Another vital part of the grain is the germ. Fats, proteins, phosphates and valuable vitamins are found in it. Of particular importance is the vitamin E in the germ, because it regulates the functions of the sex glands.
There is yet something else in the grain, cellulose, and some may argue that we can do without this outer preservative layer that envelops each grain as if with a fine cellophane film. True, it is indigestible and cannot be assimilated, but its action is nevertheless a necessary one for the intestinal tract. It cleanses its lining, which is studded with villi, tiny microscopic processes that assist assimilation. These hair-like processes are apt to become clogged up if the food ingested consists of too much material lacking in roughage. It is here that the cellulose-containing bran or fibre, comes in. Its particles scrape along the intestinal walls, cleaning away the filmy adhesions and at the same time stimulating peristalsis, the wavelike contractions of the intestines that press their contents onward and so prevent constipation. In fact, if everyone ate natural wholefoods, containing starch, minerals, nutrients and roughage in the right proportions, no one would suffer from poor digestion or constipation.
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