Gluten free is hot these days. There are books and websites, restaurants with gluten free menus, and grocery stores with hundreds of new gluten free food products on the shelf. Is this a fad, or a reflection of response to a real problem?
Yes, gluten is a real problem. But the problem is not just gluten. In fact, there are three major hidden reasons that wheat products, not just gluten (along with sugar in all its forms) is the major contributor to obesity, diabetes, heart disease, cancer, dementia, depression and so many other modern ills.
This is why there are now 30% more obese than undernourished in the world, and why globally chronic lifestyle and dietary driven disease kills more than twice as many people as infectious disease. These non-communicable chronic diseases will cost our global economy $47 trillion over the next 20 years.
Sadly, this tsunami of chronic illness is increasingly caused by eating our beloved diet staple, bread, the staff of life, and all the wheat products hidden in everything from soups to vodka to lipstick to envelope adhesive.
The biggest problem is wheat, the major source of gluten in our diet. But wheat weaves it misery through many mechanisms, not just the gluten! The history of wheat parallels the history of chronic disease and obesity across the world. Supermarkets today contain walls of wheat and corn disguised in literally hundreds of thousands of different food- like products, or FrankenFoods. Each American now consumes about 55 pounds of wheat flour every year.
It is not just the amount but also the hidden components of wheat that drive weight gain and disease. This is not the wheat your great-grandmother used to bake her bread. It is FrankenWheat – a scientifically engineered food product developed in the last 50 years.
How Wheat (and Gluten) Triggers Weight Gain, Prediabetes, Diabetes and More
This new modern wheat may look like wheat, but it is different in three important ways that all drive obesity, diabetes, heart disease, cancer, dementia and more.
- It contains a Super Starch – amylopectin A that is super fattening.
- It contains a form of Super Gluten that is super-inflammatory.
- It contains forms of a Super Drug that is super-addictive and makes you crave and eat more.
The Super Starch
The Bible says, “Give us this day our daily bread”. Eating bread is nearly a religious commandment. But the Einkorn, heirloom, Biblical wheat of our ancestors is something modern humans never eat.
Instead, we eat dwarf wheat, the product of genetic manipulation and hybridization that created short, stubby, hardy, high yielding wheat plants with much higher amounts of starch and gluten and many more chromosomes coding for all sorts of new odd proteins. The man who engineered this modern wheat won the Nobel Prize – it promised to feed millions of starving around the world. Well, it has, and it has made them fat and sick.
The first major difference of this dwarf wheat is that it contains very high levels of a super starch called amylopectin A. This is how we get big fluffy Wonder Bread and Cinnabons.
Here’s the downside. Two slices of whole wheat bread now raise your blood sugar more than two tablespoons of table sugar.
There is no difference between whole wheat and white flour here. The biggest scam perpetrated on the unsuspecting public is the inclusion of “whole grains” in many processed foods full of sugar and wheat giving the food a virtuous glow. The best way to avoid foods that are bad for you is to stay away from foods with health claims on the label. They are usually hiding something bad.
In people with diabetes, both white and whole grain bread raises blood sugar levels 70 to 120 mg/dl over starting levels. We know that foods with a high glycemic index make people store belly fat, trigger hidden fires of inflammation in the body, and give you a fatty liver leading the whole cascade of obesity, pre-diabetes and diabetes. This problem now affects every other American and is the major driver of nearly all chronic disease and most our health care costs. Diabetes now sucks up one in three Medicare dollars.
The Super Gluten
Not only does this dwarf, FrankenWheat, contain the super starch, but it also contains super gluten which is much more likely to create inflammation in the body. And in addition to a host of inflammatory and chronic diseases caused by gluten, it causes obesity and diabetes.
Gluten is that sticky protein in wheat that holds bread together and makes it rise. The old fourteen chromosome containing Einkorn wheat codes for the small number of gluten proteins and those that it does produce are the least likely to trigger celiac disease and inflammation. The new dwarf wheat contains twenty-eight or twice as many chromosomes and produces a large variety of gluten proteins, including the ones most likely to cause celiac disease.
Five Ways Gluten Makes You Sick and Fat
Gluten can trigger inflammation, obesity and chronic disease in five major ways.
- Full-blown celiac disease is an autoimmune disease that triggers body-wide inflammation triggering insulin resistance, which causes weight gain and diabetes, as well as over 55 conditions including autoimmune diseases, irritable bowel, reflux, cancer, depression, osteoporosis and more.
- Low-level inflammation reactions to gluten trigger the same problems even if you don’t have full-blown celiac disease but just have elevated antibodies (7% of the population or 21 million Americans).
- There is also striking new research showing that adverse immune reactions to gluten may result from problems in very different parts of the immune system than those implicated in celiac disease. Most doctors dismiss gluten sensitivity if you don’t have a diagnosis of celiac disease, but this new research proves them wrong. Celiac disease results when the body creates antibodies against the wheat (adaptive immunity), but another kind of gluten sensitivity results from a generalized activated immune system (innate immunity). This means that people can be gluten-sensitive without having celiac disease or gluten antibodies and still have inflammation and many other symptoms.
- A NON-gluten glycoprotein or lectin (combination of sugar and protein) in wheat called wheat germ agglutinin (WGA)(1) found in highest concentrations in whole wheat increases whole body inflammation as well. This is not an autoimmune reaction but can be just as dangerous and cause heart attacks (2).
- Eating too much gluten free food (what I call gluten free junk food) like gluten free cookies, cakes and processed food. Processed food has a high glycemic load. Just because it is gluten free, doesn’t mean it is healthy. Gluten free cakes and cookies are still cakes and cookies! Vegetables, fruits, beans, nuts and seeds and lean animal protein are all gluten free – stick with those.
Let’s look at this a little more closely. Gluten, a protein found in wheat, barley, rye, spelt and oats) can cause celiac disease, which triggers severe inflammation throughout the body and has been linked to autoimmune diseases, mood disorders, autism, schizophrenia, dementia, digestive disorders, nutritional deficiencies, diabetes, cancer, and more.
Celiac Disease: The First Problem
Celiac disease and gluten related problems has been increasing and now affects at least 21 million Americans and perhaps many millions more. And 99% of people who have problems with gluten or wheat are NOT currently diagnosed.
Ninety eight percent of people with celiac have a genetic predisposition known as HLA DQ2 or DQ8, which occurs in 30% of the population. But even though our genes haven’t changed, we have seen a dramatic increase in celiac disease in the last 50 years because of some environmental trigger.
In a recent study comparing blood samples taken 50 years ago from 10,000 young Air Force recruits to samples taken recently from 10,000 people, researchers found something quite remarkable. There has been a real 400 percent increase in celiac disease over the last 50 years (3). And that’s just the full-blown disease affecting about 1 in 100 people, or about 3 million Americans. We used to think that this only was diagnosed in children with bloated bellies, weight loss and nutritional deficiencies. But now we know it can be triggered (based on a genetic susceptibility) at any age and without ANY digestive symptoms. The inflammation triggered by celiac disease can drive insulin resistance, weight gain and diabetes, just like any inflammatory trigger – and I have seen this over and over in my patients.
Gluten and Gut Inflammation: The Second Problem
But there are two ways other than celiac disease in which wheat appears to be a problem.
The second way gluten causes inflammation is through a low-grade autoimmune reaction to gluten. Your immune system creates low-level antibodies to gluten but doesn’t create full blown celiac disease. In fact 7% of the population, 21 million, has these anti-gliadin antibodies. These antibodies were also found in 18% of people with autism and 20% of those with schizophrenia.
A major study in the Journal of the American Medical Association, hidden gluten sensitivity (elevated antibodies without full blown celiac disease) was shown to increase risk of death by 35 to 75 percent, mostly by causing heart disease and cancer.(4) Just by this mechanism alone over 20 million Americans are at risk for heart attack, obesity, cancer and death.
How does eating gluten cause inflammation, heart disease, obesity, diabetes and cancer?
Most of the increased risk occurs when gluten triggers inflammation that spreads like a fire throughout your whole body. It damages the gut lining. Then all the bugs and partially digested food particles inside your intestine get across the gut barrier and are exposed your immune system, 60% of which lies right under the surface of the one cell thick layer of cells lining your gut or small intestine. If you spread out the lining of your gut it would equal the surface area of a tennis court. Your immune system starts attacking these foreign proteins leading to systemic inflammation that then causes heart disease, dementia, cancer, diabetes and more.
Dr. Alessio Fasano, a celiac expert from the University of Maryland School of Medicine discovered a protein made in the intestine called “zonulin” that is increased by exposure to gluten (5). Zonulin breaks up the tight junctions or cement between the intestinal cells that normally protect your immune system from bugs and foreign proteins in food leaking across the intestinal barrier. If you have a “leaky gut” you will get inflammation throughout your whole body and a whole list of symptoms and diseases.
Why is there an increase in disease from gluten in the last 50 years?
It is because, as I described earlier, the dwarf wheat grown in this country has changed the quality and type of gluten proteins in wheat, creating much higher gluten content and many more of the gluten proteins that cause celiac disease and autoimmune antibodies.
Combine that with the damage our guts have suffered from our diet, environment, lifestyle, and medication use, and you have the perfect storm for gluten intolerance. This super gluten crosses our leaky guts and gets exposed to our immune system. Our immune system reacts as if gluten was something foreign and sets off the fires of inflammation in an attempt to eliminate it. However, this inflammation is not selective, so it begins to attack our cells—leading to diabesity and other inflammatory diseases.
Damage to the gastrointestinal tract from overuse of antibiotics, anti-inflammatory drugs like Advil or Aleve, and acid-blocking drugs like Prilosec or Nexium, combined with our low-fiber, high-sugar diet, leads to the development of celiac disease and gluten intolerance or sensitivity and the resultant inflammation. That is why elimination of gluten and food allergens or sensitivities can be a powerful way to prevent and reverse diabesity and so many other chronic diseases.
The Super Drug
Not only does wheat contain super starch and super gluten – making it super fattening and super inflammatory, but it also contains a super drug that makes you crazy, hungry and addicted.
When processed by your digestion, the proteins in wheat are converted into shorter proteins, “polypeptides”, called “exorphins”. They are like the endorphins you get from a runner’s high and bind to the opioid receptors in the brain, making you high, and addicted just like a heroin addict. These wheat polypeptides are absorbed into the bloodstream and get right across the blood brain barrier. They are called “gluteomorphins” after “gluten” and “morphine”.
These super drugs can cause multiple problems including schizophrenia and autism. But they also cause addictive eating behavior including cravings and bingeing. No one binges on broccoli, but they binge on cookies or cake. Even more alarming is the fact that you can block these food cravings and addictive eating behaviors and reduce calorie intake by giving the same drug we use in the emergency room to block heroin or morphine in an overdose called naloxone. Binge eaters ate nearly 30% less food when given this drug.
Bottom line: wheat is an addictive appetite stimulant.
How to Beat the Wheat, and Lose the Weight
First you should get tested to see if you have a more serious wheat or gluten problem.
If you meet any of these criteria then you should do a six-week 100% gluten free diet trial to see how you feel. If you have 3 out of 5 criteria, you should be gluten free for life.
- You have symptoms of celiac (any digestive, allergic, autoimmune or inflammatory disease including diabesity).
- You get better on a gluten free diet.
- You have elevated antibodies to gluten (anti-gliadin, AGA, or tissue transglutaminase antibodies, TTG).
- You have a positive small intestinal biopsy.
- You have the genes that predispose you to gluten (HLA DQ2/8).
Second, for the rest of you who don’t have gluten antibodies or some variety of celiac, the super starch and the super drug, both of which make you fat and sick, can still affect you. So go cold turkey for six weeks. And keep a journal of how you feel.
The problems with wheat are real, scientifically validated and ever present. Getting off wheat may not only make you feel better and lose weight, it could save your life.
My personal hope is that together we can create a national conversation about a real, practical solution for the prevention, treatment, and reversal of our obesity, diabetes and chronic disease epidemic. Getting off wheat may just be an important step.
To learn more and to get a free sneak preview of The Blood Sugar Solution where I explain exactly how to avoid wheat and what to eat instead go to www.drhyman.com.
Please leave your thoughts by adding a comment below.
To your good health,
Mark Hyman, MD
References
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(1) Saja K, Chatterjee U, Chatterjee BP, Sudhakaran PR. Activation dependent expression of MMPs in peripheral blood mononuclear cells involves protein kinase A. Mol Cell Biochem. 2007 Feb;296(1-2):185-92
(2) Dalla Pellegrina C, Perbellini O, Scupoli MT, Tomelleri C, Zanetti C, Zoccatelli G, Fusi M, Peruffo A, Rizzi C, Chignola R. Effects of wheat germ agglutinin on human gastrointestinal epithelium: insights experimental model of immune/epithelial cell interaction. Toxicol Appl Pharmacol. 2009 Jun 1;237(2):146-53.
(3) Rubio-Tapia A, Kyle RA, Kaplan EL, Johnson DR, Page W, Erdtmann F, Brantner TL, Kim WR, Phelps TK, Lahr BD, Zinsmeister AR, Melton LJ 3rd, Murray JA. Increased prevalence and mortality in undiagnosed celiac disease. Gastroenterology. 2009 Jul;137(1):88-93
(4) Ludvigsson JF, Montgomery SM, Ekbom A, Brandt L, Granath F. Small-intestinal histopathology and mortality risk in celiac disease. JAMA. 2009 Sep 16;302(11):1171-8.
(5) Fasano A. Physiological, pathological, and therapeutic implications of zonulin-mediated intestinal barrier modulation: living life on the edge of the wall. Am J Pathol. 2008 Nov;173(5):1243-52.
This article is my history! I have been battling gut issues for the last 15 years. Even though I have been off gluten for 12 years, my gut has not healed completely. I have battled candida in my digestive tract for years, and did the yeast diet for three years, and still had problems. Now, my doctor believes I have SIBO and candida. I believe this is all due to eating gluten for over 35 years.
I started eating gluten free May 2011 after testing revealed I was gluten sensitive. I have HYPERthryoidism and recently diagnosed Type 2 Diabetes (A1C has gone from 6.9 to 5.6 in less than 10 weeks. I have made a lot of changes through the guidance of my Dr. Bridget Briggs and eat a lot more healthy being mindful of bad carbs. I feel a lot better. Stopping the gluten the first thing I noticed was the bloating in my stomach began to disappear. I also take pro-biotics, methylated b12, folic acid, reactive zinc, magnesium, powdered esterC, Calcium/Magnesium, 1000mg of Fish Oil, Plus a very good multi vitamin. The only cereal I have found I can eat 1-2x’s a week is Corn Chex without sugar and Red Mill Gluten Free Whole Grain Oatmeal. I also eat eggs 2-3 times a week. I believe my health has improved since May and I know I need to continue to make positive changes. Living without Gluten is only a problem and bothers me the most on birthdays and nice dinners when you mention your dietary needs to your waiter and they ask, “what is gluten?” *sigh.
What does it mean if your blood tests are very high for celiacs, but the biopsy was negative? My doctor says the biopsy is the gold standard for the disease and is surprised that my bloods were so high. His diagnosis was that I do not have celiacs, although the disease would explain some of my symptons. I would love to hear your thoughts….
Thank you
Hey Sande,
Check this article out for some info on your question: http://drhyman.com/blog/conditions/gluten-what-you-dont-know-might-kill-you/
In good health!
Lizzy
At one point in our history bread was good for you. Why isn’t there an outcry and a demand for farmers to plant Einkorn wheat? It could be the next health fad!
This is such a great article, right now in a hypersentive allergic storm. This article has just added to my information.
This is a great article! Thank you.
One question. Why can we not get the ancient wheat back?
I have been off breads for a long while and have benefited greatly from this change. I’m going to go looking for hidden wheat in my life next. It seems that it may be hidden even in my slow-food routine.
Why does no one suggest that we insist the government grow the wheat that is its original intended form? Why doesn’t anyone start a movement to restore wheat to what it is supposed to be and get rid of this frankenwheat altogether!! it is super practical to me instead of everyone taking medications to combat the wheat symptoms, or having to have substitutes for a naturally good food product.
Great article. I had leaky gut and after going off gluten for 2 years I am completely asymptomatic.
The trouble with the celiacs is that no one is telling them to stop eating sugar.
Looking forward to your book!
I was thrilled to read this article. I was diagnosed with Celiacs one year ago after being told that I may have intestinal cancer among other things. The test for Celiacs was one of the last and I wish it could have been one of the first. Additionally, I insisted, yes insisted (there was opposition) that my, then 14 year old be tested. She, since birth had been exhibiting symptoms (now I can see them) such as the bloated tummy, severe gas, chronic joint pain and cracking (sound) and more. She also had a mild milk allergy when young. She always seemed to have congestion and or sniffles until I took her off milk and made her “homemade” almond milk. It all went away. The greatest issue with her occurred in Oct 2010 when she started to contemplate suicide heavily. She was having severe judgment issues, visions, impaired thought and more. Yes, once I had her tested, we found her to be an 88 on the chart. Since, she has been on a strict GF diet along with myself. Today, it is as if, the nightmare of last year never occurred. I am forever grateful to my GI for figuring out my symptoms and for my persistence in having her assessed as well. My hope is that we can start to raise sincere awareness to the issues that we are facing with wheat consumption. Thank you for putting all of this info out here in black and white!! It is appreciated.
Hi Mark,
I am a Nutritionist in Australia.
Wonderful, succinct article-I will have all my patients read it
What are your thoughts about gluten from quality organic wheat/grains?
eg. Whole grain spelt/rye/wheat, organic oats etc
Even small amounts?
Less starch, less gluten?
Regards,
Anthony R Nutr.
Thank you so much for this article, Dr Hyman. I can’t understand why our doctors don’t know this and advise us accordingly. I have had two colonoscopy in the past two years and was diagnosed with IBS and was told to avoid skins, pips etc, but nothing was said about wheat. I have suffered from bad reflux when I eat bread or any food with wheat in it so I did realise that something was not right. I have taken gluten out of my diet completely for two weeks and look forward to health and weight loss. Brilliant article and so well explained. I am looking forward to getting your book Blood Sugar Solution.
Thank you!
for weight loss, the solution may not be found in “gluten-free” foods. I went wheat free for 6 weeks eating gluten-free foods (mostly all with “rice flour”, which is higher in carbs), and gained weight. Mostly every gluten-free cookbook includes these wheat substitutes. There must be a better way.
That was an excellent article. I hope a lot of blogs pick it up.
I don’t see any chance of a more “healthy” wheat any time soon. Follow the money.
The dangers of wheat are very old news to Paleo folks. I’ve even seen “healthy whole grains” promoted on this site. Paleo folks know why that’s false. Humans were never intended to eat that stuff.
I’m a huge fan of Dr Hyman and I point people to this site often. The one thing that puzzles me is why Dr Hyman isn’t Paleo yet.
I guess he’s taking it one step at a time?
I love reading your articles, but I notice you keep listing Oats as a gluten containing grain whereas I’ve always been under the impression that it doesn’t contain gluten?
I normally soak and wash my whole Oats to avoid contamination that might have been picked up in processing, but am I missing something?
Also, should health improve as a result of removing ‘most’ wheat from a diet? I have been trying to get my mum to remove all wheat products from her diet as she has many health issues, but I know she still has occassional cracker or slice of toast here and there (plus oat porridge on my recommendation!!). Will inflammation and other wheat related issues be alleviated even though there is some wheat/gluten in the diet?
Thanks, Mark.
I suppose this translates over to “sprouted grains” as well? I have clients who just refuse to go off wheat but are willing to eat sprouted grains.
I am curious about your thoughts on this, or anyone else out there who has an opinion.
What is the consensus on including einkorn wheat in the diet? I have a bag of einkorn wheat flour but am on the fence about whether or not to try it. Have there been any reports of tolerance for this form of wheat?
I know that once wheat is ground into flour, most of its nutritional value is gone in a week, vitamin E being one of the first to go rancid . The “100% whole grain wheat” products on the shelves are just white flour with wheat germ and bran added back in. How does fresh ground grain breads compare to the commercial junk on the shelves? I use organic wheats including spelt and kamut in my bread baking. How does this compare to sprouted grain breads? Thanks.
This “article” is extreme in its claims and is clearly an advertisement – when you get to the very end it reads “To learn more and to get a free sneak preview of The Blood Sugar Solution ….” BEWARE
Americans are obeses because we over eat and don’t excercise. Then we try to blame our obesity on other things (like wheat – the “super drug” that makes us crazy and addicted) instead of taking responsibility for our health.
This is not to say a gluten-free diet is not best practice for certain conditions. However, a healthy balanced diet, daily physical activity and taking responsibilty for our health instead of looking for a short cut to weight loss.
Doesn’t the leaky gut syndrome tie into antibiotics somehow? Which seems like it would fit into this puzzle somehow.
Wondering about Manna or sprouted grain breads?
Are they beneficial?
Dr. Hyman,
Perhaps you already did an article like this but I would like to see it again. Why is it that the food producers are allowed to make and sell FrankenFood to the general population that creates so much disease and obesity…in fact, killing the people who buy the products?
Also, recently the European standard disallowed food products from the US into their markets because of the reasons stated in your article. Why don’t we adopt the European standard?
The obvious answers are; corporate policy, profits, payoffs to legislators, protected industries,etc., ad nauseum. Amazing to me that the guy growing pot for his own use in his back yard gets 7 years in jail and the people who have products that kill us in genocidal numbers go free. Are there more reasons that I’m not aware of?
In your opinion, what does it take to get a general population movement going to fight back?
Dave Mitchell
This article, while informative, partially contradicts the article Mark wrote earlier regarding whole grain rye—which contains ample gluten.
Here is the link to the article: http://drhyman.com/blog/conditions/the-overwhelming-evidence-of-the-healing-power-of-food/
So what do we eat for bread. Seems like almost everything is bad for us.
As someone who follows the Paleo lifestyle of eating, it still amazes me that people think bread is food. I guess that’s because we were all raised to think that. It didn’t help that schools taught us about that silly food pyramid, the one that tells people to eat 6-11 servings of bread. Maybe Americans should sue the government for encouraging us to eat a dangerous product. Then again, why bother since The Department of Agriculture is just an extension of the food industry. As for bread, imagine showing it to a caveman. Would he recognize it as food? It’s like nothing he’s seen before. It didn’t fly, swim, or walk on land. It didn’t sprout up from the ground or fall of a tree. Maybe that’s why my dog thumbs his nose at bread and would rather eat my steak. Even he knows bread is fake food.
I learned of the systemic problem wheat poses our diets from Dr. Hyman a while ago. While I’ve taken the steps I can to help my family and have reaped immediate benefits– I don’t hold my breath waiting for big changes in our culture’s diets.
Talk a walk thru any grocery store, up and down the aisles… the food industry is HUGE and powerful and not one bit interested in going back to healthy wheat. Look at something as benign as raw milk and check out what the FDA and the lobbyists did to fight it… Organic farmers are under siege from the Monsantos of the world… they control public opinion and mass production and they have one goal. Profit.
I went gluten free around 2 weeks ago. I have already had a significant improvement in some GI issues that have plagued me for years. Wish I had done it a long time ago!
I have been gluten/wheat free for 8 years now… I am 27. Everyone still looks at me crazy when i tell them i have celiac. It is amazing to me how unhealthy and uneducated most if the world is about this specific disease!! Both my mom and aunt have it as well. My syptoms were that i lost weight instead of gaining and was very sick. I also had severe breakouts on my back chest and scalp from my shampoo and hair products i was usuing that had wheat in them. I ended up losing my gallbladder at the age of 21. Ive been batteling with small intestine issues but within the past year they have seem to be gone!! I eat chicken, lean ground turkey, deer, quinoa and lots of fruits and veggies. Im still finding skin care products that have “derived from wheat” ingredients in them. Good luck to everyone with the same battles. This is a great article
I’ve avoided wheat since the holidays with the hope of losing weight. In the past 6 weeks I’ve dropped 27 lbs. and my stomach never felt better. I still crave wheat products, but refuse to go back to them.
Is there a grain that is healthy to eat besides the ones mentioned in this article? My family loves a good hot cereal in the morning like steel cut oats combined with organic oats from the health food store. We also add dried fruit, raw milk, flax, and chia to make it better. What can we switch over to for a hot cereal?
Thanks
Suzi
Should I be avoiding oatmeal? I recently purchased a bag of “High Fiber Oat Bran Hot Cereal” and make this for breakfast sometimes. Please let me know if I should stop buying it or not!!
Here is a link to it: http://www.amazon.com/Bobs-Red-Mill-Organic-18-Ounce/dp/B000ED9L9E
This article was so informative for me… I do have celiac disease, diagnosed 3 years ago with blood tests & biopsy. I have been on a strict gluten free diet since. I also have the dreaded, many autoimmune disorders that go along with it. I did loose 25 pounds in the first 2 weeks of going gluetn free but I do still have alot of intestinal symtoms, and have gained probably 10 of those pounds back since probably due to the processed gluten free products I do eat on occasion to treat my self. Thats ok I guess because since I went gluten, I am free of cancer cells so it is well worth the inconvenience it causes. I just wanted to remind people that if you go gluten free before you have the testing done you may get false negatives.
Are “sprouted wheat” bread products any better?
I just want to know what CAN I eat these days???? I am a vegetarian and I need some kind of bread in my diet, I’m sorry but it is unrealisic to expect everybody to just give up bread completely, unless you are a complete health nut! I understand it can do all these things to me but I’d rather die than never eat any form of bread again-I’m Italian give me a break, any suggestions for people like me who will not go cold turkey?????
When I gave up wheat I lost 35 pounds and no more migraines. We live in an area where spelt is grown and I can eat a little of that, but not too much or I get a headache. There are so many other grains out there to fill in the cultural comfort food gap.
Why we can’t get Einkorn wheat…Look at the seed and farm industries.
1) Nearly all of our agricultural seed for wheat, corn, soybeans, and other food staples are patented varieties approved (and therefore, protected and promoted) by the USDA and FDA. They have been engineered (genetically modified, GMO’d) so that they can be patented and make more money for the owners. The Farm Bureau tells farmers to use these seeds, too. Some of the biggest seed companies are:
— Monsato (“Improving Agriculture, Improving Lives”, http://www.monsanto.com),
— Pioneer / DuPont (“Science and Service Delivering Success” http://www.pioneer.com),
— Syngenta / AstraZeneca-Novartis (“Brining Plant Botanicals to Life”, http://www.syngenta.com).
You can recognize by their names that these massive billion-dollar SEED companies are part of the huge international pharmaceutical and chemical industry. This is not an appetizing thought as you eat your breakfast!
Learn more about the US seed industry from the USDA itself, http://www.ers.usda.gov/Publications/AIB786/ See page 32 for a history of mergers and acquisitions of these companies. There have been even more mergers since this federal report was published.
2) Most of our crops are produced by huge industrial agri-business farms, not mom-and-pop farms as we like to think. Even though you’ll see the farmer in his field, he most likely is an employee or contractor to these billion-dollar agri-business behemoths.
These companies plant the seed that makes the most profit for them: therefore the seed will most likely be a patented hybrid with some known qualities like the “Super Gluten” Dr. Hyman talks about above, or has been genetically modified to be insect- and disease-free (usually by altering a protein), or will produce a product with a longer shelf life. This practice is considered “smart business” and gets rewarded by better stock prices on Wall Street.
3) Even ORGANIC crops can use these hybrid GMO’d seeds. “Organic” only means that the crop was grown without pesticides, herbicides, and other chemicals. “Organic” doesn’t cover the actual seed itself.
For an excellent first-person report of how genetically modified foods (GMOs) affect our health, see Robyn O’Brien’s presentation about how her daughter nearly died from eating breakfast one morning. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rixyrCNVVGA Robyn is a former food market analyst for Wall Street so she knows the food industry from the inside. She now crusades for “real” food.
So to answer the question why we won’t find Einkhorn wheat:
Because most of our food growers don’t think it’s good business to grow that form of wheat. They’ve been influenced by Wall Street’s analysts, big profits, big paychecks, and the political goals of whoever is in the White House, Senate, and House of Representatives.
My question is:
If I grind my own wheat from berries, is the flour not very different from the wheat and flour available at stores? Why is this not a solution for those of us who do not seem to have any issues with gluten?
An alert to all of you who are guten intolerant – eating the “gluten free” products may not be the way to go. Gluten-free products have man-made chemicals in them and you may not be able to process them okay. Xanthum gum is one of these and it’s everywhere. Xanthum gum could be based on wheat. Look it up and check it out.
The other big item is genetically modified corn. It’s also everywhere. If you can’t process wheat okay, you probaby can’t process GMO corn either.
I eat only fresh food – meat, vegetables, fruit and nuts. Nothing that’s been through a factory. Even frozen vegetables probably have a coating of flour on them so they don’t stick to the conveyor belts but it doesn’t need to be listed as an ingrediant because flour wasn’t used in the making of green breans.
It’s a good start, Dr. Hyman!
But too often I’ve watched people go gluten free, and end up with a slightly happier gut but raised blood sugar, a lot of weight gain and increased generalized pain. Rice and corn create many of the other problems that wheat does, and substituting the higher-glycemic grains for wheat doesn’t solve the whole problem. Our pancreases are exhausted too, not just our guts!
It’s time to blow the whistle on grains, and stop eating them unless we’re starving. Grains are a “starvation food” not a real natural food for humans, who need to eat mostly plants and small amounts of animal protein. When we’re starving, grains are a useful substitute for real food, and we can manipulate them enough to ingest them without dying. When we’re well fed, though, they’re almost like poison.
Yes, even brown rice, especially the way it is produced, stored and marketed today. What vegetable would you eat that is tossed into a filthy, rusty silo for several years before it even gets to you? Look up mycotoxins! Bacteria are not the only contaminant that we should avoid.
And real food decomposes, and can be eaten raw, right off the plant. Not the case with grains. Don’t believe me? Sit down to a cup of raw brown rice and then see how you feel after eating it.
Grains increase our caloric intake, too. They are filled with empty calories so they make us want to eat more because we need nutrients, not calories. Anyone on a paleo diet knows this – it’s a big shock to discover that once you’re a few months away from grains, you are a lot less hungry, can go for 10-12 hours without food without feeling hungry, you eat less at meals, and you generally have a lot more energy. Food no longer rules your life.
And, as most of us know, excess caloric intake shortens life more than any other habit. Lower calorie diets, over and over again, have been shown to extend life and improve quality of life as we age.
I urge anyone who has never tried it to go grain-free for three months, and substitute fresh plantfood for the grains. (Don’t substitute quinoa or buckwheat, make it a real change. You don’t need starvation foods, you live in the land of plenty.) Get yourself a spiralizer – that little item will change your life. Make your noodles, crackers, bread etc from fresh plant food. Don’t eat anything that’s been processed AT ALL. No soy, hemp, rice, coconut or almond “milk.” Those things crack me up!
Eat tons of raw food, it’s the secret to health and longevity.
Eat only wild (100% grass fed, or 100% free range, or “wild caught”) animal protein and fat. The rest is grain-fed! Blech! And they’re treated so, so horribly. Especially chickens. Go to Whole Foods if you eat meat, and buy the highest GAP level you can afford. Global Animal Partnership, a PETA partnership. Check it out. Real animal protein – fed it’s natural diet, raised in it’s natural habitat, killed humanely – is very healthy, but it’s also expensive and very hard to find.
Initially, you’ll be hungry and will want to eat more calories – use extra healthy fats like avocado to get you over the hump. It’s been almost a year for me, and for my daughter too. Neither of us are even tempted by grains anymore, and we’ve never been healthier, in terms of energy, pain levels and bloodwork. We both lost 30 lbs of fat. We’re still losing fat. We can go shopping for a whole day and not get hungry – that alone is reason to try it!
Off to the gym!
Dr. Hyman,
Although I totally agree with you that gluten is a culprit, I have recently read research that suggests it is the Lectin in the foods that is actually the problem. Please comment.
June Kittay
Healthy Aging/Integrated Fitness Professional
I have one suggestion. Perhaps the title could read: “3 Hidden Ways Wheat Can Harm Your Health”. I am planning to forward this article to a few of my relatives. They are suffering from symptoms other than obesity and should definitely read this, but they are not fat. They will look at the title and think it’s not for them. I will point out to them that this article is for everybody! Thank you!
This information I resisted for so long. I love good fresh-baked crusty rustic breads more than just about anything. But I feel the pain, and I just can’t do it anymore. I find eating farro is okay, so far…
You can get proper grains IF YOU EAT FROM FAMILY FARMS. The real issue is corporate food processing, not gluten/wheat in and of itself. If you’re in greater NYC, for example, you can buy grain from Cayuga, among other small farms now growing traditional grains. I cannot speak for the rest of the country, but do your homework, visit your greenmarkets, check out small farms within a 100-mile radius or learn to grow yourself.
I too go to Dr. Briggs and off gluten. Its been a tough one for me and always working on it. Isn’t she great!
The adhesive in stamps and envelopes does not contain gluten. Vodka, and other grain-based alcoholic beverages, have been distilled. Research has confirmed the distillation process removes the gluten protein. Despite this, rarely, some do react to wheat-based alcohol.
I’m surprised that no farmers have switched to the Einkorn wheat mentioned in the article. With the growing market for gluten free foods, it seems like they’d make a killing on growing a wheat that is much better tolerated by the human body.
I would just like to know how much of an improvement could be made using non GMO organically grown wheat, freshly ground, for one’s bread.
thanks for any replies
This is great information.I started eating gluten free about 4 months ago and I am sleeping better and feeling better then I have in years.
Thanks Doc. for all your articles. They help me to help my clients live a more healthy life.
Blessings
If gluten isn’t an issue, are kamut or rye breads healthy alternatives to standard wheat? The biggest problem I have with a bread-free diet is making school lunches. We’re mostly vegan, so no dairy or meat; cooked beans are a bit risky re. bacteria; and the school doesn’t allow nuts of any kind. My standbys are granola and sunflower-seed butter sandwiches.
Also, I would encourage you to update the Wikepedia “wheat” entry with info from this article. It only mentions celiac as a health issue.
Wow! Both the article and Amy’s response are fascinating information. I have tried to go gluten free because I have two sons who are diagnosed on the autism spectrum, but it is SUPER difficult! My husband lost 30 pounds over the last year because he went gunge-ooh on exercise and drastically reduced carbs. This information is definitely food for thought! Pun intended
Amen for this article – most people benefit from at least reducing wheat. Eliminating it altogether is not that hard –
100% Rye bread is helpful, but I find bread to be fattening, so rely on millet, yams, yucca, quinoa, squash, and brown rice for carbs. Works for me- my health is awesome,and I have a 6 PACK all the time.
Another fantastic article, so detailed. It was great to read all the comments too, even those desperate to find some type of wheat or grain that will pass muster. We’ve shifted from thinking of addicts as illegal-drug fiends to those who abuse prescription drugs…now we have drugs in our food, their exact makeup well hidden from the public. I wonder why such craving persists as our main pastime. I feel so sorry for us, living in consumer glut, unable to ever get enough. I want to say, Go Paleo, but must confess that although gluten free for over a decade I am not all the way to cavewoman eating yet. But we’ll get there!
Great Article. Those of you who’d like a second opinion can read Dr. Taylor’s book, Wheat Belly. It was recommended to me by my cardiologist, after having 4 stents put in me 6 months ago, and testing positive for the genes that made me gluten intolerant. You can read exerpts from it for free by typing in “Wheat Belly” into a Google search I’ve been gluten free for 4 weeks, and already my chronic diareah is gone. Other possible side effects from gluten intolerance that unfortunately I have experienced: chronic insomnia, prostate cancer, hypothyroid, acid reflux, high cholesterol, high blood pressure, obesity. Who knew? Now I do! I’ve already lost 10 pounds, too!
I was wondering if you’ve researched the link between other genes and gluten sensitivity? I recently read an article on gluten that said to check DLQ 1 & 3, in addition to 2 & 8. It’s the first I have heard of these genes being linked to gluten sensitivity. I know there is a lot of new research coming out on this and wasn’t sure if it was of merit.
Great article. Very well thought out and explained in a way we can understand. This can be such a complicated subject. I enjoyed seeing you live in NYC at our Institute for Integrative Nutrition conference….I’m a big fan!
I echo what many are saying here, it looks like you’ll have to do your next article on going Paleo. The world is already struggling with the concept of “gluten” free, many think it is a hoax or an exaggeration at best. How could we, en masse, accept that it is grains in general that are making us ill?
This is one of the first articles I’ve seen that suggests maybe we should just get wheat out of everyone’s diet (without really saying it). Bravo! Eliminate it from the pyramid, or plate, whatever.
Where does nutrition lie? If you define nutrition as fats/protein/carbs, with healthy levels of each, grains have no role.
If you want to feel your best and look your best, go Paleo!
The biggest difference I noticed by giving up wheat was the immense alleviation in depression issues that I had suffered through for years (as does my mother but it’s nothing for her to eat a cake for supper). If you don’t believe any of this (and it’s wise to be a critical, educated consumer) just try giving up wheat for 2 weeks (classic elimination diet – it’s free if you don’t have insurance to pay for allergy tests). Then purposely eat something with wheat in it and see what happens. The first time I did this, I was shocked. I became tired and lethargic almost instantly. Scary stuff! If that doesn’t convince you nothing will.
And as for why we don’t plant native grains – MONEY!! Big AG wont allow it. They are a wealthy and powerful industry. I highly recommend watching the movie Food, Inc. and reading anything by Michael Pollan (In Defense of Food is my favorite).
One comment noted that this blog is nothing more than an advertisement and to some extend I believe that to be true as well. That being said, Dr. Hyman’s book UltraMind changed my life and my whole view on the brain-gut connection.
Dr. Amen (out of California) also has some valuable input on this matter. His wife created a cookbook that I use in conjunction with Dr. Hyman’s plans. Quinoa makes for an awesome breakfast meal in lieu of oatmeal. Cook it with almond milk, add some berries and you are full for a very long time. Delightful!!
Is there any truth that the brand Ezekiel sprouted grain bread is any better for us? Also is Millet bread (Ezekiel makes one – wheat/gluten free) okay to eat?
Where can you find healthy wheat or flour?
Several years ago, I stopped eating wheat. I was aware of the hybridization issues, high glycemic index, etc. After months of no wheat, I switched over to rye bread that I made from organically grown rye flour, sour starter made from the same flour, water and sea salt. It seems that rye has not become hybridized, yet, and has a lower glycemic index. One of my diabetic friends eats it and does not get the sugar spike she gets from wheat.
After I returned from being deployed to Iraq for a year, I realized I had hardly eaten any bread or baked products whatsoever. Not that it wasn’t available, but that I simply had no desire for it. Now I realize it was my body’s way of avoiding something bad for me especially in that environment.
As I got back to eating more bread and wheat-based products I noticed I had an unnatural desire for more -especially sweet stuff like cake & cookies. I also noticed that as I get older, these “goodies” cause me to feel bloated & fatigued. I’ve always been in good shape, so it was disturbing when I noticed my abdomen was enlarged!
I started doing more intense core workouts and it helped a bit, but I still felt bloated and depleted of energy. I also became quite depressed and dysfunctional. I had become hypersensitive to everything and anything. Over a period of four years, my life had become miserable & unmanageable!
I finally got to a specialist who had be do a comprehensive blood test to determine multiple intolerances including gluten, sugars and dairy. After being off these for six months now, I have to say my life has completely turned around! I no longer even want to eat what’s bad for me, and now enjoy quality fruit, vegetable & proteins. This combined with regular outdoor exercise has me stronger and happier than ever at age 44.
My experience made me wonder how many people are suffering from the same imbalances I had. You see and hear of these conditions all the time and I just thank God I found the way out. Dr. Hyman’s great research answers what I’ve been wondering about for so long. I hope and pray that hearts and minds are opened to the epidemic of nutritional deception.
The greatest cure is to strengthen the body to heal itself. We must STOP debilitating ourselves with the perpetual toxification of our bodies! I believe this may be the single greatest factor in saving us from our present & future self destruction.
Wow,
couldn’t have said it better myself, we at my household have suffered numerous things mentioned in this article that all but disappear when completely off of wheat
from pain to ‘autism’ and everything in between. Finally someone put it all out there for us. Thanks
I ate a big bowl of whole oat meal and was laid out for three days. I’ve since tried it again with no repeat of symptoms, but damn, that was scary. I still avoid most grains like it’s radioactive. I had a wheat allergen test and it was negative, but does any of Dr. Hyman’s preceding apply if you’re not allergic?
Yes Christian,
Many people will not have an allergy but they will have a delayed sensitivity to certain foods, namely wheat and those containing gluten (rye, barley, spelt, triticale etc.)
You can do an IgG test to confirm this but better yet, listen to your body and avoid anything that makes you fell sick or less than vibrant.
In good health!
Lizzy
I can certainly give up wheat and I can convince my husband to try but how do you get a picky 5 year old to follow along when his diet is limited to begin with?
Do you mean Naltrexone? Actually, low dose Naltrexone (LDN)? I’m taking it for Crohns disease and it seems to be working well combined with a dairy-free, GF, alcohol and caffeine free, chocolate free etc…diet! Maybe I’d also do well on just the diet. Unfortunately, I still do crave starches, chocolate, and sugar.
if I could only stay on the UltraSimple diet. That is when I feel the best but it is too limiting. Once I go off for one item off the list, I go down a slippery slope by stating with the bad foods.
Wow if I didn’t know it this very well-written piece by Dr. Hyman could have come straight out of the excellent book “Wheat Belly” published about 6 months ago by William Davis. That book inspired me to finally take the wheat-free low carb plunge. Results? Dropped almost 35 pounds in the past 20 weeks, feel better in many ways. Triglycerides went from 280 in May ’11 to 110 last month & HDL went up from 32 to 43.
I tell my non-believing friends and colleagues that if you want to develop obesity, diabetes and heart disease and help bankrupt our health care system (and our country), keep eating wheat and processed crap foods. If not, its really not that difficult.
I find your newsletter so informative, thank you Dr. A question: do these 3 problems present themselves if I am eating organic wheat bread, or baking with organic whole wheat flour that I buy @ health food stores? please advise.
Thank you so much for the informative info! I’ll be checking out your web site!
Mark, reading your article made me feel like I was reading a mini-version of William Davis’ “Wheat Belly” that came out in Aug. 2011. You both make nearly the exact same points.
I went gluten free, low sugar and reduced sodium one yr. ago. I tried it to improve chronic pain (it helped with some of my pain). I stayed gluten free because of the possible autoimmune connection. I was diagnosed with Raynaud’s last yr. and that can end up in an autoimmune situation if it is really my secondary illness. Then when I read William Davis’ book I decided I would be far better off gluten free for many reasons.
Three weeks after I went gluten free I rarely had cravings for gluten products OR gluten free bread type products. Three months after going off gluten my cholesterol went from a safe 274 (my good cholesterol was very high) to 174 (and my good cholesterol went up even more).
I eat veggies, fruit, beans, nuts, seeds, pseudo grains like quinoa and quality meats, fish and eggs. Occasionally I eat cheese or plain yogurt. I know I am lots healthier now than one yr. ago.
Thanks to you and William Davis for being brave enough to try to expose how the most popular food we eat is causing us damage and we don’t even know it and think we are doing well to eat 5-7 servings of whole grain bread products each day.
Sharon
Fascinating! This explains why I’ve been less depressed since I stopped eating wheat, as well as enjoying weight loss, more energy, lower blood sugar and a host of other benefits!
Is this dwarf wheat grown all over the world now, or just in the US?
Dr. Human, you and your medical practice are truly gift from God. I believe sadly, that I am most of the things you mentioned in this important article on wheat and gluten.
I am 65, i6 foot, 265 lbs. Insulin dependent diabetic. I generally feel like all my systems, are caving in, and I am losing my strength, energy and drive to turn it around.
Please keep me in your prayers, so that God will give me the internal power, drive, and commitment to rise up and try again.
Thank you and may God continue to bless you and your work.
I do not feel bloated anymore since I stopped taking wheat breads. I take millet bread, which is very alkaline and I replace rice with quinoa, even though rice is gluten free, but quinoa is alkaline and not so starchy,also it has all the minerals. I love my quinoa porridge with coconut milk, and a drop of stevia for sweetening. Yammy! Thanks, Dr. Hyman for keeping us informed.
meiyin
No mention of organic wheat and whole wheat. They are not suppose to be GMO type. Are they the bad wheat?
Wheat Belly the book is also a book that talks about all these issues. I feel a lot better with no wheat.
Bimbam, It does not matter – organic, whole wheat, white bread wheat – they should all be avoided. They all come from the same type of dwarf wheat plant, so they will all have the health-degrading amylopectin A, lectins and addictive exorphins.
Wow. I knew there was something very wrong with the bread.
My question is: Is there any wheat or wheat product on the market like that of our grandmother’s time for us to eat in moderation? When we buy organic whole grain bread, does it also contain the ‘short wheat’ Dr. Hyman talks about?
Is it possible to buy wheat “like your grandmother used to eat” anywhere at all? Or is “vintage wheat” totally unavailable because of patents and market control by companies like Monsanto and such?
What kind of bread should one eat?
Marianne & Shannon,
About 99% of the wheat grown worldwide now is the short stubby “dwarf” variety. If you look hard enough you should be able to locate the “old” wheat. Just because it may be “less bad” doesn’t mean it is worth it though. With all the known and apparent health consequences its probably not a good idea to consume any kind of bread regularly for most people, especially those who already have diabetes, pre-diabetes, heart disease, auto-immune diseases, arthritis etc., or those who are overweight. Gluten Free bread products seem to be a bad choice too for every day consumption because of their high glycemic index. I was shocked too when I began to find out the truth about wheat, and grains in general. I was one who loved pizza and bagels. I really don’t miss them much now. If I were you I would take heed to what Dr. Hyman has written here.
I totally believe that this is the core root of my issues. I testing this by moving to Wheat and Gluten Free in addition to eating healthier. Cutting out sugar is my main issue. Let’s see where it takes me!
Thank you for sharing your research & knowledge!
Thank you for the factual breakdown! This is very useful. I was wondering, is eating organic whole wheat is good for you?
This is such a great article. I wondered if this information also applies to Europe, specifically germany. In germany we are lead to believe that the restrictions would not allow for this hybrid wheat or anything genetically manipulated into the mainstream products or whole foods. W.F. Lorkarb mentions that 99% of the wheat grown worldwide is the “dwarf” variety. Is there a source that can be referenced? I would like to like to learn more about this. Is the “dwarf” variety not considered GMO?
What I found also interesting here in germany is that people with sensitivities to wheat do not have any problems with spelt, rye, einkorn. THis would make sense if germany is also consuming “dwarf” wheat.
Sprouted grains contain much lower levels of glutens, so they are a good alternative to high gluten wheat goods or a good stepping stone to being gluten free. However, read the ingredients labels carefully because many sprouted baked goods contain added gluten (to make them rise and enhance texture), straight up or as ‘high gluten wheat’ or just plain wheat flour. Try to choose the product with zero added gluten or, at worst, with gluten as far toward the end of the ingredients list as possible.
I have tried the rice flour-based breads and really don’t like them. There are non gluten breads out there, but really, its easier to learn to make your own and some can be done well in a bread machine. Be ready for lots of experimentation and don’t expect the result to be the same as high gluten baked goods. If you’re also sensitive to yeasts, its really hard to find or make any satisfactory conventional-type baked goods. Good quick breads are easy to make and great to eat, but are not for sandwiches.
Also for those of us who are merely gluten-sensitive, a rotation diet is a good management technique – waiting several days before eating it again. This technique applies to reintroducing any food you’ve been proven sensitive to.
If you are not celiac, but merely gluten sensitive in some way, your GI tract functionality is suspect. Intestinal permeability will cause glutens (& many other foods’ proteins) to get into the blood stream where they’re all toxic and the body will mount an immune reaction (which can be measured with a good food allergy serum test like done at US Bioteck labs and elsewhere). If you’ve got this problem, the road to recovery includes changing out all tested sensitive foods, fixing the GI tract issues, retesting to confirm no continuing food allergies, then gradual reintroduction of foods like those with glutens, more testing, repeated until all is back to likely a new normal.
Another good book on grains and gluten is Dangerous Grains by Braly, who traces the history of grains introduction and development, and the effects of increased glutens on populations. You’ll learn wheat was deliberately hybridized for higher gluten levels, which is why archaic breads are flatbreads and ‘modern’ wheat is worse for you.
No, using Organic or “natural” (a meaningless marketing term) wheat does not help – they all contain glutens, which are a family of proteins. These protein levels vary in type and amount across many grains. This explains why some gluten sensitive people are OK with oats. It all depends on which specific proteins you react to. I am not aware of a commercial test which breaks down specific gluten proteins.
Beware doing an elimination diet test and not getting any improvement. The danger here is a false negative because some impacts are asymptomatic and others are delayed long enough and of such seemingly disconnected types that we don’t make the connection. Take the IgG blood test to be sure, with IgE if you want to also test for immediate reactions. You also can get a celiac gene test, for 2 variants which can predispose you to celiac disease. Due to the asymptomatic issue, delayed reactions and the long list of potential resultant eventual diseases, everyone should do a comprehensive foods allergy serum test at least once.
This soldifies everything I’ve been trying to tell you all for the past nine months…. wheat is NOT good for you. It’s tough to become a believer when you’ve been told all of your life that it’s “healthy”. I am ten times healthier than I was nine months ago and I attribute that to giving up wheat all together. I have lost 18 lbs of fat, gained 10 lbs of muscle, lost all of my acid reflux, stopped having hive breakouts, and my asthma has almost gone too. Plus I feel so much better every day. Do yourself and your loved ones a big favor…. learn how to live without wheat. Teach yourselves how to eat the way were meant to and you will truly feel and look “healthy”.
I am confused I thought the only problem with oats was the cross polunation with wheat. If the oats are not raised in the presence of wheat are they not safe for a gluten free diet.
Hi Eloise,
Great question. Oats are often processed in the same facility of gluten containing foods so this contact also makes them contaminated too,
In good health
Lizzy
Eliminating wheat and oats from my diet has improved my blood work tests numbers. My LDL tested @ 175 has dropped to 58 on the Leap Therapy food plan. People ask, but are you taking med’s…yes, I am, but I’ve always taken med’s. Leap Therapy tests for food sensitivies. I’ve stopped eating foods that my body does not process.
carole
Thanks Dr. Hyman,
Very informative. I never knew there was a change in the type of wheat we eat over the last 50 years. Any thoughts on Crohns disease being attributed to gluten intolerance?
Hi Tim,
Thank you for your interest in Dr. Hyman’s work. Yes, there is- and dairy too potentially for some folk. Read more here: http://drhyman.com/blog/conditions/is-there-a-cure-for-autoimmune-disease/
Also see: http://drhyman.com/blog/2010/04/28/ultrawellness-lesson-4-gut-digestive-health/
In good health!
Lizzy
I purchase organic hard red wheat berries, grind them, soak the flour and then make my own bread. I am wondering if this product is a better quality…the process certainly is.
Hi Deb,
That surely is a better process. And perhaps it allows you to eat less of it which is important if you are sensitive or allergic… However if you react to gluten then the form you receive it in is irrelevant if it wil cause you to enter an inflammatory state…
In good health and baking!
Lizzy
My daughter first suspected she had sensitivity when her hips hurt…she got off wheat (gluten) and the pain went away. I decided to try and was off over a month and started feeling really good! Decided to have celiac test but had to go back on gluten…the doctor thought for 1 week or so. Negative test! Felt horrible. Depressed. Pain. Went back off gluten again and found I needed to be on gluten for a month or so before testing…not in this lifetime! After one week I felt horrible. It doesn’t matter what the tests say…it matters how I feel. This article all makes sense! Now…if I could just shake the sugar!!!!
So are you saying that Einkorn wheat or other heirloom wheats, if we can get our hands on them, are actually safe or at least safer alternatives? Is Einkorn (14 chromosomes) best, emmer/farro second best (28 chromosomes) and modern wheat worst (42 chromosomes)? What about heirloom varietals of modern wheat?
Hi Katie,
All wheat has gluten. If you are sensitive you should avoid. If you are not sensitive this might be a good option!
In good health!
Lizzy
I am curious to know if other grains such as rye and oats have been subject to similarly detrimental genetic manipulation and hybridization.
Hi MDM,
Thank you for curiosity, What we do know is that while rye has some glucose/insulin benefits it still will effect those sensitive to gluten. Also, oats surely have been processed and contaminated over the years so we advise against these should you be sensitive or allergic…
In good health!
Lizzy
What if you buy organic wheat berries, grind the flour and make your own bread. More like grandmother’s?
Hi Cindy!
Actually the wheat we have on the market today is genetically different than that which our grandmother used. So, regardless of how you process it, it still contains the same type of gluten which in pro inflammatory…
In good health!
Lizzy
Maine Organic Farmers & Gardeners had a great article on growing wheat properly, and yes, you can get the old style seeds from the organic seed houses. The article is here http://www.mofga.org/Publications/MaineOrganicFarmerGardener/Summer2010/WheatPartII/tabid/1637/Default.aspx. The other problem with ‘modern wheat’ is also the harvest methods which, of course, are good for industrial agriculture, not good for the food product that they’re growing. Following is a pertinent excerpt:
“Whether or not you companion another crop with wheat, you need to know when the grain is ready to harvest. Once the heads form, you must watch the development of the maturing seed, which goes through four stages: the “milk” stage (think corn-on-the-cob), when the kernel can be squished like a bug with your thumbnail; the “soft dough” stage, when the kernel can be squished but is not milky; the “hard dough” stage, when the thumbnail can dent the kernel with some pressure; and lastly the “flint” stage, when the kernel is brittle-hard, as you would grind it for flour.
Here’s the hitch: Even though the flint stage is how you store and use wheat, for best quality the crop should be reaped at the hard dough stage.”
Several years ago my brother went to France to be a ski bum for a few months. He ate more bread then than he ever had in the past. When he came home, his body flipped out. Had diarrhea for months, and generally just felt like crap. Took him maybe a year to get back close to what was his ‘normal’. If memory serves, his doctors didn’t have a clue, and told him that in time his GI tract would get better.
A few years later he went from ‘healthy’ to a full blown diabetic.
I love making my own bread; now maybe I know why I am still so hungry after eating it. I thought it was just because it tasted to good!
And when I treat myself to pancakes once a week, it seems the energy just continues to drain from me over the next several hours. Almost always resulting in a forced nap.
Guess I got an answer to the why’s. Maybe I should start paying attention to some of this stuff?!
Hi all,
I work at a Montana State University. We have worked with gluten-free grains and products for about 15 years. Amazingly, marketing is really tough. As many have already stated, it is difficult to compete with the wheat corporations.
Our first gluten-free flour was produced from a native grass called Indian ricegrass (it is not rice, the name is deceptive). This grain was eaten by several Native American tribes in the Great Plains. The company that produced the grass went out of business in December of 2011. IRG flour was great product, a single piece of toast contained nearly 50% of the RDA for insoluable fiber. There is a second company in MT that may resume production in 2012.
More recently, we have worked with a small grower owned company. They now produce and process certified gluten-free oatmeal and oat products. In this case, they use nude oats as opposed to traditional coated oats. These oats do not have a seed coating, they have higher protein, and require much less processing than traditional oats. They yeild less than traditional oats and thus are ignored by the commodity food industry. The early data indicates that nude oats are safer for celiacs than traditional oats.
This company is also producing a gluten-free flour from the range grass Timothy (Timtana). Timothy has long been a desrable feed for horses and only recently used as a human food. The flour has nearly 20% protein. It makes a great bread. Once again, Timothy is a very minor crop. there has not been extensive breeding with a focus on yield.
My Story. I finally decided to go gluten-free about 1 month ago. I am thrilled becuase my acid reflux is almost controlled without drugs. I never would have made the association between acid reflux and gluten without trying a gluten-free diet. I am not going back.
Note of caution. Gluten-free is not calorie free. I am not only eliminating gluten, I am cutting back on all of those calorie laden baked goods and snack foods (gluten-free or not).
I decided to lose some weight at my doctor’s suggestion and went commercial wheat free about 6 weeks ago. I’ve lost 14 pounds and feel great. Much less pain from the chronic problems and a general sense of well being.
I have tried the Einkorn pastas (Jovial Foods). They are spectacular. I have always loved pasta but would usually overeat in the past. Einkorn pasta has twice the protein. My body seems to know that instantly. I need to eat less to feel full and I walk away from the table feeling delightfully satisfied rather than stuffed.
There is definitely something to this argument. I am completely convinced and I used to own one of the top bread bakeries in the country.
Does this include organic wheat?
Hi Amy,
Yes, although organic is always a great option, wheat is wheat and if a person is sensitive their immune system doesnt care…Great question!
I have always had stomach problems but whenever my mom took me to the Dr. , they couldn’t find anything so it was all in my head. I am now 52yrs old. diagnosed with Celiac 4 yrs ago and I now have Anemia, arthritis, diabetes, high blood pressure, neuropathy, migraines, breathing problems and fibromyalgia. I cannot ever remember a day without pain. This is the result of being misdiagnosed all my life and I really believed things would get much better after going gluten-free. They have not. I have less pain but food now controls my life. The only things I have no reactions to are rice potatoes and eggs. I’m angry and there’s nothing I can do about it. I now eat organic and foods with the least ingredients. I still react if I’m not careful, but keep being vigilant.
Hi Cynthia,
We sympathize w ith you and indeed hope you get the proper care to heal your body soon. Dr. Hyman’s UltraSimple Diet might be a good option for you. Have you looked into it? http://store.ultrasimplediet.com/ Also, get a thorough from a functional med practitioner to ensure the optimum care. To locate a doctor near you who practices functional medicine like Dr. Hyman, go to http://www.functionalmedicine.org/practitioner_search.aspx?id=117 and scroll down to where it says “locate a practitioner” and enter your zip. Progress accordingly from there.
Having self diagnosed myself and my family with gluten intolerance 10 years ago, best gift I could have given them, it is wonderful now to see so much more positive information on the web than previously in relation to gluten and obesity. I dropped 30kg in a very short time as I no longer craved for foods.,we also eat very low carbohydrate. I have my life back!! we were amazed at the time as we had initially gone gluten free to lose weight, our amazement when we no longer suffered from many of the ailments that gluten causes, including IBS, indigestion, bloating, fatigue, depression. My doctor at the time of going gluten free ridiculed me. I find it very sad that it is taking so long for information to get to the mainstream of people, who commonly suffer as we did. Unfortunately doctors are still only looking at the malnourished not the obese for having problems with gluten. If it was not for the internet and sites like yours for people taking control of their own health that this war would otherwise never be won……