Wheat hip

10. August 2010 William Davis (39)
You've heard of wheat belly. How about wheat hip?

Recall that the innocent appearing wheat belly is actually a hotbed of inflammatory activity beneath the surface. The visceral fat of the wheat belly, i.e., fat kidneys, fat liver, fat intestines, fat pancreas, produces abnormal inflammatory signals, such as various interleukins, tumor necrosis factor, and leptin. These are the inflammatory signals that create insulin resistance and diabetes, heart disease, hypertension, and cancer.

These same inflammatory mediators are able to enter the joint spaces, such as those in your hips, knees, and hands. This leads to osteoarthritis, the exceptionally common form of arthritis that affects 1 in 7 Americans. In particular, the level of leptin in joints mirrors that in blood, a phenomenon that has been associated with joint destruction.

The previously widely-held notion that arthritis is simply a wear-and-tear phenomenon due to the mechanical stress of excess weight is proving to be an oversimplification. Arthritis is also part of the carbohydrate-driven, weight-increasing, inflammatory condition of insulin resistance or metabolic syndrome.

Throw into this cytokine storm the fact that glycation, i.e., glucose modification of proteins, also causes cartilage destruction. The cells of human cartilage lack the ability to divide, so the cartilage cells you had at age 18 are the cartilage cells that you will hopefully still have at age 80. However, high blood sugars (glucose) glycate the proteins in cartilage. (Wheat raises blood glucose higher than almost all other foods, higher than a Milky Way bar, higher than a Snickers bar.) The process is irreversible and cumulative. Because cartilage has next to no capacity for repair or regeneration, it becomes brittle. Over years, it essentially crumbles, leading to the "bone on bone" that prompts conversations about total hip and total knee replacement.

So that ciabatta or blueberry muffin in your mouth takes you a step or two closer to joint destruction via heightened inflammation arising from the visceral fat of the wheat belly, worsened by glycation of high blood sugars after carbohydrate consumption.

My solution: Lose the ciabatta.
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Comments (39) -

  • Anonymous

    8/10/2010 4:21:02 PM |

    how much daily carbs is a good amount to try to stay under?

    my high fiber cereal in the morning alone has 49g of carbs (7g sugar, 10g Fiber) and 10g protein,

  • Matt Stone

    8/10/2010 5:25:39 PM |

    Anonymous-

    I try to keep my carb intake above 500 grams per day - almost all unrefined starches. This causes instant fat loss, a drop in insulin levels due to improved insulin sensitivity, and reversal of metabolic syndrome in most people - hence why the leanest people on earth almost invariably eat a very high-carbohydrate starch-based diet, such as the Yuzuri Hara of Japan, the Kitavans, the Q'ero of the Andes, the Southest Asians, people all over subSaharan Africa, and other of the rare places on earth where obesity and metabolic syndrome is still exceedingly rare.

  • Anonymous

    8/10/2010 6:22:35 PM |

    Don't believe Matt Stone.  His current photos and videos show a bloated face and pot belly.  Photos from his low carb days reveal that he was much leaner back then.  He couldn't carve out a niche for himself as a low-carber so he switched tactics and became insanely anti-low-carb in order to create a name for himself.  Cynicism at it's absolute worst.  You would do well to ignore everything this guy has to say.

  • Tommy

    8/10/2010 7:08:19 PM |

    "Don't believe Matt Stone. His current photos and videos show a bloated face and pot belly. Photos from his low carb days reveal that he was much leaner back then. He couldn't carve out a niche for himself as a low-carber so he switched tactics and became insanely anti-low-carb in order to create a name for himself. Cynicism at it's absolute worst. You would do well to ignore everything this guy has to say."

    I have found that the internet in general is loaded with extremes. On one end you have the extreme of equating eating any grains or carbs with worshiping false gods while on the other, tiny bits of meat garnish loads of carbs. As always the answer is somewhere in the middle. Add to that personal requirements taking into account illness, body type, exercise, sensitivities or allergies etc and you can do well just "eating healthy" and exercising.
    I do find the Yuzuri Hara and their potato eating very interesting. Add to that the fact that you have 95 year olds smoking like chimney's and healthy as 20 year olds and it makes you wonder.
    Eat right, everything in moderation (even moderation) and no lab or factory created foods (refined/processed crap), exercise, the right intake of calories compared to the outgo of energy, and forget about extremes. There are many ways....mix and match.

  • Anonymous

    8/10/2010 9:06:16 PM |

    The native people in your list, Matt, lived much more labor-intensive lives than we here in the Western world.  That enabled them to burn off the blood sugar as it developed, before it had a chance to be deposited as fat.

    That was combined with the fact that, without industry available to refine the starches, they tended to absorb less of the energy from the food, leaving them hypocaloric.  It's easier to remain lean when you are in starvation mode.  Doesn't paint a rosy picture of life, however.

    The foods they ate, unrefined starches, are by design very nutrient-poor other than as glucose-storage methods.  Why would it seem logical to center one's diet BY CHOICE around such nutrient-poor foods, just because highly active people can mitigate their negative effects?

    If you have to choose between vitamin and mineral-rich foods which are inherently satiating, such as meat and fat, and fibrous starches which impose an energy load on the body which then must utilize emergency methods to mitigate their negative impact on blood sugar, I just don't understand why one would choose the latter.

    Yes, there have been primitives living in primitive societies which did not suffer as adverse effects from their starch-based existence as do we in the more affluent world, but that does not automatically mean that their method is superior.

  • Anonymous

    8/10/2010 10:16:20 PM |

    If one gets and uses a glucometer, what is revealed is how the body responds to a high carb diet. In my case, it reveals that a low carb diet the way to go. No seeking of the mean between the so-called extremes. For me, the high carb diets are just wrong. YMMV

    Trig

  • Tommy

    8/10/2010 11:14:43 PM |

    "If one gets and uses a glucometer, what is revealed is how the body responds to a high carb diet. In my case, it reveals that a low carb diet the way to go. No seeking of the mean between the so-called extremes. For me, the high carb diets are just wrong. YMMV"

    This is why I said depending on the individual and any preexisting conditions. But I said nothing about "high carb." Those aren't my words. "High carb" is an extreme. Of course your meter readings would be out of whack.  High carbs would probably get to me eventually also and I currently have no problems with carbs. Actually without some grains I would lose so much weight I'd fade away!! I train hard and my body requires a lot of food and I couldn't eat enough meat or protein alone to satisfy that. But moderate carb works well for me (and many people). (I don't eat processed foods or wheat or sugar) Middle of the road. In the post above that responds to Matt, there is mention of the natives burning off what they ate. That doesn't ring right with me. It seems too much like a justification "not to" exercise. "What can I eat that doesn't require me to move and burn it off?" Exercise might help balance a moderate eating style. "use" the fuel rather than saving it.

    For me...reading a meter everyday would be the same as weighing yourself everyday. When I have blood work done every 6 months and my glucose is fine I don't worry about what is going on daily. It's the average that counts.  Why stress about it? That's not good either. But as you say "YMMV" and we need to approach it as individuals. I tend to lose weight if I miss a meal. At one point I was consuming close to 4500 calories per day. But I work out a lot. Right now 3000 calories isn't cutting it and I keep losing weight. I need my rice (brown/soaked overnight), oats (soaked) and quinoa, sweet potatos.

  • stratis

    8/11/2010 12:12:49 AM |

    check out his current photos and videos---wheat face!! he's a schemester, that is for sure. lurks in these areas and pops out like a turd from a full bowel from time to time.  

    but then again Dr. D's face looks quite plump too. And he has never shown his body pictures..hmmmmm

  • Anonymous

    8/11/2010 2:25:29 AM |

    Dr, you have sold me

    Ten days without any wheat products, I never thought I could do it, thank you

  • Anonymous

    8/11/2010 2:35:14 AM |

    Dr. D,

    Please screen your responses and restrict the destructive kooks/vegans. They negate your message, and should start their own blogs rather than trashing other's.

    I suggest you also scrub portions of messages that are merely arguments with previous posters.

  • Anne

    8/11/2010 3:37:45 AM |

    When I stopped eating gluten 7 years ago, the first of many improvements I noticed was my knees no longer hurt. Slowly my fingers improved and the knobby look disappeared. Then my hip pain vanished.  I am 67 and I wake up with NO joint pain now. I use to hurt all over. There is no "moderate" amount of wheat that is safe for me.

  • V. Iagra

    8/11/2010 7:13:26 AM |

    The heart scan blog measure, track and reduce atherosclerotic plaque and gives the details of wheat hip.

  • Ed Terry

    8/11/2010 11:17:45 AM |

    I discovered that infrequent blood glucose measurements led me to a false sense of comfort.  Several times this year, I had laboratory blood glucose measurements and even after a low-carb meal, the level never rose above 100.

    Just for the heck of it, I ordered an HbA1c test and the result was 5.6 which corresponds to an average level of 114.  After that I spent a couple of weeks using a glucose meter to track my blood glucose around the clock for several weeks.  Interestingly enough, my blood glucose was always higher after a weightlifting session in proportion to the intensity of the workout.  For example, after back squats my blood glucose was 154.

    I also dicovered that different batches of blood glucose testing strips produce wildy different measurements, sometimes as much as 30 mg/dL between batches on the same meter.

  • Peter

    8/11/2010 12:15:55 PM |

    I stopped eating grain 5 weeks ago and I would like to test my lipid levels to see if there's any change.  Is it too soon?

  • Tommy

    8/11/2010 12:20:20 PM |

    @ Ed Terry

    Hi Ed
    Let me ask a stupid question (only because I tend to think of things in simple terms). When we have our blood pressure checked or take our pulse we do it at rest. We look for a resting (true) reading. There are other things we read at rest also. Why is it that we would take a reading for glucose after a meal that would naturally raise our levels? I would think that our concern would be what our body is doing at rest when there would be no reason (normally) for an elevated reading.  By your example and the reasoning I have been reading... cutting out that which makes your levels rise...it seems by the same logic you should not squat either.  Or lift weights?

  • Donna

    8/11/2010 3:55:55 PM |

    Dr. D....show us your wheatless body! It would be nice to see how a body looks without inflammation.

  • Tommy

    8/11/2010 4:40:05 PM |

    "Please screen your responses and restrict the destructive kooks/vegans. They negate your message, and should start their own blogs rather than trashing other's.

    I suggest you also scrub portions of messages that are merely arguments with previous posters."

    I have learned a lot from this site but a lot of it has been not only from the information here, but references to other sites.  The problem with blog comments or "screening" is that it then becomes very one sided. Without a flip side people take everything as gospel. But in actuality, for every great piece of evidence and data found here, or on any other site, there is just as convincing data in the opposite direction somewhere else. Once again I have to think the answer is somewhere in the middle. If a site like this had some "debate" and alternate views it might open up intelligent and helpful discussion rather than blind following.

  • Thumb

    8/11/2010 5:33:17 PM |

    Heart Health

    Heart Disease, in all of its various forms can be avoided.

  • David M Gordon

    8/11/2010 6:31:40 PM |

    Having a private argument with a doctor-friend who claims,

    "Niacin (nicotinic acid) comes in prescription form and as dietary supplements. Dietary supplement niacin is not regulated by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) the same way that prescription niacin is. It may contain widely variable amounts of niacin — from none to much more than the label states. The amount of niacin may even vary from lot to lot of the same brand.

    "Thus, dietary supplement niacin must not be used as a substitute for prescription niacin. It should not be used for cholesterol lowering because of potentially very serious side effects."


    Would (could) somebody knowledgeable please argue whether this doctor-friend is full of hot air, and merely protects his fiefdom...?

    Thank you in advance,

  • Onschedule

    8/11/2010 9:51:49 PM |

    @David M Gordon

    Dr. Davis has written a blog entry on this topic. Search for "niaspan" in the search box (upper left-ish corner). I believe it's about the third article down...

  • Anonymous

    8/11/2010 9:51:55 PM |

    Like Anne, I have found that removing grains from my diet has resulted in pain-free joints.  If I get "glutened" by mistake, I almost always respond with an inflammation in a large joint - shoulder, knee, even back - with heat and sharp pain.  Before a grain-free diet, I had what I thought were normal aches and pains in my finger joints.  Those are completely gone with a grain-free diet.

  • David M Gordon

    8/11/2010 10:53:31 PM |

    Thank you, Onschedule. Perfect!

    And thank you, Dr Davis.

  • stop smoking help

    8/12/2010 3:24:47 AM |

    Two days into my no wheat experiment and I'm not having any cravings like I thought. I probably have a lot of those wheat carbs still floating around.

    So far though, I think this may be easier than I first thought. Although, I might get tired of eggs for breakfast pretty soon, then what. Everything else has wheat (pancakes, waffles, cereal) and I'm allergic to oats. Maybe yogurt and fruit?

    Lunches and dinners are, so far so good. We'll see what happens.

  • Anna

    8/12/2010 11:30:07 PM |

    stop smoking health:

    re: what to eat for breakfast

    Rethink "breakfast".  The cereal companies have done a good job convincing Americans that breakfast is a sweet and starchy meal, but that isn't so around the world.   In Poland and other parts of Eastern and Northern Eastern Europe, I have happily enjoyed breakfasts that included salad or cut up vegetables, smoked or pickled fish, salami or sausage, cheese, as well as simple yogurt and fresh cut fruit.  

    How about some leftovers from the previous dinner?  

    When I'm in a hurry I make a Real Food high fat protein shake:  I blend together a couple raw eggs or egg yolks, a couple tablespoons of heavy cream or coconut milk, a tablespoon of Dutched cocoa powder, and either some water, crushed ice,  or cold coffee/espresso.  I don't sweeten my shakes, but they can be sweetened a little, too.  Frozen berries can be substituted for coffee and ice to change the flavor/add sweetness.  Plain whole fat yogurt is a nice tart probiotic addition, too.  Make it up the night before if needed and store in the fridge.  With practice and keeping the ingredients stocked, this shake is blended and cleaned up in less than 5 minutes.  

    My main point is to explore different ideas for breakfast and don't let the food processing companies define "breakfast" foods for you.  Redefine "breakfast" for yourself.

  • RaySolution

    8/13/2010 12:01:57 AM |

    Thanks for pointing out the connection between high carbs and inflammation of the joints.  I very much enjoyed the many comments and learned from them.

  • Tom

    8/13/2010 12:27:11 AM |

    Thanks to this blog I avoid wheat almost completely nowadays but for the sake of interest I would like to add a rejoinder: what should one replace the ciabatta with?

    People eat food to *get high* and maintain their moods as much as to supply their bodies with fuel and raw materials.

    So, in the absence of fundamental personal change, my guess is that the ciabatta is going to be replaced by:

    (a) more coffee,
    (b) more alcohol,
    (c) more getting angry,
    (d) drugs/painkillers, or
    (e) some other vice

    This is the cental issue of low-carb eating, in my opinion.

    The body and mind are part of a *system* which inclues the rest of the eater's life.

  • Vlado

    8/13/2010 12:56:34 AM |

    how about no breakfast in the morning, that is if you had a good dinner. Our energy should be the highest in the morning with cortisol and testosterone at the highest levels so any food just messes it up. This is something natural for us as I don't think our ancestors ate in the morning as they didn't have refrigeration, we are genetically predisposed eating later in the day. Only a few nuts or berries in the morning may be all right.

  • Anonymous

    8/13/2010 3:13:54 PM |

    "People eat food to *get high* and maintain their moods as much as to supply their bodies with fuel and raw materials."

    Blimey, never looked at it like that.

    What's your opinion of Sauerkraut?

  • Anonymous

    8/13/2010 3:30:46 PM |

    This just in:

    Low-carb diet causes profound increase in HDL cholesterol

    MedWire News: Long-term adherence to a low-carbohydrate diet is associated with marked improvements in lipid levels, in particular a large increase in levels of high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol, US researchers report.

    The low-carbohydrate diet was also associated with significant weight loss, leading the study authors to recommend the diet as a "viable option for obesity treatment for obese adults."

    Gary Foster (Temple University, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania) and colleagues undertook a randomized trial to compare the efficacy of a low-carbohydrate versus a low-fat diet, both of which were given alongside a comprehensive lifestyle modification program.

    http://lipidsonline.org/news/article.cfm?aid=9601

  • Tom

    8/13/2010 3:54:37 PM |

    >What's your opinion of Sauerkraut?

    It's been quite a while since I ate any, but, if memory serves, I don't think it's a particular favourite of mine Smile

    However, it might be a good example of how various sour and bitter foodstuffs have evolved into expensive delicacies within human culture.

    This is despite the fact that bitterness is a fairly reliable indicator of toxicity.

    Thus we do not eat foods directly for the sake of our bodies but for the the way we interpret the tastes and other internal sensations. It's a mental thing, and causes addiction for many of us I think.

  • Alex

    8/13/2010 6:40:41 PM |

    Sauerkraut? An expensive delicacy? It's just cabbage and salt!

    I make my own so that I can eat it raw. The recipe I use is a half-tablespoon of additive-free salt per pound of shredded cabbage. I make it in mason jars, with the lids tightened, loosening the lids once a day for the first 5 days to release the CO2 gas (loosening them only enough to release pressure but not allow air to get in.) I put the jars in the fridge after 3-5 days to finish aging.

  • Matsmurfen

    8/14/2010 1:02:14 PM |

    Matt Stone wrote:

    I try to keep my carb intake above 500 grams per day - almost all unrefined starches. This causes instant fat loss, a drop in insulin levels due to improved insulin sensitivity, and reversal of metabolic syndrome in most people

    WHAT A JOKE!  500g of carbs is 2000 kcal per day!  The body won't take the fat when it has that much carbs available... you need to get down to at least below 100g, perhaps as low as 20g...

    I must agree with others here - remove such comments or at least respond to it so it won't be uncontradicted.

  • Tommy

    8/14/2010 1:22:19 PM |

    Matsmurfen wrote:

    "I must agree with others here - remove such comments or at least respond to it so it won't be uncontradicted."

    I truly wish that rather than removing such posts there could be an open discussion. I think everyone would learn a lot more if such things were addressed and both sides dissected. Counterpoints from Dr. Davis would really be great. A lot of questions get raised here but never answered or addressed in any way. That can be potentially very bad because people read and then go of with half baked info. That could be dangerous.  What is needed here is a "forum" where these things can be discussed and many sides looked at.

  • Neonomide

    8/16/2010 12:58:04 AM |

    Ok, so here are so many wheat topics it's hard to know where to put stuff so that things get noticed.

    Regarding wheat and heart disease, Loren Cordain has written interesting pieces called “Whole Wheat Heart Attack” part 1 and 2. I found the second one on google:

    “Common dietary lectins are potent stimulators of
    inflammatory cytokines in white blood cell cultures20,21.
    In Figure 3 you can see that lectins
    from lentils, kidney beans, peas and WHEAT
    potently increase the production of inflammatory
    cytokines (IL-12, IL-2, and INFγ). WHEAT lectin
    (WGA) also stimulates production of two other
    inflammatory cytokines (TNFα and IL-1β)21 that
    promote the atherosclerotic process.”
    - -
    “Enzymes
    called matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs),
    secreted by white blood cells and other cells
    within the plaque, are known to cause collagen
    and elastic tissue within the fibrous cap to disintegrate.
    Consequently, any dietary or environmental
    factor which facilitates synthesis of MMPs
    is not a good thing for cardiovascular disease
    patients. Well guess what? Lectins from wheat,
    WGA22, and lectins from kidney beans, PHA23,
    cause tissue cultures of white blood cells to increase
    their production of MMPs.”
    - -
    “WHEAT lectin also influences
    the final and fatal step in
    atherosclerosis, the formation
    of a blood clot in an artery.
    Integral to the formation of
    clots are platelet cells, which
    circulate in the bloodstream..
    Platelets are normally activated when they contact
    collagen from a damaged blood vessel.
    WGA directly causes the activation of platelets
    and potently increases their aggregation
    (clumping) 24. Hence, the consumption of WHOLE WHEAT
    may be integral in the thinning and destruction
    of the fibrous cap as well
    as the formation of the fatal clot.”

    http://www.deflame.com/Portals/0/Wheat%20lectins,%20heart%20disease,%202008.pdf

  • Eva

    8/17/2010 4:17:11 AM |

    What is for breakfast?  (I think that was the original question).  I like a bit of fruit like berries and banana. Or I will put a bit of berries with coconut milk and blend it in the blender.  Bacon and/or eggs are always another option.  Cheese with a bit of meat or leftover meat from the day before works nicely.  Or a breakfast burrito with lowcarb tortilla. Or muffins made with almond butter and banana taste great with a slab of butter on top!  Another classic is a grapefruit half.

  • Anonymous

    8/18/2010 12:56:27 PM |

    Dr. Davis:
    Interesting article, in the NY Times about Moose and arthritis.Also about native American Indians, developement of arthritis on change of their nutrition to corn and food eaten by the misionaries.

    http://www.nytimes.com/2010/08/17/health/research/17moose.html?_r=1&hpw

    kasing12

  • Hans Keer

    8/18/2010 2:06:33 PM |

    Follow our series of posts: "Grains, the world would be better off without them" http://bit.ly/a8GqfY VBR

  • Anonymous

    8/18/2010 8:45:15 PM |

    Do you have a link to the study for your comment "Wheat raises blood glucose higher than almost all other foods, higher than a Milky Way bar, higher than a Snickers bar." as I would be interested in following up on this.

  • Dr. Berg effective diets plan

    9/2/2010 2:26:28 PM |

    You have an interesting topic with very interesting comments as well. I learned a lot. Thanks!

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