Wheat Belly Blog

The perfect Wheat Belly story

Dr. Davis — Fri, 24 May 2013 20:14:15 +0000

Peter posted this wonderful comment that sums up many of the most common positive experiences people have when following this wheat-free lifestyle:

I am a 53-year old male who considers himself in good physical condition. However, my weight has been creeping up and up over the past 10 years. I am very active and was a bit concerned about my weight gain; always felt I ate properly and am not a drinker. I exercise regularly and play hockey on a regular basis.

In December, 2012, I had rotator cuff surgery and was off work for 4 months recovering. I was worried about additional weight gain and blood sugar issues, as diabetes runs in my family. A colleague of my wife recommended a book called Wheat Belly, as they have had great results from changing their patterns of eating.

I am a Phys Ed grad with a health sciences background and read the book cover to cover one morning. It made physiological sense to me.

As of the end of February, 2013, I have not had any wheat. I do not weigh myself that often. However, I noticed my pants becoming looser all of the time. Upon my return to work in April, 2013, I weighed myself on the medical scales at work and, to my shock, I was down 15 lbs. As of last week, I weighed in at 194lbs (I am 6 ft 2 inches).

At the time of my operation December 11, 2012, I was 219 lbs. In the months following, I did not exercise at all, as the jarring on my shoulder was too painful. Just last week, I began my recovery to running. I am the lightest since my first year of university (1979) and am almost into suits that I have not been able to get into for 15 years.

I am a believer in this lifestyle. It is not a diet, either; it is an attitude swing and changing up food groups to maximize your health. It is easily sustainable and the cost difference is minimal when grocery shopping.

I have dropped from a 36.5-inch waist to a 34-inch waist; my sleeping is much better, I have no more hunger spikes during the mid-morning or mid-afternoon, my eczema has cleared up as well. The first couple of days I did have withdrawal symptoms, such as headaches; however, by the end of the week, I was fine. Our entire family (my wife who is 52,and sons 23 and 21 years) have eliminated wheat from their diets as well and all have the same results: better sleep patterns, no more bloating in the mid section.

I highly recommend this change of eating to everyone; I am truly amazed at the results.

Peter’s story encapsulates so many of the Wheat Belly arguments that I had to pass it on: freedom from the incessant hunger triggered by wheat, better sleep, relief from eczema, loss of abdominal fat, weight loss. Yes, he experienced the opiate withdrawal from stopping the ingestion of the gliadin protein of wheat, but he survived and lived to talk about it!

This is why I call wheat “the perfect chronic poison” and why elimination of all wheat is the most powerful strategy for regaining control over health and weight I have seen . . . ever!

Hungry, naked, and desperate

Dr. Davis — Wed, 22 May 2013 12:59:07 +0000

Imagine yourself a primitive member of the Homo species: standing around 4 feet tall, nearly hairless, with limited ability to navigate the trees like the chimpanzees and other apes. You are virtually helpless against the vicious predators of the savannah–no claws, but fingernails; no large canines but diminutive canines, incisors, and larger molars. You can run, but not as fast as some of the larger predators. You are unable to tear the throat of an antelope with your hands, nor can you rip open the abdomen of a gazelle. You can’t fly and have only limited capacity to navigate water.

But you’re hungry, experiencing an intensity of hunger you and I have never felt. This is when instinct kicks in. You WILL find food. It might be found in an insect mound, or a wounded or aged monkey, nuts that you learned could be eaten if you cracked open the hard shell with a rock, the roots of plants dug out by hand or heavy sticks. Hunger drives instinctive behavior, an innate knowledge of what to do, what to eat, in order to survive.

We have lost that connection to instinctive knowledge. Wouldn’t it be great if, upon meeting a dietitian to counsel you on diet, she simply said, “Well, follow your instincts: Then you’ll know what to do!” It doesn’t work that way in a modern world where we are divorced from our internal wisdom.

I have a beautiful little Boston Terrier, Sophie. She is loving, throwing herself on her back in that unique way dogs show submission, hoping for a tummy rub. She was raised her entire life on (grain-free!) kibble that I purchase from the pet store. I never showed her how to hunt or kill. Yet, when I let her out into the backyard, this lovable, submissive creature reverts to a killer carnivore, stalking squirrels, rabbits, and birds. And she’s been successful, tearing the throat of a rabbit, for instance, then consuming the flesh and organs.

Why do animals maintain the instinctive knowledge of what represents “food” while we lose this capacity? How is it that we are so influenced by such non-instinctive factors such as clever marketing, even if the product can be classified as “food” only in a very loose way? Is abundance the driver of this separation? Is it due to the presence of artificial enhancers of appetite that fool us, such as those in wheat flour and cornstarch, or the sugars in sweets?

We have somehow been separated from our own internal natural knowledge–it’s there, to be sure!–of what is food. We spent 2.4 million years since our transition from Australopithecines exercising our internal script in finding food. Between 4000 and 10,000 years ago (differing in the various parts of the world and with different grains) we began to view grasses, plants inedible in their native state, as food: wheat (einkorn and emmer), rices, maize, oats, sorghum, millet, barley, and sugarcane. Until that relatively recent time, Homo had not regarded members of the Poaceae family of plants as something that was consistent with the instinctive notion of food.

Grasses: ubiquitous, hardy, populating virtually every corner of the earth, from tropics to tundra. We learned that, by processing the seeds or other parts of the grass, we could eat these ubiquitous and often non-perishable items and survive another day. It was not part of our evolutionary programming, it was not something immediately evident as food. Grasses were something, like poisonous tiger blowfish or deadly toadstools, that we managed to incorporate into diet through various manipulations.

Let your stomach do the talking

Dr. Davis — Sat, 18 May 2013 14:35:21 +0000

Janzo posted this interesting perspective on diabetes and blood sugar:

I have pre-diabetes, and have tried EVERY popular “change your diet” book published in the last 10 years, with little results: I still fought my lifelong sweet-tooth and cravings for carbs. Last September I got an official diagnosis of diabetes (A1C was 8.2% or something), and reluctantly put myself back on a low-carb program–AGAIN. No grains except “healthy whole wheat bread” and some crackers, no fruit. I quickly became depressed, my body was tense and ached. Life was miserable. And my fasting glucose readings were still 160 [mg/dl] or so; far from the 110 I was looking for.

After MUCH nagging, I followed my chiropractor’s advice and looked into gluten-free as a way to get my numbers down, and found this blog. I read all the comments: “I don’t even MISS the old foods!” “I feel better than I EVER have in my LIFE!!” “I’ll NEVER go back to eating.” And my eyes rolled. I’d heard this with EVERY diet I’d tried, and failed to maintain. This was just one more.

But then something weird happened. My gut spoke up.

I felt a strange sensation in my mid-region, and “checked in” with my gut feelings. They were saying “YES YES YES PLEASE PLEASE CAN WE DO THIS **PLEASE PLEASE???!!!!**” To which my mind said “What the HELL??!” My gut feelings were jumping up and down with excitement, like a puppy when you pick up its leash to go for a walk.

They say if your head and your gut disagree, your gut is telling you the truth and your head is wrong. So I went with it, and ate my last “healthy whole wheat” crackers on Saturday. By Tuesday: my depression was gone, my tension was gone, my sweet tooth was gone, and my fasting glucose was suddenly down to 120. Holeeee crud!

I don’t even MISS the old foods. I feel better than I EVER have in my LIFE. And I’ll NEVER go back to eating wheat. Thanks, Dr. D!

Consumption of modern wheat causes diabetes: pure and simple. Getting rid of modern wheat gets rid of diabetes in the majority of cases (provided you don’t fill the calorie gap with candy and ice cream!).

Why would this be? Why would “healthy whole grains” cause, or at least contribute, to development of type 2 diabetes? There are several reasons:

1) No other food–sucrose, high-fructose corn syrup, sugary soft drinks, French fries, etc.–has its very own opiate that stimulates appetite. The gliadin protein, digested down to 5 tetra- and pentapeptide “exorphin” (exogenous morphine-like compounds) units, binds to the opiate receptors of the human brain and stimulates appetite. (Those nice people in the Wheat Lobby argue that other foods, such as dairy products and spinach, also have opiates; this is technically true, but the binding affinity of these compounds is so low–10% or less of the binding affinity of wheat exorphins–that they are not of any practical concern. Don’t fall for this obvious smokescreen.)

The increased appetite of wheat exorphins cause you to consume 400 or more calories per day, every day. Those calories are not from pork chops or salmon; they come carbohydrates almost exclusively–chips, cookies, crackers, pretzels, candy and other goodies, the foods that raise blood sugar.

2) Wheat contains the complex carbohydrate, amylopectin A–Recall that the unique branching structure of wheat’s amylopectin A makes it highly susceptible to digestion by the enzyme, amylase, in saliva and stomach juices, releasing glucose into the bloodstream literally within seconds of ingestion. This explains why two slices of whole wheat bread raise blood sugar higher and faster than 6 teaspoons of table sugar. High blood sugar obliges high blood insulin, over and over and over again in the world of the “healthy whole grain” eater. Over time, this leads to diminished responsiveness to insulin–”insulin resistance”–the foundation of pre-diabetes and diabetes. It also leads to creation of visceral belly fat which, in turn, worsens insulin resistance and inflammation.

3) Repetitive high blood sugars, over and over again, lead to pancreatic glucotoxicity–damage to pancreatic beta cells that produce insulin. (Here is a representative discussion of this effect.) Death of pancreatic beta cells is, for all practical purposes, irreversible: When they’re dead, they’re dead and do not regenerate. Foods that raise blood sugar the most cause the most glucotoxicity. What food dominates the modern diet and has among the highest of glycemic indexes? Yup: wheat.

4) A vigorous and unending flow of carbohydrates fuels the process of liver de novo lipogenesis, the conversion of sugar and carbohydrates into fatty acids in the liver. Among the results: plenty of fatty acids and triglycerides in the bloodstream. This causes lipotoxicity, death to pancreatic beta cells that produce insulin. So those typical triglyceride levels of 150 mg/dl, 200 mg/dl, 500 mg/dl or higher that persist for extended periods kill off pancreatic beta cells.

5) Leptin resistance–Gain weight, lose the satiating/appetite-limiting effect of the leptin hormone. It means that appetite is not turned off. High leptin levels are also toxic to the pancreas: leptin toxicity.

6) Inflammation–Insulin resistance, visceral fat accumulation: It all adds up to extravagant triggering of complex inflammatory pathways signaled by increased c-reactive protein in the bloodstream, increased interleukins, increased tumor necrosis factor, and many others, as well as increased inflammatory white blood cell content of the fat itself (like pus). The process is made worse by the entry of foreign compounds into the bloodstream and lymph permitted by the gliadin protein. The same gliadin that is broken down into exorphin polypeptides can also remain intact and exert bowel permeability increasing effects via the zonulin pathway described by Dr. Alessio Fasano; this occurs in people with celiac disease and it occurs in people without celiac disease.

7) The lectin of wheat, wheat germ agglutinin, mimics insulin. It stimulates many of the same processes triggered by insulin in fat cells, including reduced oxidation of fatty acids.

8) How about a more speculative, non-quantifiable effect: resorting to wheat products, such as chocolate chip cookies, Oreos, angel food cake, and chocolate eclairs, as “comfort” foods to quell the various emotional and physical aches and pains characteristic of wheat consumption?

That’s a partial list. Yes, a partial list of how wheat causes diabetes.

Increased appetite for sugar and carbohydrates, high blood sugar, high blood insulin, leptin effects, gluco- and lipotoxic pancreatic effects, inflammation, etc. It all adds up to a perfect storm to create type 2 diabetes. So what does our USDA, nice dietitians, and many of my colleagues tell you to do about his? Eat MORE “healthy whole grains.” Not only do they tell us to eat more of it, they tell us that they should dominate the diet. (Thus the largest segments of the USDA Food Pyramid and Plate.)

Is the explosion in diabetes any surprise? This is what the CDC says:

So Janzo is getting a little taste of the incredible power of eating NO “healthy whole grains” to minimize or reverse diabetes. Do you find it a little odd that the most vigorous and long-term financial supporters of the “healthy whole grain” message and the Wheat Lobby and trade groups are . . . diabetes drug manufacturers?

Goodbye, nephrotic syndrome!

Dr. Davis — Thu, 16 May 2013 16:24:40 +0000

Joanna posted this intriguing and wonderful tale of nephrotic syndrome reversed with wheat elimination:

No more nephrotic syndrome since starting
Wheat Belly–this is MASSIVE. I need to share my story Dr Davis.

I’m 30, I had heavy proteinuria [protein loss in the urine] for years. I went strictly wheat-free in July, 2012, and today I discovered its down to 0.5 g [per day]. No meds, just my interest in nutrition, in particular my 10 months on Wheat Belly. I’ve lost 20 kg [44 pounds], I weigh 54 kg [118.8 pounds] now, zero fluid retention, and the receptionist at the doctor’s office didn’t recognize me.(I last saw her 9 months ago.) Wheat Belly has been the catalyst for a miracle in my life.

I was diagnosed with nephrotic syndrome when I was 21. I was holding so much fluid in my legs and around my eyes and no, I never had a cause, the words of my doctor.

I wasn’t diabetic but, boy oh boy, I was a bread nut my whole life. I had actually been working in a bakery for the previous two years (a large Australian chain). I constantly craved pastry, doughy scrolls cakes, etc. Renal specialist put me on high dose prednisolone (albumin [blood protein level] had fallen to 14–yikes!) and the best that these AWFUL drugs could do was raise it to 21. I begged him to get me off the steroids due to horrific mental side-effects, so I came off them very slowly (year and a half) and I’d been losing on average 4 g of protein a day, but there was no way I could live on those tablets.

Causes of this awful condition include longstanding diabetes, kidney diseases such as membranous nephropathy and postinfectious glomerulonephritis, and amyloidosis, and lupus. Deteriorating kidney function can proceed at variable rates, but typically results in complete kidney failure over a few years, necessitating dialysis, else it is fatal.

I embarked on a mission to heal myself. My dad’s partner is a nutritionist in England and she started talking about wheat-free. July 25, 2012 was the first day of the rest of my miraculously healthy life. I quit wheat cold turkey after reading the Wheat Belly blog: pennies were dropping everywhere I looked on this site–acne, cravings, bloating. So I thought, hey, my kidney thing is autoimmune as well, so this might work.

Well!!! I have never had a waist in my life. I now have this amazing hourglass figure (‘scuse the self compliment!). I’d been an apple my whole life. My blood and urine results came back yesterday and they prove a miracle. Most incredible was my protein loss down to 0.5g [per day]. Blood pressure lowest range of normal (I was on meds for that most of my 20s). The inflammation that was ruining my kidneys had almost completely vanished.

Health is the most important thing, but being an Aussie size 8, never going hungry and being so clear in the head and full of energy are wonderful perks of this life–not diet–life. Friends are converting too. This is a revolution. And I thought I’d be on dialysis before the age of 40. It’s the weirdest and most amazing feeling, stumbling across a completely healthy life. Sorry for the rambling, but people need to know wheat causes serious, serious disease, not just minor ailments.

Oh and albumin has shot up to 40 . . . No steroids!!!

Amazing. Truly amazing.

Nephrotic syndrome is a serious condition that, as Joanna describes, involves continual loss of protein in the urine. In other words, the kidney loses its capacity to retain protein molecules in the bloodstream, allowing them to leak into the urine, causing a peculiarly frothy urine. Protein loss means proteins in the bloodstream (serum), such as albumin, fall into abnormally low range. Proteins not only perform crucial functions in various organs, but exert oncotic (osmotic) pressure to keep the body fluids where they belong, including in the bloodstream. The loss of bloodstream protein therefore allows fluids to leak out of the bloodstream and into the legs, lungs, and other areas, causing significant and disfiguring edema (swelling). Peculiar phenomena like blood clots in the kidney veins and legs can result from loss of specific proteins, such as antithrombin-3.

As often happens, nephrotic syndrome has been described in association with celiac disease, which then falsely leads many people to believe that it can only occur in association with celiac disease. But it can occur just with wheat consumption without positive transglutaminase or other celiac antibody markers.

Obviously, a single case does not constitute proof. But the stories of success in our wheat-free lifestyle continue to pour out so quickly that there is insufficient time to pursue the clinical trials that confirm cause-effect relationship in every instance. In the meantime, we enjoy these wonderful stories of apparent wheat-free success that requires no drugs, biopsies, procedures or costs!

Wheat Belly Cookbook Recipe: Chicken and Dumplings

Dr. Davis — Tue, 14 May 2013 14:30:02 +0000

If wheat can do it, we can do it just as well without. And in this recipe, dumplings are back! Just as you would ordinarily make dumplings using wheat flour, we use almond meal. The end result is every bit as good. I like putting a teaspoon of dried rosemary in my biscuit dough for a bit of added flavor.

PREP TIME: 10 minutes
TOTAL TIME: 1 hour 5 minutes

Makes 8 servings

2 tablespoons butter or coconut oil, divided
8 boneless, skinless chicken thighs
2 onions, chopped
2 carrots, sliced
2 ribs celery, sliced
3 cups chicken broth
1 teaspoon dried thyme
1 recipe Basic Biscuits (below)
1/2 cup sour cream or canned coconut milk

Preheat the oven to 350°F.

In a Dutch oven over medium-high heat, heat 1 tablespoon of the butter or oil. Cook the chicken, turning occasionally, for 5 minutes, or until golden on all sides. Remove to a plate and set aside.

Heat the remaining 1 tablespoon butter or oil. Cook the onions, carrots, and celery, stirring occasionally, for 5 minutes, or until the onions start to soften. Add the broth, thyme, the remaining 1/8 teaspoon salt, and the reserved chicken. Increase the heat to high. Bring to a boil. Bake, uncovered, for 20 minutes.

Meanwhile, prepare the biscuits. Remove the Dutch oven from the oven and stir in the sour cream or coconut milk. Increase the oven temperature to 400° F.

Dollop 8 biscuits onto the chicken mixture. Bake uncovered for 15 minutes. Cover and bake for 15 minutes, or until a thermometer inserted in the thickest portion of the chicken registers 170°F.

PER SERVING: 342 calories, 23 g protein, 15 g carbohydrates, 23 g total fat, 6 g saturated fat, 7 g fiber, 810 mg sodium

Basic Biscuits
Sometimes uncomplicated is best! These simple and wonderfully uncomplicated wheat-free biscuits will do the trick when you have an appetite for sausages with (wheat-free) gravy and biscuits or require something to accompany a turkey dinner,

Easy variations include adding ¼ cup grated cheese, Italian seasonings, or cinnamon with your choice of sweetener.

Makes 8

1 cup almond meal/flour
1 cup ground golden flaxseed
4 teaspoons baking powder
4 tablespoons cold butter, cut into cubes
4 egg whites

Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

In a large bowl, mix together the almond meal/flour, flaxseed meal, and baking powder. Cut in the butter until combined.

In a small mixing bowl, beat the egg whites with a hand mixer until soft peaks form. Gently fold the egg whites into the dry ingredients until combined.

Spoon the dough into 8 rounds on the baking sheet. Flatten to approximately 3/4” thickness. Bake for 15 minutes, or until golden brown.

Wheat headache

Dr. Davis — Mon, 13 May 2013 14:31:52 +0000

Karen tells this story of her son’s 3-month struggle with headache and other symptoms:

My son suffered from chronic (nearly daily) headaches and dizziness for 3 months, missing 30+ days of school in that time. Three days after removing wheat from his diet, he is headache-free. Chronic constipation gone. Former pale skin, dark circles under his eyes: gone. Energy level back, moodiness: gone.

Taking him off wheat was always my gut instinct, but we were told by everyone in the medical field that it couldn’t possibly be from a food issue. We had tried numerous medications, took every blood test possible, MRI, massage, acupuncture, chiropractic, with no long-term success.

It started the end of January when my 8 yr old son (who had never had a headache before this day) came home early from school with a headache and stomach ache. I chalked it up to start of the flu. Three days later: no relief. He got up late at night, couldn’t sleep due to headache (Advil provided no relief whatsoever), so we took a trip the our children’s hospital. He was given a physical, neurological tests; all appeared normal. Treated with Maxeran [drug for nausea} and IV fluids, which relieved his headache, but it returned a couple of days later.

I called our "health-link" info line and they suggested we go back to hospital. Treated again with Maxeran and fluids. It again relieved headache, but only for a day or two. He was referred to a pediatric neurologist. In the meantime, our family doctor prescribed Imitrex for headache treatment-- didn't work. He then had an MRI [of the brain], came back normal. They suggested high dose vitamin B2 (400 mg) and Sandomigran; no results.

One theory was that it could be tension headaches, so we had about 3 acupuncture treatments. Provided relief for a day or two, but nothing long-term. Also tried chiropractic, again it brought short term relief.

During this time I kept a food/headache diary. 3 times in these 3 months he would be OK in the morning but I would get a call from the school at almost the exact same time of day, between 1 and 1:30 in the afternoon that he had a headache. I had a few people suggest that he was allergic/sensitive to wheat. Asked for a gluten intolerance blood test, so had a full blood work up and all came back normal. Saw a neurologist at the pediatric headache clinic, full schedule of physical and neurological tests all appear normal and she was skeptical of a food reaction. Neither the neurologist nor family doctor could recommend anything else for me to do other than massage, physiotherapy…. oh, except one doctor did suggest that he see a psychologist! Very frustrating when they can’t come up with a reason or cause they think it’s psychological.

I knew it was something internal because after all these months his skin was pale, he had dark circles under his eyes, his headaches typically came with dizziness, he was lethargic, stomach pains, chronic and long term constipation (off and on for about year and half). Made a half attempt to do wheat/gluten free diet earlier into this saga, but gave up after a couple days, as symptoms seem to get worse. This last attempt came with worsening symptoms, also, but after researching and found that it’s common to have withdrawal symptoms (severe muscle and joint pain, I could hardly touch him and it would hurt), I figured that he was having withdrawal and stuck it out.

Halfway thru the 3rd day his headache was gone and, to date, we are 3 weeks without a headache!!! About a week in, his bowels started working again, really working. He said it was the first time in months that he didn’t have to strain to poop, and it was a real poop, not little rabbit ones. Full disclosure: He is also on a dairy-free diet at the moment, also, as I’ve been told that, since his system is healing, it would be wise to take out dairy, too. But as I look back at his food diary and see the pattern of his headaches, I am convinced that it’s wheat.

I guess the only true test is to feed him wheat again, but I really want to give his body time to heal before I test him. After confiding in people about our experience, I have had a few people tell me similar stories about the link with headaches and wheat. I wish Western medicine would at least be open minded about this issue. I wonder how many more people are just suffering headaches they treat by trying to just dull the pain and not search for the cause? I hope that more people will find the connect for their health issues and the food they eat.

Karen and her son were lucky: They discovered the answer–modern semi-dwarf wheat–after only 3 months. Most people struggle for decades with frequent incapacitating headaches, fatigue, gastrointestinal complaints, no answers from the healthcare system, struggling to maintain grades in school or hold a job before they stumble on the answer. And note that testing for the antibodies (or even intestinal biopsy) for celiac disease is typically negative, since it involves mechanisms other than an HLA-DQ-mediated immune mechanism.

It took this mother’s instinct and powers of observation to uncover the answer. It had nothing to do with genetic defects, nothing to do with an infectious agent, nothing to do with head injury. The medical system failed this boy, the doctors failed him, the conventional advice from agencies like the USDA that make NO allowance for such common reactions failed him.

Just what component of modern wheat is responsible for such headache reactions? Is it the abnormal brain binding of the gliadin-derived exorphin opiates? Is it vasospastic phenomena triggered by the microgram quantities of wheat germ agglutinin that gain entry into the bloodstream? Nobody knows, but the connection is increasingly certain: consumption of modern wheat is associated with severe, chronic headaches; removal of all wheat can result in dramatic cure.

Unlucky Charms

Dr. Davis — Sat, 11 May 2013 15:03:48 +0000

Are there any HEALTHY breakfast cereals?

Simple answer: No.

Let’s consider the most common ingredients in breakfast cereals: wheat flour, corn, high-fructose corn syrup, sugar. In effect, they therefore contain sugar, sugar, sugar, and sugar. That ain’t good. It explains why the glycemic index of breakfast cereals are all exceptionally high, usually 70 and above. (Sucrose is 59-65, depending on the study you look at.) Breakfast cereals for kids, such as Apple Jacks and Corn Pops, can be as high as 25-37% sugar by weight.

How about those coarser cereals with whole grains like oats, millet, buckwheat, etc., such as muesli? Same issues. Followers of the Wheat Belly conversation understand that whole grains are wrongly called “low” glycemic index; they should really be called “less-high” glycemic index. If, for instance, a bowl of sugary cornflakes raises blood sugar from 90 mg/dl to 190 mg/dl, but a bowl of muesli raises blood sugar to 170 mg/dl–it’s not low, just less high. This is true even if there is no added sugar.

The wheat component of cereals, of course, carries all the excess baggage unique to wheat, including appetite stimulation by the gliadin protein via binding to the brain’s opiate receptors, direct small bowel destruction by wheat germ agglutinin, abnormal bowel permeability from gliadin, and unique allergens such as alpha amylase inhibitors and omega-gliadins.

Breakfast cereals are big business. They have come to dominate breakfast (and snacking) habits. Why else would they dominate an entire supermarket aisle, floor to ceiling, and generate some $11 billion in annual sales?

Breakfast cereals by definition, in all their various shapes, varieties, flavors, colors, and marketing angles, are all grains with optional sugar. As we have previously discussed, grains all represent various degrees of compromise in health. That’s why I call grains the food of the desperate or the ignorant.

It should come as no surprise that there is no such thing as a healthy breakfast cereal. After all, the whole notion of breakfast cereal originated with William and John Kellogg who, in the late 19th century, operated a sanitarium in Battle Creek, Michigan, where you would stay for a month or two and receive four enemas per day, along with three meals of gruel to “cure” your lumbago, rheumatism, or cancer. One day, while preparing gruel, William was called away, only to return hours later to find his gruel on the table, dry. Being frugal, he wondered if there was a way to salvage it; putting it through a roller, a lightbulb of inspiration went off: thus was flaked cereal invented. So the notion of breakfast cereal started with two men who believed that four enemas a day cured cancer.

For anyone missing the crunchiness of a breakfast “cereal” without the health issues, see the Coconut Almond “Granola” recipe here in this blog or the Grainless Granola recipe in the new Wheat Belly Cookbook. No grains here!

Why the Wheat Belly recipes WORK

Dr. Davis — Wed, 08 May 2013 12:48:20 +0000

Imagine you go to a nice grocery store. You ask for the manager.

You ask,”I’d like to know where I can find the foods in your store that lack opiate exorphin effects, fail to provoke formation of small LDL particles in susceptible people, do not cause exaggerated postprandial lipoprotein rises, and minimize potential for glycation and lipoxidation. Could you point me towards them?”

“Uhhh. We got some low-fat items in aisle 3!”

You can see the problem: In the Wheat Belly way of nutritional thinking, we eliminate sources of modern high-yield, semi-dwarf wheat because of its awful collection of effects, including exorphin appetite stimulation, gliadin-induced bowel permeability (underlying autoimmune diseases and inflammation), wheat germ agglutinin direct bowel toxicity, allergic phenomena due to omega-gliadin and new alpha amylase inhibitors. But we also:

–Avoid ingredients and foods that trigger formation of small LDL particles, the #1 cause for heart disease today. (It ain’t cholesterol! Think of cholesterol as an oudated method of indirectly assessing lipoproteins; though your doctor likely doesn’t do so, lipoproteins can now be directly assessed and cholesterol testing is no longer necessary. In fact, it is misleading.) This is among the reasons we avoid the gluten-free junk carbohydrates cornstarch, rice flour, potato starch, and tapioca starch–yes, gluten-free junk carbs cause heart disease!

–Minimize the postprandial (after-eating) flood of lipoproteins–This includes blood particles such as chylomicron remnants and VLDL. These effects are mostly triggered by carbohydrates (via the process of de novo lipogenesis) and fructose; thus, the Wheat Belly recipes strictly limit carbohydrate content and only contain the fructose from modest quantities of fruit. Incidentally, postprandial lipoproteins are powerfully reduced by omega-3 fatty acids from fish oil (not the linolenic acid of flaxseed/chia, though they have other health benefits independent of this effect).

–Minimize glycation, i.e., irreversible glucose modification of proteins that, if involving the proteins of the lenses of the eyes, cause cataracts; if involving the proteins of cartilage in the knees and hips, cause brittle cartilage followed by arhthritis; if involving proteins lining arteries, cause stiff arteries leading to hypertension and atherosclerosis. We also minimize exogenous glycation and lipoxidation, more complex strategies that mostly involve avoiding deep-frying, roasting, and other very high-temperature methods of preparing food. (Boiling, baking, sauteeing, etc. are safe.)

Do you know any other cookbooks or recipes that incorporate these features? I don’t. But that is why the Wheat Belly recipes work. We can no longer just be concerned with issues such as calories or fat content; we’ve got to exercise greater sophistication in food choices, awareness of the antics of agribusiness, and knowledge of the complex consequences of consumption of various foods. All these factors are built into the Wheat Belly recipes in the original book, the Wheat Belly Cookbook, and the recipes in this Wheat Belly Blog.

Wheat Belly does Europe!

Dr. Davis — Sun, 05 May 2013 15:21:45 +0000

Long-time Wheat Belly follower, Donna, describes her 3-week jaunt through Europe . . . sans wheat! She successfully navigated her way through rich European breakfasts, lunch, and dinners, not getting tripped up even once. (Wheat Belly followers here since the beginning may remember Donna’s fabulous shrinking tummy transformation that she posted for us way back.)

When my husband George and I decided to take a three week trip to Europe to celebrate our 25th anniversary, one of my first thoughts was “How could I stay true to Wheat Belly while visiting France and Italy? Baguettes, croissants, pastries and pasta everywhere?”

Before leaving on our trip, I had been a faithful follower of Wheat Belly concepts for more than 18 months. I was afraid of undoing my new lifestyle with a mere glance at a Paris dessert tray. I did not want to blow my success of achieving good weight, freedom from body aches, greater energy, and fantastic lipid profile.

I learned early on from the Wheat Belly book that becoming a fat burner, rather than a sugar burner, would make my life easier when it came to my appetite and relationship to food. Since I could go for 5-6 hours, even much longer, without truly being hungry (unlike in the past where I would tear through the cupboards in desperation if I went that long), I knew I could be successful traveling.

In cities such as Paris, there are tempting loaves of long, crunchy bread that I previously would have died for, but my bread obsession has disappeared since following Wheat Belly. I now know what wheat can do to my body and none of it is good. Over time, my mind got retrained. I look at bread as if it’s part of the table, like the silverware, since the waiter insists on bringing it, but it holds no interest. I would look at Paris treats in the windows as I would look at cute animals at the zoo–fun to look at and take pictures of, but do not touch! Just taking photos of the fancy food displays to share with my friends later was enough to keep my mind legal and not tempted to commit any Wheat Belly felonies!

One great thing about European hotels is that a breakfast buffet is included in the price of your room, unlike in America. Buffets can be mine fields, though, unless you go to breakfast mentally prepared. The typical buffet includes everything from smoked salmon and cucumbers to chocolate cakes and tortes, with tons of carbohydrates and sugar. There is yogurt in little glass jars, rows of colorful juices, bowls of fruit, eggs, sausage, and assorted cereals. Most buffets in France and Italy had a similar spread so, after one hotel, it’s easy to navigate the next one. I stuck with hard-boiled eggs, smoked salmon, bacon, cucumbers, tomatoes, and a small piece of fruit. I was afraid to try the scrambled eggs since hearing that some restaurants in the States make them more fluffy by adding flour. This type of breakfast kept my blood sugar stable. We walked and explored for hours each morning and I still did not feel hungry by noon.

Did I ever feel like cheating? Surprisingly, no. Even with my husband sitting right across those tiny French tables, eating his cereal and milk, I had no desire for off-limit foods. I didn’t give my husband the “evil eye” for eating things I wouldn’t order and he didn’t mock me for my choices. I did grimace to myself at the huge bowl of oatmeal he’d get in Italy, though, knowing he’d be ravenous in a few short hours.

We discovered an outdoor market in Florence that had table after table filled with various types of chocolate. I nearly dove onto one table, it was so enticing. Fortunately, I found a merchant who made their own 90% dark chocolate. We had run out of my stash from home, so it was good timing. Florence may have an original Michelangelo and countless other artistic treasures, but I will always remember how beautiful those chocolate treats were displayed! Chocolate art trumps marble art any day in my book.

You can find good meals, but it is helpful to pack snacks before you leave home. There will be times when there is no healthy food available or you may not eat out until later in the evening, which is the custom in Europe. I came armed with extra-dark chocolate bars (90%) and some Brazil and macadamia nuts. I also brought little packets of Artisana coconut and almond butter. My Whole Foods store also had little servings of pistachio and macadamia nut butters made by Wildnerness Poets.

Navigating lunch and dinners was not as exciting as the chocolate stands, but most menus offered a wide range of entrees. For lunch, I mainly stuck with salads, and dinner was fish or meat, along with grilled vegetables topped with olive oil. My husband tried various pastas and pizzas in Italy. Everywhere around us at restaurants in Italy, people were eating their own individual pizzas–not small either, about 12″ in diameter. Have to admit they looked delicious, but I saw many wheat bellies all around me!

During one of our walking tours in Rome, I asked our guide whether they had a problem with obesity in Italy. She said there has been a huge increase in childhood obesity the past five years or so, since more moms are working and fewer people are making home-cooked meals with fresh ingredients. Junk food is more widely available. We saw a group of school kids in Rome sitting next to ancient ruins while on a field trip. I looked to see what they were eating and, sure enough, half the kids looked overweight and were eating huge bread-type sandwiches. I guess it’s not just an American problem.

I decided my leeway would be to have wine every night, which I only have when we go out to eat in America. I justified it by saying we were going out to dinner every night, after all, so why not? Besides, who can go to Tuscany and not try the local wine?

Three weeks was a long time to travel and behave while eating, but I felt no trouble keeping to Wheat Belly. Don’t be afraid to ask questions about the menu or to ask them to prepare an entree the way you’d like. Also, if you’ve followed the Wheat Belly way of eating for several weeks and are now a fat burner, you will have no trouble with excessive hunger. This makes it easy to avoid temptations. Freedom from hunger every few hours frees you: your mind is on your surroundings and how much you are enjoying them, not on your next meal or rumbling stomach.

I now know that I can go on other trips in the future and won’t come home a bloated whale! No Paris pastry pudge on this girl, thanks to Wheat Belly. By the way, I did not gain any weight, but my wheat eating husband gained 5 pounds from pasta and pizza. Thank you, Dr. Davis, for Wheat Belly. It followed me from Paris, to Milan, to Lake Como, to Venice, to Florence, and finally Rome. Now, I’m afraid, it’s time to get back to cooking!

A dietitian sees the wheat-free light

Dr. Davis — Wed, 01 May 2013 12:39:15 +0000

Sharon posted her story of wheat-free epiphany . . . despite advising people to eat more “healthy whole grains” for 25 years!

I’m a Registered Dietitian who has been practicing for 25 years. I’ve known many people to eliminate “bread products” in an effort to lose weight only to see them gain back twice as much, so I’ve been poo-pooing a low carb diet for years–until January of this year.

I hit the scale at 143 lbs on by 5’3″ body, my glucose indicated pre-diabetes, my weight was getting ever so close to the obese category, and my blood pressure was 160/90. A friend posted about the Wheat Belly diet on FB so, out of sheer desperation, I got the book from the library, which took 3 months to get.

I still remember the words in the book, “It’s not your fault” and I could have started crying. I, too, have worked out my whole life only to see myself gaining more and more. Being 50, I thought it was menopause, yet other 50-year old women weren’t getting fat.

I went through extreme wheatectomy lasting 3 weeks; it was so bad that now, when I see wheat products, I see poison. I don’t ever want to go through that again! I’m down 13 lbs and fit into a medium sized shirt which I haven’t done in YEARS!

As a dietitian, I’m ashamed that we’ve jumped on the whole grain band wagon. I especially feel sorry for seniors in nursing homes because they have no control over what they eat; it’s regulated by the state. I live in a state that encourages high amounts of carbs. Consequently, we’re seeing more and more 85-year old people fat and diabetic.

I tell anyone who will listen about the Wheat Belly diet. The key is making the recipes in the Wheat Belly Cookbook so that chocolate chip cookies and pancakes are still ok, just not like the ones from the mixes. My profession should look at the issue of wheat in this country and advocate for change but, unfortunately, I don’t see that happening any time soon!

So, one person at a time, I’m out there advocating change! Thanks doc for capturing our attention, it’s making a difference!

After telling patients/clients to cut their fat and eat more “healthy whole grains” for 25 years, Sharon had the courage and open mindedness to understand that she, like thousands of other dietitians, had fallen victim to conventional “wisdom” and made people fat, hungry, helpless, overweight, ill, and diabetic with their advice.

Sharon joins a growing number of dietitians and nutritionists who understand that in this new age, it is no longer sufficient to discuss only carbohydrates, fat, proteins, and calories–we must now incorporate awareness of what agribusiness has done to our food. Specifically, they turned modern semi-dwarf wheat into an appetite stimulant that fattens but also inflames, triggers autoimmunity, erodes the gastrointestinal lining, and exerts other mind effects.

Congratulations, Sharon, on seeing the light and embracing health while rejecting the out-of-touch and ineffective teaching of the past!