There is a lot of confusion surrounding the topic of gut health, grains, and inflammation. We think it is important to address why your Genesis plan does not include grain. We have had to field questions on grains frequently over the years, because they continue to be a major staple in the American diet. So, the American population is getting sicker, not healthier, as a result.
Going 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 they have a lot of cross-contamination from wheat fields.
Anecdotal evidence supporting the benefits for many who have eliminated grains.
This is not surprising when you consider that 10 of the top 25 American foods consumed today are grain-based foods – and the worst kind, at that. Desserts are the top grain-based foods in America with breads coming in second. I’m sure cereals are close behind.
Reason’s some people struggle with gluten.
- The way we have modified and altered it over the years.
- Others may have a problem with leaky gut.
- Issues from the weed killer glyphosate, also known as Roundup. This is genetically sewn into the DNA of the wheat (so therefore, a GMO food).
- Issues from glyphosate that is also sprayed on wheat at harvest to desiccate or dry it out to prevent mold or as a preharvest treatment to speed ripening.
Problematic proteins in grains that disrupt gut health.
Two proteins (lectins and serpinins) can do the same thing as gluten. Dr. Peter Osborne is one of the most sought-after functional medicine doctors in the country. He is the author of the best-selling book, No Grain, No Pain.
Dr Osborne says that seeds, when consumed, get into our gut and into the fecal material, then they come out the other end intact. 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.
Therefore, if you already have gut issues compromised because of autoimmunity, you have to avoid these things as part of the process of healing the gut.
Gut health issues due to antibiotic overuse, toxins, etc.
- 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.
- Glyphosate (aka Roundup), and atrazine, which are herbicides and pesticides known to disrupt the gut tight junctions that keep particles from crossing the gut barrier into the body, and you create damage to the GI tract.
- 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.
Inflammation from grains.
If you are gluten sensitive, then the inflammatory process that ensues, actually shifts the hormones in favor of excessive cortisol, which can increase insulin, thereby making it easier to store central fat
What has been called “grainbesity” has to do with so many grains being highly-processed and highly-glycemic. They trigger blood sugar that alters hormones. If the grain creates an inflammatory response, it will shift those hormones to try and combat the inflammation, which in turn, will drive up blood sugar.
Cortisol and inflammation connection.
Every time cortisol (your stress hormone) increases to fight inflammation, it tells the liver to dump sugar into your blood stream, so that you just have to make more insulin to compensate for that sugar. Then insulin stores your food as fat. It puts you into a vicious hormonal cycle.
This is why people who are under chronic stress, even if not food related, gain weight. Cortisol is produced under stress and it eats into their muscles, slowing their metabolic rate. They can eat the same amount of food, but because their muscle is diminished, they don’t burn fat the same. In fact, it leads to fat storage.
There is no alternative to eating real, whole foods.
Look, once again, there is no silver bullet. There is no alternative to eating real, whole foods to lose weight and prevent disease. Quick weight loss by restricting calories, eating low-calorie prepackaged food with poor ingredients, and taking drugs or shots to cut off your hunger signals will never create health.