Wheat Belly #5

WHEAT BELLY

by William Davis M.D.

WHEAT AND ITS HEAD-TO-TOE DESTRUCTION OF HEALTH

Goodbye to Wheat, Goodbye to Diabetes

Maureen, a 63-year-old mother of three grown children and
grandmother to five, came to my office for an opinion regarding
her heart disease prevention program. She'd undergone two heart
catheterizations and received three stents in the past two years,
despite taking a cholesterolreducing statin drug.
Maureen's laboratory evaluation included lipoprotein analysis
that, in addition to low HDL cholesterol of 39 mg/dl and high
triglycerides of 233 mg/dl, uncovered an excess of small LDL
particles; 85 percent of all Maureen's LDL particles were
classified as small-a severe abnormality.

Maureen had also been diagnosed with diabetes two years earlier,
first identified during one of the hospitalizations. She had
received counselling on the restrictions of both the heart
"healthy" diet of the American Heart Association and the American
Diabetes Association diet. Her first introduction to diabetes
medication was metformin. However, after a few months she
required the addition of one, then another, medication (this most
recent drug a twice-a-day injection) to keep her blood sugars in
the desired range. Recently, Maureen's doctor had started talking
about the possibility of insulin injections.
Because the small LDL pattern, along with low HDL and high
triglycerides, are closely linked to diabetes, I counselled
Maureen on how to apply diet to correct the entire spectrum of
abnormalities. The cornerstone of the diet: wheat elimination.
Because of the severity of her small LDL pattern and diabetes, I
also asked her to further restrict other carbohydrates,
especially cornstarch and sugars, as well as oats, beans, rice,
and potatoes. (This severe a restriction is not necessary in most
people.)

Within the first three months of starting her diet, Maureen lost
28 pounds off her starting weight of 247. This early weight loss
allowed her to stop the twice-daily injection. Three more months
and 16 more pounds gone, and Maureen cut her medication down to
the initial metformin.
After a year, Maureen had lost a total of 51 pounds, tipping the
scale below 200 for the first time in 20 years. Because Maureen's
blood glucose values were consistently below 100 mg/dl, I then
asked her to stop the metformin. She maintained the diet,
followed by continued gradual weight loss. She maintained blood
glucose values comfortably in the nondiabetic range.
One year, 51 pounds lost, and Maureen said goodbye to diabetes.
Provided she doesn't return to her old ways, including plenty of
"healthy whole grains," she is essentially cured.

Wheat and Childhood Type (1) Diabetes

Prior to the discovery of insulin, childhood, or type 1, diabetes
was fatal within a few months of onset. Dr. Frederick Banting's
discovery of insulin was truly a breakthrough of historic
significance. But why do children develop diabetes in the first
place?
Antibodies to insulin, beta cells, and other "self" proteins
result in autoimmune destruction of the pancreas. Children with
diabetes also develop antibodies to other organs of the body. One
study revealed that 24 percent of children with diabetes had
increased levels of "autoantibodies," i.e., antibodies against
"self" proteins, compared to 6 percent in children without
diabetes. 27

The incidence of so-called adult (type 2) diabetes is increasing
in children due to overweight, obesity, and inactivity, the very
same reasons it is skyrocketing in adults. However, the incidence
of type 1 diabetes is also increasing. The National Institutes of
Health and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
cosponsored the SEARCH for Diabetes in Youth study, which
demonstrated that, from 1978 to 2004, the incidence of newly
diagnosed type 1 diabetes increased by 2.7 percent per year. The
fastest rate of increase is being seen in children under the age
of four. 28 Disease registries from the interval between 1990 and
1999 in Europe, Asia, and South America show a similar increase
.29

Why would type 1 diabetes be on the increase? Our children are
likely being exposed to something. Something sets off a broad
abnormal immune response in these children. Some authorities have
proposed that a viral infection ignites the process, while others
have pointed their finger at factors that unmask expression of
autoimmune responses in the genetically susceptible.
Could it be wheat?

The changes in the genetics of wheat since 1960, such as that of
high-yielding dwarf strains, could conceivably account for the
recent increased incidence of type 1 diabetes. Its appearance
coincides with the increase in celiac disease and other diseases.
One clear-cut connection stands out: Children with celiac disease
are ten times more likely to develop type 1 diabetes; children
with type 1 diabetes are ten to twenty times more likely to have
antibodies to wheat and/or have celiac disease .30,31 The two
conditions share fates with much higher likelihood than chance
alone would explain.
The cosy relationship of type 1 diabetes and celiac disease also
increases over time. While some diabetic children show evidence
for celiac disease when diabetes is first diagnosed, more will
show celiac signs over the ensuing years. 32

A tantalizing question: Can avoidance of wheat starting at birth
avert the development of type 1 diabetes? After all, studies in
mice genetically susceptible to type 1 diabetes show that
elimination of wheat gluten reduces the development of diabetes
from 64 percent to 15 percent 33 and prevents intestinal damage
characteristic of celiac disease . 34 The same study has not been
performed in human infants or children, so this crucial question
therefore remains unanswered.
Though I disagree with many of the policies of the American
Diabetes Association, on this point we agree: Children diagnosed
with type 1 diabetes should be tested for celiac disease. I would
add that they should be retested every few years to determine
whether celiac disease develops later in childhood, even
adulthood. Although no official agency advises it, I don't
believe it would be a stretch to suggest that parents of children
with diabetes should strongly consider wheat gluten elimination,
along with other gluten sources.

Should families with type 1 diabetes in one or more family
members avoid wheat from the start of life to avoid triggering
the autoimmune effect that leads to this lifetime disease called
type 1 diabetes? Nobody knows, but it's a question that truly
needs answering. The increasing incidence of the condition is
going to make the issue more urgent in the coming years.
..........

WE  ALL  NEED  TO  WAKE  UP  TO  THE  SAD  FACTS  AS  TO  WHAT
SCIENCE  HAS  DONE  TO  WHEAT  IN  THE  LAST  40  YEARS  OR  SO.
AND  PUT  THAT  TOGETHER  WITH  AN  OVER-EATING  OF  WHEAT
PRODUCTS  IN  MANY  FORMS.....WE  GOT  BIG  TROUBLES,  BIG  AS
IN  LITERALLY  AND  BIG  AS  IN  BIG  HEALTH  PROBLEMS,  IN  ANY
SOCIETY  THAT  EATS  MODERN  WHEAT  AND  OVER-EATS  IT,  EVEN  IN
SO-CALLED  WHOLE  WHEAT  IN  ALL  ITS  SO-CALLED  "GOOD"  FOR
YOU  FORMS.

YES  YOU  NEED  TO  HAVE  THIS  BOOK  "WHEAT  BELLY"  AND  BE
EDUCATED  ABOUT  MODERN  WHEAT  AND  OUR  OVER  CONSUMPTION  OF
IT.

A  YEAR  OR  SO  BACK  I  WAS  25  POUNDS  OVER  MY  WEIGHT
BRACKET.  I  WAS  AT  A  FRIEND'S  HOUSE  AND  WE  GOT  TALKING
ABOUT  WEIGHT.  MY  FRIEND  PULLED  OUT  A  FANCY  SCALE  AND  TO
MY  SHOCK  I  WAS  25  POUNDS  HEAVIER  THAN  I'D  EVER  BEEN  IN
MY  ENTIRE  LIFE.  I'D  ALREADY  CUT  OUT  EATING  THE  POTATO
(LOVED  THE  BAKED  POTATO  WITH  BUTTER), POPCORN,  AND  NEVER
WAS  INTO  EATING  THINGS  LIKE  SPAGHETTI,  OR  PIZZA.  SO  I
THOUGHT  WHAT  DO  I  STILL  EAT  QUITE  A  BIT  OF....  WHEAT,
YES  IN  WHOLE  WHEAT,  THINKING  I  WAS  EATING  GOOD  HEALTHY
NATURAL  WHOLE  WHEAT.  SO  I  GAVE  IT  UP  AND.....LOST  25
POUNDS  IN  THREE  MONTHS!!