For as long as people have been eating food there have been diets. Now humans may have not always been overly concerned with their nutrition or even realized they were on a diet, but they were. History has shown us that many diets are fads or gimmicks, but more recently there has been a push to balance that out through a democratic approach to health and nutrition.
Recently there has been some controversy over the book Wheat Belly by Dr. William Davis. One of the key points that Dr. Davis makes that seems to be overlooked in the back and forth arguments found online is that the greatest harm seems to be coming from the fact that our wheat today is genetically modified, not in the fact that it is wheat. Most specialists who refute Davis’ claims skip over that item.
Here are a couple ideas that are presented in Wheat Belly. Interestingly, Davis does not always claim to have widespread support and in fact states that some of the items he talks about are his own observations.
- Appetite stimulant – this is a proven and stated fact about modern wheat. Grain heavy meals will fill you up, but leave you wanting a snack an hour or so later.
- Sugar – one of Davis’ claims is that a wheat free diet helps reduce Type-2 Diabetes. Most specialists agree with this claim, but argue over the specifics of how it happens. Your body converts grains into sugar, directly causing a spike in your blood-sugar level.
- Celiac & gluten sensitivity – Davis talks about an elevated number of people who have trouble digesting wheat. Most people have never taken the time or trouble to be tested, but many do have some level of trouble digesting the man-made grain. Easy home test, remove wheat from your diet for two weeks. When you reintroduce it take note of how your body responds.
- Brain fog – Davis talks about how wheat enzymes bind with opiate receptors in the brain much like heroin or opium, albeit on a much smaller scale. Many people who remove wheat from their diet go through a “withdrawal” period ranging from grogginess to something akin to a bad hangover. Interestingly enough people can be sensitive enough to know when there is wheat in something they unknowingly ate.
- Energy – Some people have claimed to have more energy after removing wheat from their diet. Scientists and doctors who dispute the claims of Davis state that this is a result of an overall improvement in diet and workout regimen, not from the removal of wheat. Davis seems to be claiming a more balanced energy level, not an increase, no spikes or dips.
Whether elimination of wheat from the diet is the actual answer to healthy living may be a moot point, however. What Davis repeats over and over is to replace the wheat with raw vegetables and sources of protein. No matter what your stance on genetically modified foods and how they interact with our bodies the sentiment of putting healthy foods into our body is spot on. We are careful of what we put into our cars, it’s about time we take the same attitudes with our bodies.
Teri
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