THE EFFECTS OF WHEAT AND OTHER GRAINS ON YOUR HEALTH – Part I

There is so much confusion with the topic of grains. Perhaps we should start by talking about what it looks like to be grain-free. It not only involves excluding wheat products - which have a myriad of variations like semolina and durum (which you usually see in pastas), spelt, farina, graham, rye, barley and malt, as well as others; but, also, in gluten-free grains like corn, rice and oats. Oats don’t normally contain gluten, however, today there is a lot of cross-contamination from wheat fields.

Some may struggle with gluten because of the way we have modified and altered it over the years. Others may have a problem with leaky gut – or it can be due to the weed killer glyphosate, also known as Roundup, genetically sewn into the DNA of the wheat (so therefore, a GMO food) and also sprayed on it at harvest to desiccate or dry it out to prevent mold or as a preharvest treatment to speed ripening.

If you have a genetic marker that shows sensitivity to gluten, which means that when your immune system comes into contact with gluten, then your body’s response will be to produce an inflammatory mediator to destroy the gluten so it doesn’t harm you, then that is a genetic issue for you.

Dr. Peter Osborne – one of the most sought-after functional medicine doctors in the country, and author of the best-selling book, No Grain, No Pain. He states, “Grains, by definition, are the seed of grasses. They are designed to protect and preserve their own species. They do not want to be your food.”

He goes on to say that seeds, when consumed, get into our gut and into the fecal material, then they come out the other end intact. You’ve all known this to be true with birds especially, but it is true overall. Seeds have ready-made fertilizer already there in the gut, so they can perpetuate their own species. Hence, they have developed protective mechanisms for survival, by use of these proteins, that shut down digestion – it’s built into the seed.

These protective mechanisms alter the gut lining so that they aren’t digested into extinction. That is the role of these hard to digest lectins and serpinins in the grains/seeds. This is why most people with autoimmune diseases don’t do well with grains or other seeds. They also eliminate legumes for the same reason – they are a form of seed.

Not everyone is gluten sensitive, but about up to 40% of the population is. Our gut bacteria also play a big role in grain digestion. They can actually digest the grain for us – not the body digesting the grain itself.

Then you have the issue of so many with gut problems due to antibiotic overuse, toxins, etc., so that digestion is again hampered. We are exposed to antibiotics in conventional meats (which is why we prefer organic, grass-fed meats), antibiotics as medicines, as well as a host of other medications that can disrupt the gut. 

Then you add in glyphosate or Roundup, and atrazine, which are herbicides and pesticides known to disrupt the gut tight junctions and create damage to the GI tract. You also have mold – one of the biggest problems in mass farming is mold and mycotoxins. They are highly poisonous to the gut. So, people who over-consume grain, even without a gluten sensitivity, can react to the mycotoxin within the grain.

There is no alternative to eating real, whole foods to lose weight and prevent disease. Next week we will look at the lack of balance in Omega-3 & Omega-6 ratio’s, carbohydrate content of grain, and how grain increases the rise of cortisol.