The wheat of today is not the wheat of our mothers or grandmothers. Modern wheat is the product of genetic manipulations that have transformed its properties. Modern wheat is now a 2-foot tall, high-yield semi-dwarf strain, different in both appearance and multiple biochemical features from traditional wheat. Introduction of this new strain of wheat was associated with the appearance of a long list of health problems, along with weight gain and diabetes.

According to Dr. Davis, saying goodbye to all things wheat provides outsized and unexpected health benefits, from weight loss, to relief from acid reflux and bowel urgency, to reversal of diabetes, migraine headaches, and learning disabilities in children.

Dr. William Davis is author of the #1 New york Times bestselling book, Wheat Belly: Lose the wheat, lose the weight and find your path back to health (Rodale, 2011), now debuting internationally in over ten foreign languages. Wheat belly has helped spark a nationwide reconsideration of the conventional advice to “eat more healthy whole grains.”

Formerly an interventional cardiologist, he now confines his practice to prevention and reversal of coronary disease in his practice in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Dr. Davis is a graduate of the St. Louis University School of Medicine, followed by training in internal medicine and cardiology at the Ohio State University Hospitals, and training in interventional cardiology at the Case–Western Reserve Hospitals in Cleveland, Ohio. He is also founder of the online heart disease prevention educational program, Track your Plaque.

‘Wheat-belly’ 101 – Five clues that your excess weight is caused by gluten

by: PF Louis

(NaturalNews) Wheat today is not what it used to be. It is more of a hybrid version of 19th century and earlier versions of wheat our ancestors relied on for their daily bread. The same is true for a few other grains.

Today’s wheat is a genetic modification of horticultural or agricultural specie combining. This genetic modification is different than laboratory GMO gene splicing. Nevertheless, the amount of 20th century agricultural genetic modification has outpaced the human digestive system’s ability to adapt.

The result is that even if you are not a celiac disease sufferer or gluten sensitive, you still could be suffering from the ill effects of wheat and other grains. Even organic whole wheat has a high glycemic index (GI), which over time may increase your glycemic load and create diabetes II.

So although whole wheat grains are considered complex carbohydrates, modern day wheat contains amylopectin A, which is a rapidly absorbed carbohydrate that spikes your blood sugar, but more. The other grains that can contribute to wheat belly include: Barley, rye, triticale (a cross between wheat and rye), bulgur, farina, kamut, seminola, durum flour, and spelt. Bummer, eh?

There are safer grain options, however. Buckwheat, which is not actually wheat, amaranth, rice, hominy, sorghum, tapioca, arrowroot, quinoa, and einkorn are okay. Uncommon einkorn is the ancient traditional wheat our ancestors enjoyed. Oats are controversial. Some argue that oats are contaminated by wheat.

The downside of wheat and some other grains

Beer belly is actually wheat or grain belly, according to Body Ecology. It is visceral fat, or fat that has accumulated around body cavity organs, such as the liver, stomach, or intestines. Subcutaneous fat is just under the skin. It is the flabby, flesh of any part of your body.

Obese folks have both visceral and subcutaneous fat issues. A beer or wheat bellymost likely indicates visceral fat. In addition to the obvious potential of diabetes II from obesity, there is another ominous aspect of visceral fat.

Visceral fat acts as a gland, secreting hormones that make the immune system react. This produces more fat to store and protect pathogens from invading our organs. It’s the proverbial vicious cycle, and it also produces low level chronic inflammation that can result in various autoimmune diseases.

Cardiologist William Davis, MD, warns against the gluten free diet for losing a wheat belly. The wheat substitutes such as potato flour have high glycemic index issues also, and they can increase your GI load to cause the obesity you’re trying to avoid.

Five wheat belly indicators in addition to a bloated belly

1) High blood sugar
2) Skin problems, rashes, acne, and eczema
3) Bouts of anxiety and depression – low energy
4) Gut disorders – yeast infections
5) Early aging disorders that include dementia

Beyond this lies celiac disease, which can be determined by a blood test and/or gut biopsy.

Sprouted grain bread options

Weston A. Price Foundation founders Sally Fallon and Mary G. Enig, PhD, researched sprouted grains and determined they had a lower GI than grains not sprouted.

The sprouts still contain some gluten, but sprouted grain enzymes break down a good deal of the grains’ normally harmful ingredients. They are more nutritious than merely whole grains.

There are the Ezekiel sprouted grain breads. Some bakeries make sprouted wheatand other sprouted grain breads. Whole Food bakeries provide a sourdough, sprouted wheat bread without bromide, a harmful ingredient used by most bakeries.

You might be able to get away with some of the options mentioned in this article instead of being forced into a strict Paleolithic (Paleo) or hunter/gatherer diet to avoid wheat belly.

Sources for this article include

http://bodyecology.com/articles/do-you-have-a-wheat-belly#.UCrIS6PAFvM

http://www.wheatbellyblog.com

http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/gluten-free-diet/My01140

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gluten-free_diet

http://digestive.niddk.nih.gov/ddiseases/pubs/celiac_ez/