Wheat Belly: Don't Believe Everything You Read

Dr. William Davis, cardiologist, published the Wheat Belly diet book in 2011, and the trend of eating gluten free has skyrocketed since then.
At the time, I was frustrated by misleading gluten free (no wheat, barley, rye) information, so I have waited to comment… until now.
This diet recently had a surge in popularity, so here’s what’s true about Wheat Belly and what’s not so true.

Why the Gluten Free/Wheat Free Diet is Misleading

“Eating gluten free will help you lose weight.”
“I have more energy when I don’t eat wheat.”
“Wheat is not the same as it used to be. Our bodies can not process it                                       correctly.”
                                     “I don’t eat bread anymore.”

Does any of this sound familiar?
Some of this is partially true, but the rest is complete nonsense. This is why we get confused.

3 Key Things You Need to Know

1. Where I agree with Dr. Davis

            
           gluten free junk food

If you are eating gluten free, you need to avoid the processed gluten free products. Avoid the white rice crackers and snack foods as they are full of processed white rice flour. Avoid the wheat free cookies and cakes because they are still sweets!
Instead, make sure to choose these healthy food options: quinoa, brown rice, more fruits and vegetables, nuts and seeds, vegetable starches, beans, peas, other legumes, brown rice breads and flours, and gluten free oats.

2. Why Davis and other experts believe wheat is unhealthy

• One example I have for you is that we feed wheat to animals to fatten them up. Why would we want to fatten-up?
• The modern day wheat crop is less nutritious than it used to be. This is true with most big business food systems across the world.
• Most argue that this modern wheat crop does not digest well in our intestinal tract. This is not proven, simply a theory.

3. How people lose weight by avoiding wheat?

We find gluten and wheat is all mainstream food products out there. Any bread you get at a restaurant, most all cereals, and even condiments contain gluten.
By sticking to a wheat-free diet, you have to avoid a lot of tempting restaurant foods and desserts like donuts and pizza. You are almost forced to do more home cooking, and be more mindful of your eating. You have to check food labels. All of these actions result in weight loss, and it may just be from making better food choices overall.
FYI: 0.2-0.8% of people are estimated to have Celiac’s disease (a condition that means your body does not tolerate gluten).

Dr. Davis lectures about his diet

For the most part, the Wheat Belly diet is a sound plan, but you don’t need to follow it 100%. Just make sure to eat a healthier diet full of your fruits and vegetables, and you should do well.

I Still Eat Wheat and Gluten

However, I do not eat a lot of wheat. Instead, I choose more brown rice, sweet potatoes, rye crackers (they contain gluten), sprouted grains (which have a higher vitamin and mineral content), and quinoa. I generally don’t eat grocery store bread unless it is a sprouted grain bread or was baked recently at the bakery.
If you are going to eat wheat frequently, I recommend choosing a sprouted wheat or an ancient grain wheat (this means it is from a more nutritious wheat crop).
Do you eat wheat?

The Books

Dr. Davis currently has two Wheat Belly books available.
Wheat Belly which is available on Amazon.
The Wheat Belly Cookbook which is available on Amazon.