A. Jeffrey Blumberg, PhD, director of Tufts HNRCA Antioxidants Research Laboratory, answers: Eating a whole-grain cereal at breakfast provides a good opportunity to add other healthful ingredients, including fresh or dried fruit and nuts. While many people would accompany this bowl with a cup of coffee or tea, the notion of adding a cup-equivalent serving of ground coffee beans or tea leaves would add some beneficial chlorogenic acids or flavonoids, respectively, to the meal. However, these phytochemicals might not dissolve as readily or completely (an important first step before their absorption in the gut) in your porridge as in a hot cup of the brew.
