

"Can I have another?"