Performance Health and ChiropracticPerformance Health and Chiropractic On a weekly basis, we will be sharing health tips on high-interest topics. We hope you will find them educational and helpful. As always, we encourage you to contact Dr. Kirk for more information. Whole Wheat Is Good For Your Health…Or is it? Hello there everyone!! Dr. Mike here! As you are reading this I am attending a seminar in California! So get ready for me to drop some new life changing knowledge on you when I get back J!! Wheat…..Wheat…..Wheat….Where do I start? By now you know my stance on this grain. If you want to stay healthy then keep wheat out of your diet. Wheat is one of the most commonly consumed grains in the world and makes up a substantial part of the American diet. One of the biggest myths in health care is that whole wheat is good for you. Wheat contains anti-nutrients like lectins and gluten which have been found to cause chronic inflammation and autoimmune diseases (ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23482055). Remember that chronic inflammation is linked to most of our chronic diseases like heart disease, Alzheimer’s, high cholesterol, stroke, joint pain, obesity, diabetes, inflammatory digestive disorders and the list goes on. Wheat causes inflammation which leads to chronic disease. Still think wheat is good for you? The next time you are in the supermarket, especially in the middle of the store where all of the processed “foods” are located, take a look at the advertising and marketing that goes on the packaging. Most of these products like cereals, breads and crackers highlight the fact that they contain whole wheat! They also go on to state that this whole wheat/grains help reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease. The American Heart Association’s website states the following: “Including whole grains in your diet is a great way to clean your arteries of fats, and they keep you feeling full so you avoid over eating.” Sorry folks but including whole wheat in your diet will lead you down the path of inflammation which ultimately leads to chronic diseases like obesity and heart disease. I work with people daily who consume large amounts of wheat and as a result they are obese, diabetic, high cholesterol, diabetes and just not feeling good. When we omit the wheat they begin the process of recovering their health! It’s amazing to watch! A study in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition found that adding whole wheat to one’s diet adversely impacted their lipid profile (ajcn.nutrition.org/content/76/2/351.full). The translation is that wheat increased the “bad” fat markers in the blood which increases your risk for a cardiovascular event. If you were to omit wheat from your diet you would not die from malnourishment, a vitamin deficiency or from low fiber. In fact you would be healthier as a result. We have been led to believe that we must include whole wheat in our diet to ensure that we receive ample fiber and vitamins. FALSE! If your dietary focus is on whole foods like lean protein, veggies, fruits, nuts/seeds and healthy fats you will intake plenty of vitamin/minerals as well as fiber. More nutritional sources of fiber besides wheat include: Legumes: chick peas, navy beans, lentils, kidney beans Veggies: broccoli, cabbage, beans, greens, sweet potatoes Fruit: berries, apples, oranges, figs, avocados Seeds: chia, flax, pumpkin, sunflower Nuts: Almonds, hazelnuts, pine nuts Many of the foods listed above are not just rich in fiber but are also rich in numerous vitamins/minerals and other healthy phytonutrients. If you are serious about getting healthy then I suggest that you drop the wheat. There are no long-term benefits associated with this supposedly “healthy” “food”. Would you like to find out for yourself? Try my 14 day challenge where we omit wheat and other several unhealthy foods, supply nutrients needed for healing and watch the “magic” happen. You’ll be amazed how good you can feel when you get rid of the bad “stuff” and replace it with the good “stuff”.
Posted on: Mon, 23 Sep 2013 19:02:59 +0000
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