"wheat belly"

FredDoyle

hi! so, people I know have recently become obsessed with the book Wheat Belly - I've never read it though.
But I thought WHOLE GRAINS were good for you? Are they not?
Canada's Food Guide recommends 6 servings a day - so I am very confused.

You could easily make the case that whole grains are no better or even worse than more refined grains, but that does not mean they are bad for you or should be avoided. Personally give me the white rice, and white flour over whole wheat versions anyday

Yeh, wheat is an excellent rich food. That's why we developed it.
The only advantage to whole wheat is the fibre. It's all good.
"Gluten free" is a marketing ploy based upon a fad. Very few people, probably 1 in a 1000 are are actually genetically predisposed to a gluten intolerance.

testease

hi! so, people I know have recently become obsessed with the book Wheat Belly - I've never read it though.
But I thought WHOLE GRAINS were good for you? Are they not?
Canada's Food Guide recommends 6 servings a day - so I am very confused.

You could easily make the case that whole grains are no better or even worse than more refined grains, but that does not mean they are bad for you or should be avoided. Personally give me the white rice, and white flour over whole wheat versions anyday

Yeh, wheat is an excellent rich food. That's why we developed it.
The only advantage to whole wheat is the fibre. It's all good.
"Gluten free" is a marketing ploy based upon a fad. Very few people, probably 1 in a 1000 are are actually genetically predisposed to a gluten intolerance.

And even then i still think we place to much emphasis on fibre.

foxro

If you make the choice to go grain free, what do you substitute to continue to obtain the equivalent nutrients(without taking supplements) ?

Dave198lbs

If you make the choice to go grain free, what do you substitute to continue to obtain the equivalent nutrients(without taking supplements) ?

there are no mandatory nutrients gained from grains

fiber is important but you can get that from many sources

anifani4

thank you for posting this link. I read Wheat Belly and had my doubts based simply on the sensationalized style of writing. Didn't however have the desire to delve into the research. He kept saying over an over how his experience was that people created a calorie deficit by eliminating wheat and they lost weight, diabetes got better. Well.....duh...no news there.

it's junk science. some M.D. trying to make a quick buck with a book.

here's a gluten-free advocate who researched the source material and has nothing good to say about the book:

http://noglutennoproblem.blogspot.com/2012/03/wheat-belly-busted.html

anifani4

If you make the choice to go grain free, what do you substitute to continue to obtain the equivalent nutrients(without taking supplements) ?

You eat a variety of vegetables and fruits.. They give you the carbs, vitamins, minearals, some amino acids, some healthy fats.

toddis

I think the question is, if you drop grains or whatnot from your diet what are you going to replace them with?
If you feel ill eating grains, don't eat them. Same with any food. That doesn't make them bad for the general
populace.

Also, it's rather silly to assert that not eating grains is the cause of health benefits. When, I'm guessing, you can look at what "grains" the person was eating prior and likely find they weren't the healthiest kind. General assumption, but likely proven to be true. It's the reason Atkin's works, you can't eat the stuff that made you fat/sick, and the stuff you can eat you don't fancy as much because you get it so often.

MemphisKitten

The commercial food industries use wheat abundantly in all kinds of processed food products. When there is money to be made, they will tell the public anything to make profits. Lucky Charms are now made with whole grain! Does that make them healthy?

emtjmac

I LOL @ the very concept of "wheat belly." It amazes me all of the junk, nonsense, pseudoscience that rears it's ugly head in the weight loss industry.

burkey2012

you can add raw nuts, avocado, etc.....fiber was my big concern once I started the diet, especially eating more eggs and cheese, but getting plenty of fiber. Still a little shy on potassium and iron, but slowly getting there.

oOMusicBabii

Here's my opinion:

- If you love wheat, eat it.
- If you hate wheat, don't eat it.
- Some people can't eat it because they are intolerant.
- Some love it and might not even realize they are intolerant (yet).

I love wheat, it's tasty. Though I am suspicious of my tolerance to it so I might be going wheat free. Personally, I'm so darn sick of each month a new food gains hatred by everyone then a few months later, it's suddenly golden goodness again.

RobynC79

I like wheat, I eat wheat, I enjoy my wheat products, they don't make me sick, and I'm loosing weight while eating them.

There ARE people that have something called Celiac disease. It makes their bodies respond very badly to gluten, which is found in wheat. There are other presentations of a wheat sensitivity.

If you like it, eat it in moderation, and aren't sensitive to it, eat it. If it makes you sick, don't eat it.

Everyone's different.

^^^
That.

twilight_princess

I got this book last month. The author makes a lot of interesting and convincing claims but researching into myself most is based on mis and anecdotal information about wheat itself. For instance when he harps on about wheats opiate-like character, the same study he mentioned actually said milk proteins produce the highest activity and its allowed on the diet.

Some things are good and pretty much common sense. I agree that we don't need to eat nearly as much wheat but then it really is the wheat-products, such as cakes etc., that are the problem with obesity. But the diet is really another low-carb diet with an agenda on wheat. Altogether its not bad and you probably won't become deficient in anything despite that you have to avoid fruit as you still can eat vegetables but in moderation there really isn't anything wrong with wheat unless you have an intolerance to it.

Jackielyn17

hi! so, people I know have recently become obsessed with the book Wheat Belly - I've never read it though.
But I thought WHOLE GRAINS were good for you? Are they not?
Canada's Food Guide recommends 6 servings a day - so I am very confused.

You could easily make the case that whole grains are no better or even worse than more refined grains, but that does not mean they are bad for you or should be avoided. Personally give me the white rice, and white flour over whole wheat versions anyday

Yeh, wheat is an excellent rich food. That's why we developed it.
The only advantage to whole wheat is the fibre. It's all good.
"Gluten free" is a marketing ploy based upon a fad. Very few people, probably 1 in a 1000 are are actually genetically predisposed to a gluten intolerance.

You would actually be surprised as to how many people have intolerances, just because they are not diagnosed, or do not have Celiac's doesn't mean they don't get sick eating it.

I have candida, i cannot have wheat products, I am gluten free, however i do have quinoa, basmati or brown rice. If I happen to have anything with wheat in it, my stomach bloats severely and I do feel ill if the quantities consumed are too large.

Our society eats way too many carbs in general, our plates should be filled with protein and vegetables, not a plate of pasta. Quinoa and rice are not man-made products, whereas pasta & breads are processed!! think about it.

jennaworksout

personally, I don't eat it because I feel so much better without it, don't need it ...why eat it if it makes me feel like crap

Flab2fitfi

One food for thought- I'm a coeliac and therefore no wheat ever!!! However over the last 10 years I've managed to get 100lbs overweight.

Wheat/gluten does cause lots of problems for people - many coeliacs are undiagnosed ( there has even been a parliamentary debate on trying to increase awareness of the disease) and if you have the symptoms its worth getting it checked out BEFORE going gluten free as biopsies/blood tests will come back negative unless gluten is in the diet. Many others have problems with wheat although they do not have coeliacs - it is worth going wheat free if you have ibs to see if it makes a difference.

However for the healthy individual I would carry on eating wheat.

Flab2fitfi

[/quote]
Yeh, wheat is an excellent rich food. That's why we developed it.
The only advantage to whole wheat is the fibre. It's all good.
"Gluten free" is a marketing ploy based upon a fad. Very few people, probably 1 in a 1000 are are actually genetically predisposed to a gluten intolerance.
[/quote]

This is taken from coeliac uk website:

Research shows that coeliac disease affects 1 in 100 people in the UK, making it much more common than previously thought. Under-diagnosis is a big problem. Research suggests around 500,000 people have not yet been diagnosed .

Coeliac disease is much more common then people think - then you also have people who have wheat/gluten intolerances and recently they are doing research into non-coeliac coeliac disease which presents the same as coeliacs tests negatively.

For more information and to stop the myths have a look at http://www.coeliac.org.uk/coeliac-disease/myths-about-coeliac-disease.

testease

If you are that worried about it, get an official diagnosis. Dont self medicate based on a sensaltionalized book.

esealjme

I would see a nutritionist if you are truly concerned over whether it is needed. Every body is different, so it is possible that some need it while others do not.

FredDoyle

This is taken from coeliac uk website:

Research shows that coeliac disease affects 1 in 100 people in the UK, making it much more common than previously thought. Under-diagnosis is a big problem. Research suggests around 500,000 people have not yet been diagnosed .

Coeliac disease is much more common then people think - then you also have people who have wheat/gluten intolerances and recently they are doing research into non-coeliac coeliac disease which presents the same as coeliacs tests negatively.

For more information and to stop the myths have a look at http://www.coeliac.org.uk/coeliac-disease/myths-about-coeliac-disease.

Ok, so wheat is an excellent food for 99% of people. Peanuts are fine too for most but deadly for some.