Giving up Wheat

I have a sensitivity to wheat, so I gave it up about two years ago - completely. I feel MUCH better and am not nearly as bloated. My husband feels better too. It's been easy to find products (pasta, bread, cakes etc.) made from rice flour and other non-wheat flours. I don't lose weight unless I cut calories. If I eat substantial amounts of cake, bread, etc., of course, my weight is up. I still have to focus on calories consumed and burned. Hope this helps! Good luck to you!

I kicked wheat to the curb when I found out it was one of the things that had been making me sick for most if not all of my life. I can't have dairy either. Both of those foods trigger migraines within an hour, digestive system problems that last for days, and skin breakouts last a couple of weeks, for me. All those years I thought I was "unhealthy" and it turned out my body was reacting to these foods. Ugh.

Sooo... I haven't found it that hard to ditch wheat and dairy because the effects on my health are quite clear. It seems to be harder for those who don't have an obvious health reason to eliminate a food that so permeates our culture. Eating out becomes especially difficult. Not an issue for me very often but it's a dealbreaker for many.

And if you substitute gluten-free breads, cookies, cakes, etc, for the wheat versions, don't count on losing weight. Gluten-free isn't necessarily calorie free!

It depends a LOT on how you replace those items, in my experience, and that you remember you still have calories in/ calories out equation to balance. I cut out grains, refined sugars, and beans last year, and I typically do NOT use gluten-free products -- where I used to have bread or pasta, I now have another veggie, for example.

It's beneficial in a lot of ways, but be aware it's not a panacea if you replace it with faux-food. GF products may have just as much starchy stuff and more sugar to make up for the protein loss in removing the gliadin.

I have a mild gluten intolerance. In general, I'm quite fit, but in the last year or so I've put on a couple of pounds of body fat that just haven't been willing to budge. Over the last six months or so, I moved out of state with my boyfriend. I started a new job, have learned to navigate a new city, have had lots of nights out getting to know new friends... and, frankly, had a lot of late nights eating pizza and drinking wine with my dude. (We were long distance for about a year before I moved, so this has been a happy, happy time!) My couple of fat pounds turned into ten-ish pounds of fat on top of my fairly muscular physique. After my dad had a tremendous amount of success with a wheat-free diet, Mr Tropicalhotdognight and I gave up gluten for a month starting on January 1st. We tried really hard to avoid packaged gluten-free snacks like cookies and crackers, went to eat only at restaurants where we knew we could order gluten-free meals, and did a ton of grocery shopping, planning meals and cooking together. By default, we ended up eating a ton of protein and vegetables, the occasional potato, and some quinoa or rice here and there. In sum, we were more or less on a lower-carb diet. He lost about 12 pounds over the course of the month and, although my scale didn't change much, my body composition was quite different by the end end of January. People kept asking me if I'd lost some weight because I looked slimmer.

On a gluten-free diet, I noticed that my low belly looked and felt less bloated within a few days. I slept better and woke up more refreshed. My mood was stable all day every day. I did pretty hardcore workouts four days a week and found my recovery time from each was dramatically shorter-- far less sore and fatigued the next day, even though I was pushing myself much harder. Most importantly for me, though, was how dropping gluten affected my hunger levels. I never felt particularly hungry or particularly stuffed. My food seemed to sustain me well during the day, and my body told me when it was time to eat. It became easy to keep eating gluten-free because it felt natural and easy, and I never felt deprived.

My boyfriend struggled a little more over the first two weeks-- he was definitely hungrier and felt more withdrawal symptoms. He, however, doesn't have a known gluten intolerance. He started working out with weights and a heavy bag several times a week, and it seems like the gluten-free diet has really helped him build musculature and lose fat. He looks great!

I suspect that giving up processed foods in general could yield the same kinds of results, as could a lot of other diet plans. It seems, however, that gluten-free works really well for both of us. We went out for Italian food and each had a beer over the first weekend in February, and we both felt awful. We woke up bloated, sluggish and headache-y the next morning. Could've had more to do with the booze or the amount of salt in restaurant food, but after a weekend of indulgence, we hopped right back on the gluten-free train. We are continuing to feel great and see results!

I cut out grains completely. Best move I ever made.

Joint pains gone.
Weight dropping.
Migraines have disappeared.
My skin is no longer dry, and my hair is growing in much fuller.
Sense of taste is now heightened - and I like vegetables I would never previously have eaten.
Sweet cravings have vanished - so no added refined sugars now.

I have a severe wheat allergy so I avoid it like the plague. I didn't lose any weight after I cut it out, but that could be because I was replacing everything with the gluten free "food" they put in the grocery stores. Don't eat that crap, its worse for you than the regular stuff. I do miss cookies, cakes, and I would KILL for some ooey gooey melty crunchy mozzarella sticks. I would say if you don't have a medical reason for cutting out wheat such as an allergy or intolerance that it really isn't worth it. Just eat less bread and pasta.

Have you tried making mozza sticks by breading them with ground golden flaxseed? There's a recipe in the Wheat Belly cookbook for this.

I have a severe wheat allergy so I avoid it like the plague. I didn't lose any weight after I cut it out, but that could be because I was replacing everything with the gluten free "food" they put in the grocery stores. Don't eat that crap, its worse for you than the regular stuff. I do miss cookies, cakes, and I would KILL for some ooey gooey melty crunchy mozzarella sticks. I would say if you don't have a medical reason for cutting out wheat such as an allergy or intolerance that it really isn't worth it. Just eat less bread and pasta.

Have you tried making mozza sticks by breading them with ground golden flaxseed? There's a recipe in the Wheat Belly cookbook for this.

I've read tons of recipes on how to make them GF...but I really don't think it would be the same. I know I'm being stubborn, but oh well

Makes no difference to weight loss. Might make a difference to bloating if you are sensitive to it.

Not entirely true. I cut out wheat/gluten and grains and beans. I ate more fruits, nuts and berries. I also ate dairy and had eggs and bacon every weekend. I lost 20 lbs in 3 months, and my cholesterol dropped by 40 pts. My RA factor also dropped from 23 (false positive) to 14 (within normal range).

Most gluten products are high carb, and high carb products have been known to pack on the pounds. IF one decides to go GF and eat a ton of GF products, then yes, no weight will be lost. But if the high carb foods are replaced with more nutritious foods, then weight loss is possible.

Ha ha! That is one of the most quoted donuts I've ever met.



I don't eat much wheat....it doesn't really give me enough benefit to warrant squeezing it into my macros. Spaghetti, on occasion.

this is what's wrong with MFP

girl posts about wanting to cut down on wheat, and immediately the thread is overrun by people criticizing her simply because she's taking a more vested interest in her health than the rest of you.

there are a plethora of reasons to cut down on wheat intake. Here are some snippets of an interview with Dr. Alessio Fasano of the Center for Celiac Research:

TF: That sounds like everyone is gluten intolerant in some way. Is that true? Everyone?

Dr. Fasano: Yes. No one can properly digest gluten. We do not have the enzymes to break it down. It all depends upon how well our intestinal walls close after we ingest it and how our immune system reacts to it.



TF: Why have so many people been diagnosed within the last few years?

Dr. Fasano: Some of this is because the medical community has become more aware and because there has been an increase in the incidents (of gluten reactions) in recent years. The environment in general is also a factor. The quantity of grains that we now eat has increased. Breast-fed babies seem to be more protected from developing adverse reactions to gluten. We’ve found that certain good bacteria, or probiotics that live within us also play a part in “turning off” an adverse reaction to gluten. Antibacterial soaps and other things are reducing the number of these bacteria, changing the microbial environment in our gut.


TF: You’ve mentioned in the study that Agricultural Changes in Wheat have played a role. Can you tell me more about this?

Dr. Fasano: Ten thousand years ago there were no gluten grains. Wheat, rye, barley and triticale are relatively new grains that have been introduced to our diet. We haven’t had enough time to evolve in order to digest these grains properly. In recent years the protein content has increased greatly in our modern wheat. Now, 14% of dry wheat is gluten. This is a lot. I understand why this has happened - more gluten gives characteristics to baked goods that are more desirable, like more elasticity; it’s more palatable, but less digestible.



TF: What about GMO’s (Genetically Modified Organisms)?

Dr. Fasano: These are all GMOs’! (Dr. Fasano indicated that we’ve been manipulating agriculture for a long time*). The problem is that if you do this too fast, like we’ve done in the last 50 years, we pay a price. It takes centuries for our bodies to adapt. There is always a balance between the advantages and the disadvantages. Agricultural mutations are all by chance so it takes time to rule out problems that are created by these mutations. It is unfair to blame GMOs as the only cause, although they are a factor. Our immune system evolved to only fight one enemy, bacteria. Now we have a host of environmental toxicities to fight and each person’s immune system does its best to manage those.

http://www.tenderfoodie.com/blog/2011/12/19/interview-w-dr-alessio-fasano-part-1-should-anyone-eat-glute.html

Researchers took gut biopsies from celiac patients and asymptomatic controls (non-celiac). Five out of six asymptomatic controls showed elevated interleukin-15, a marker of innate immune activation, upon exposure to gliadin (one of the proteins that makes up gluten). An activated innate immune system (commonly called 'inflammation') is associated with a wide array of chronic diseases, from obesity to cancer to cardiovascular disease.

http://wholehealthsource.blogspot.com/2008/12/gluten-sensitivity-celiac-disease-is.html

http://gut.bmj.com/content/56/6/889.extract

http://www.marksdailyapple.com/why-grains-are-unhealthy/#axzz2KF9j44nr

i dont understand this new anti-wheat campaign. I only eat whole wheat- or whole grain but usually whole wheat- bread. Ive never been overweight and am in excellent health. Gluten free is just a fad unless you are one of the few people who actually have Celiacs, IMO

Recently I read articles about wheat and its affect on health. I have migraines and I've found out that wheat could be a contributing factor.

It's entirely doable. I would stick to whole foods as much as possible. Just watch if you start replacing the wheat products with GF ones. The GF ones tend to be higher in calories, carbs and sometimes fat.

I tried it after reading Wheat Belly. It was difficult (note, I'm not a vegetarian) but it did make me more conscious of what I was eating. Personally, I did not like the taste of any of the GF baked goods. It is also incredibly surprising what contains wheat - salad dressings, barbecque sauce, pretty much anything processed.

I had no issues that represented Celiac disease.

Celiac disease can have no symptoms at all, and just be accidently found on a small bowel biopsy. FWIW, I had a high rheumatoid factor before I was diagnosed with CD. It's one of the blood work signs that's less commonly known.