Even “Healthy” Whole Wheat Is Linked to Heart Disease, Arthritis and
Dementia
What could be more wholesome than whole-wheat bread? For decades,
nutritionists and public health experts have almost begged Americans to eat more
whole wheat and other grains.
It’s bad advice.
Most of us know that white bread is bad for us, but even whole-wheat bread is
bad, too. In fact, on the Glycemic Index (GI), which compares the blood sugar
effects of carbohydrates, both white bread and whole-wheat bread increase blood
glucose more than pure sugar. Aside from some extra fiber, eating two slices of
whole-wheat bread is little different from eating a sugary candy bar.
What’s particularly troubling is that a high-wheat diet has been linked to
obesity, digestive diseases, arthritis, diabetes, dementia and heart
disease.
Example: When researchers from the Mayo Clinic and University of
Iowa put 215 patients on a wheat-free diet, the obese patients lost an average
of nearly 30 pounds in just six months. The patients in the study had
celiac
disease (a form of wheat sensitivity), but I have seen similar results in
nearly everyone who is obese and gives up wheat.
NEW DANGERS FROM A NEW GRAIN
How can a supposedly healthy grain be so bad for you? Because the whole wheat
that we eat today has little in common with the truly natural grain. Decades of
selective breeding and hybridization by the food industry to increase yield and
confer certain baking and aesthetic characteristics on flour have created new
proteins in wheat that the human body isn’t designed to handle.
The gluten protein in modern wheat is different in structure from the gluten
in older forms of wheat. In fact, the structure of modern gluten is something
that humans have never before experienced in their 10,000 years of consuming
wheat.
Modern wheat also is high in
amylopectin A, a carbohydrate that is
converted to glucose faster than just about any other carbohydrate. I have found
it to be a potent appetite stimulant because the rapid rise and fall in blood
sugar causes nearly constant feelings of hunger. The
gliadin in wheat,
another protein, also stimulates the appetite. When people quit eating wheat and
are no longer exposed to gliadin and amylopectin A, they typically consume about
400 fewer calories a day.
NOT JUST CELIAC DISEASE
Celiac disease, also known as
celiac sprue, is an intense form of
wheat sensitivity that damages the small intestine and can lead to chronic
diarrhea and cramping, along with impaired absorption of nutrients. But wheat
has been linked to dozens of other chronic diseases, including lupus and
rheumatoid arthritis. It also has been linked to…
Insulin resistance and diabetes. It’s not a coincidence that
the diabetes epidemic (nearly 26 million Americans have it) parallels the
increasing consumption of modern wheat (an average of 134 pounds per person per
year) in the US. The surge in blood sugar and insulin that occurs when you eat
any kind of wheat eventually causes an increase in
visceral (internal)
fat. This fat makes the body more resistant to insulin and increases the risk
for diabetes.
Weaker bones. A wheat-rich diet shifts the body’s chemistry
to an acidic (low-pH) state. This condition, known as
acidosis, leaches
calcium from the bones. Grains—and particularly wheat—account for 38% of the
average American’s “acid load.” This probably is the reason that osteoporosis is
virtually universal in older adults.
More heart disease. A diet high in carbohydrates causes an
increase in small LDL particles, the type of cholesterol that is most likely to
lead to atherosclerosis and cardiovascular diseases. Studies at University of
California, Berkeley, found that the concentration of these particles increases
dramatically with a high-wheat diet. The increase in small-particle LDL,
combined with diabetes and visceral fat, increases the risk for heart
disease.
A WHEAT-FREE LIFE
People who crave wheat actually are experiencing an addiction. When the
gluten in wheat is digested, it releases molecules known as
exorphins,
morphinelike compounds that produce mild euphoria. About one-third of people who
give up wheat will experience some withdrawal symptoms, including anxiety,
moodiness and insomnia. My advice…
Go cold turkey. It’s the most effective way to break the
addiction to wheat. The withdrawal symptoms rarely last more than one week. If
you’re really suffering, you might want to taper off. Give up wheat at breakfast
for a week, and then at breakfast and lunch for another week. Then give it up
altogether.
Beware of gluten-free products. People who give up wheat
often are tempted to satisfy their craving by buying gluten-free bread or pasta.
Don’t do it. The manufacturers use substitutes such as brown rice, rice bran,
rice starch, corn starch and tapioca starch, which also increase blood glucose
and cause insulin surges. Even oatmeal can cause blood sugar to skyrocket.
Switch grains. Small supermarkets now stock quite a few
nonwheat grains, such as millet, quinoa, buckwheat and amaranth. They’re easy to
cook, and they taste good—and they don’t have the gluten and other wheat
proteins that trigger weight gain, inflammation and insulin resistance.
Helpful: If you aren’t willing to give up wheat
altogether, you can substitute an older form of wheat, such as spelt or kamut.
These grains haven’t undergone all of the genetic modifications, so they’re
somewhat better for you than modern wheat. Any form of wheat can be a problem,
however. You’ll want to limit yourself to small servings—say, a few ounces once
or twice a week.
Get plenty of protein. Protein satisfies the appetite more
effectively than carbohydrates. Eat eggs for breakfast and chicken salad for
lunch. For dinner, you can have fish or even steak.
New finding: New research has shown that people who eat a reasonable
amount of saturated fat in, say, red meat (about 10% or a little more of your
total fat calories) have a reduction in small LDL particles, as well as an
increase in protective HDL cholesterol.
Source: William Davis, MD, a preventive cardiologist and
medical director of Track Your Plaque, an international heart disease prevention
program. Based in Fox Point, Wisconsin, he is author of
Wheat Belly: Lose the Wheat, Lose the Weight, and Find Your
Path Back to Health (Rodale).
www.WheatBellyBlog.com
