Do you eat wheat? I thought so.

2. September 2011 William Davis (85)
I'm itching to say that face-to-face to anyone from the wheat industry--agribusiness, baking, retail distribution . . . anybody. Because it's obvious; it's written on the face . . . and belly, and brain, and knees, and hips. And I believe I will soon have the opportunity.

Taking such a controversial stand in my new book, Wheat Belly, i.e., that wheat products, whole or refined, have NO ROLE IN THE HUMAN DIET whatsoever, was bound to provoke criticism and counterattacks. The wheat world has already taken a blow to the chin with the growing popularity of the (misguided) gluten-free movement and they're going to have to get into the business of media damage control.

Take a look at this press release from the Grain Foods Foundation:

RIDGWAY, COLO. — The Grain Foods Foundation has unveiled plans to counter media publicity attracted by “Wheat Belly.”

“Mullen, working with key members of the Grain Foods Foundation’s scientific advisory board, is addressing ‘Wheat Belly’ through proactive media outreach and its ongoing rapid response program,” said Ashley Reynolds, a Mullen account executive. “In particular, the public relations team will be contacting health and nutrition reporters at print and on-line media outlets, as well as editors at major women’s magazines to influence any diet-related stories that may be published in the coming months.”

. . . Ms. Reynolds, a registered dietitian, noted the author relies on anecdotal observations rather than scientific studies; wheat elimination “means missing out on a wealth of essential nutrients;” six servings of grain-based foods are recommended daily in the Dietary Guidelines for Americans; healthy weight loss depends on energy balance rather than elimination of specific foods; and elimination of wheat products makes sense only for those with medical diagnoses such as celiac disease or gluten sensitivity.

She said the group will lean on its scientific advisory board members to “discredit the book and ensure our messages are backed by sound science. “

Here's some of their starting salvos on their Six Servings Blog.

This reminds me of the fight with Big Tobacco in the '70s: "No, sir, we in the tobacco industry know of no research demonstrating that smoking is bad for health," complete with shots of tobacco executives puffing away on cigarettes.

So brace yourself for a fight. These people are protecting a multi-billion dollar franchise, not to mention their livelihoods and incomes. It could get ugly.
Tags :

Comments (85) -

  • Peter Silverman

    9/2/2011 3:32:14 PM |

    I don't eat wheat, at your suggestion.  But while it's clear to me that processed foods are a huge health problem, it's not clear to me if the biggest problem is wheat, or sugar, or processed meat, or processed vegetable oils, or some other problem due to factory food production.  It does seem like cultures with traditional diets are better off before they start eating American processed foods, but I don't know of any research that pinpoints the problem.

  • Linda

    9/2/2011 3:57:05 PM |

    @Peter
    Good point, however, I feel that if a person DOES give up all wheat products and then sees/feels a dramatic change in their body or the control of a particular disease or just a feeling of improved over-all well being, then something is definitely going on.

    The older I get, the less confidence I have in either the majority of physicians I see or in the advice/guidelines from my government.

  • Amy

    9/2/2011 4:23:17 PM |

    This reaction just means you're onto something important.  Keep fighting the good fight!  Loved your interview on The Paleo Solution this week.  I ordered your book and can't wait to read it.

  • Melissa

    9/2/2011 4:37:46 PM |

    On the Six Servings blog they write, "Cutting out one specific food is not only unrealistic, it’s dangerous. Omitting wheat entirely removes the essential (and disease-fighting!) nutrients it provides including fiber, antioxidants, iron and B vitamins."

    . . . um, yeah . . . because you can't get fiber, antioxidants, iron or B vitamins *anywhere* else. How uninformed do they think people are?

  • Chowstalker

    9/2/2011 4:52:35 PM |

    Dr. Davis, I'm really curious, what do you mean by the "misguided" gluten-free movement?

  • Mike

    9/2/2011 5:09:08 PM |

    I am looking forward to reading your book and adding it to my growing health-related library of books. I just visited that blog you referenced and here is something they stated,
    “Dietary Guidelines for Americans, the gold standard of scientifically-sound nutritional advice…”

    That is laughable...if it wasn't so scary when you think about it's implications.
    Keep up the good work!

  • Patty Amidon

    9/2/2011 5:09:15 PM |

    I received my copy of  "Wheat Belly"  yesterday. It is even better than I expected Dr. Davis. Very readable and amusing too. You have really started a fire storm and you have alot of people behind you including me!

  • Tyler

    9/2/2011 5:10:07 PM |

    I am doubting this comment will make it past the moderation on the SixServings.org website, but here is what I posted (all of which I believe is absolutely true):

    I haven’t read Wheat Belly, but this quote strikes me as odd:

    “Omitting wheat entirely removes the essential (and disease-fighting!) nutrients it provides including fiber, antioxidants, iron and B vitamins.”

    What about the lectins, phytates, gluten, and blood-sugar elevation?

    Please correct me if I’m wrong, but can’t you simply get more fiber, more antioxidants, more iron, and more B vitamins (amongst others) from fruits and veggies? Without them being fortified and bound up with the anti-nutritious phytates in our digestive system?

  • Daren

    9/2/2011 5:10:53 PM |

    Chow -- Dr. Davis has talked a lot about most "gluten-free" foods are almost as bad as wheat.  In other words, the replacement grains they use to make "gluten-free" baked products (pizza, bread, cereal, etc.) are just not good for you.  Of course, if you just stick to whole foods - fruit, veggies, nuts, meat - primarily found in the outer supermarket aisles, you can be gluten free and healthy.
    I also loved the assertion that cutting classes of food is "unrealistic."  Huh?  it is very easy to do, provided you want to.  I quit cold turkey on a dime last year after following the Paleo movement (primarily Art Devaney) and once I noticed how much better I felt -- especially with no wheat and grains -- I was motivated to continue to quit.  I don't feel "cheated" or "deprived".  I feel liberated.  Keep up the great work, Dr. Davis.

  • Dave, RN

    9/2/2011 5:27:25 PM |

    Yup. Next door neighbor works for one of the largest bakeries in the US here in Fort Worth Texas.  And yes, it shows.

  • Dave, RN

    9/2/2011 5:43:25 PM |

    I'll bet my comment on their website doesn't make it either. Funny how their post was days ago yet there are no comments. I wonder how many they've removed? All of them... either that or people aren't jumping in to sing the praises of grains.

  • fredt

    9/2/2011 5:59:22 PM |

    If there was no evidence, the grain lobby would be in a legal process to shut you down, not a media process of discrediting. Keep up the fine work.

    No sugar, no grain, no omega 6 oil.

  • Chowstalker

    9/2/2011 6:10:29 PM |

    Thanks Daren, I thought that might be it, but wasn't quite sure.

  • Princess Dieter

    9/2/2011 6:12:23 PM |

    I put a review up as fast as I could at Amazon, convinced 3 folks already (they bought the book). Last night my sister calls me that she read about Wheat Belly in Woman's World and is gonna try the wheat free thing to see how she feels, as she looked back at her life and realized whenever she gave up bread, she felt BETTER. (This after weeks of me pleading with her to try gluten free, as she and my other sister both have lupus, I have Hashimoto's and asthma/allergies, and our family is riddled with auto-immune stuff. She'd been tested "allergic" to wheat ages ago.) So, hopefully, the message really branches out. I just want my family to get better. As the third of three sisters, two with lupus, and a mom dead from auto-immune aplastic anemia, and a niece sans hair with alopecia, if we can tame the autoimmune beast, we'd do ourselves a huge service.

    Thanks for the good word.

  • cancerclasses

    9/2/2011 6:14:28 PM |

    @Tyler @Melissa,  Fruits and vegetables aren't much better than grains for mineral bioavailability again because they are locked up by phytates, and vitamin content of fruits & vegies is lower today than 50 years ago because of the nutrient depleted soils they are grown in.

    Just Google 'Phytates are Mineral Magnets', here's a cut & paste:    "Iron and other minerals required for cellular respiration aren’t usable by humans if they are ingested in plant or vegetable foods, because plants contain phytates. Phytates biochemically lock up the minerals with the plant fiber, rendering them unusable. This makes minerals, as well as the fiber, UNUSABLE BY HUMAN cells. That’s why it was shown, and reported in the “Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 2000,71:446-471,” that WOMEN EATING THE MOST FIBER AND THE LOWEST AMOUNT OF FAT HAD 20% LOWER CALCIUM RETENTION.

    Eating meat did NOTHING to increase colon cancer risk. Yet this shocking result hasn’t been reported in the popular press. “Fiber fiction” has run rampant in America for many years.

    An exceptional article was written for the general public in 1997 by “Albion Research Notes – A Compilation of Vital Research Updates on Human Nutrition”, Albion Laboratories, Clearfield, UT (Vo.. 6, No. 2, June 1997). Here is what it said:

    “Natural sources of fiber, such as cereals and fruits, generally have a DEPRESSING EFFECT on absorption of minerals such as calcium, iron, zinc, and copper.” Imagine taking mineral supplements and still going into a negative balance for the very minerals that are being supplemented! Too few of us saw this important paper.

    Minerals can’t be separated from the fiber in human digestion so, because you aren’t a cow with four stomachs designed to accomplish that difficult task, you can’t make effective use of the minerals in plants. “Consumer Reports on Health” reported on this – in fact, the magazine actually published the statement that eating spinach was worthless for obtaining necessary iron. It’s “in there” but not usable for a human being.

    We keep getting misled with what sounds good, but isn’t based on science.

    Phytates TAKE OUT MINERALS (the respiratory co-enzymes Dr. Warburg speaks of) – JUST THE OPPOSITE of what we desire and require to avoid contracting cancer.

    Think of fiber as bad “mineral magnets”, removing the precious minerals from your body and inhibiting oxygen transfer through the blood, whereas Essential Fatty Acids  are the good “oxygen magnets” helping bring an abundance of needed oxygen into your cells."

  • Dave, RN

    9/2/2011 7:01:21 PM |

    Huh, that's funny. All my comments on the sixservings grain website got deleted. Must be a technical glitch.

  • Rob K

    9/2/2011 7:11:55 PM |

    It's called "Reasoned Discourseâ„¢". It's what happens when organizations make claims on their blog, and the other side shows up with overwhelming logic and scientific evidence that pounds them into the ground. It's pretty obviously broken out there.

  • cancerclasses

    9/2/2011 7:30:23 PM |

    @Peter Silverman;  There's plenty of research out there if you know how to look for it or if you have  sources you can trust to give you the real truth and scientifically solid references.  

    Also you must realize that the term "biggest problem" is relative to time and degree of disease progression, in other words it depends on how fast and how bad you want to get sick or suffer the effects of an industrial foods diet.  For my money the "food" that is the biggest problem in having the most immediate negative effect on humans is the nutrient depleted & stripped white flour used in ALL processed "foods" that is known to cause severe dental decay and physical degeneration and under development as was clearly established by Weston Price in his 1938 book "Nutrition and Physical Degeneration."  To see the entire book for free just google 'nutrition and physical degeneration online', it's the first result, and at least look at the pictures and read the captions to see how the effects of processed "foods" can be seen with the outcome of just the next pregnancy!  Both wheat flours and sugars are carbs, and as ALL carbs reduce to glucose molecules they are essentially one and the same, which is why a diet high in just breads even from the much lauded whole grains can quickly rot your teeth.  In the section about the Arctic Inuit in his book, Weston Price details how the Inuit eating their native diet would go their entire lives and only get maybe one or two dental cavities, and their teeth would eventually repair themselves and get even harder as the people got older.  

    As bad as the almost immediate physical degeneration effects of industrial flours are, the other "biggest problem" has to be the toxic, adulterated, pre-oxidized trans molecule fats in partial & fully hydrogenated vegetable oils that are KNOWN to be a direct cause of cancer and arterial plaque formation.  Can't find it now but I once saw a chart somewhere overlaying the use of trans fat vegetable oils & margarines with the incidence rates of cancer & heart disease since the introduction of the bad oils into processed "foods" around 1920 and the curves matched almost exactly.  The problem with industrial oils is that the latency period of cancer and heart disease progression due to trans fat intake is measured in decades, so people tend to not see the association of those diseases with those oils until they are shown the facts, such as the fact that at the turn of the century in 1900 when most people subsisted on a pre industrial  "farm style" diet of eggs, butter & whole milk & cream, cancer and heart disease affected only 3 percent of the population and obesity was only 5 percent (google 'margarine vs. butter newsflash' see the top hit).

    As for processed meats just google ' avoiding nitrates in foods is unnecessary', you'll see this:  "No one mentions that nitrate is naturally occurring in greens such as lettuce and spinach. The article, “Bad Rap for Nitrate: Infamous Preservative Maj Help Defend Against Bacteria,” by J.R. Minkel, Scientific American Biochemistry Section, September 2004, page 24, details that “they” were wrong again and sets the record straight. It was known in 1994, that the stomach contains lots of nitric oxide. Nitric oxide kills germ in the bloodstream. Therefore, it is obvious that nitrate is a helpful substance. Why this has taken ten years to be publicized is astounding, Here are some key points from the article:

    ” … [D]ietary nitrate is actually part of the body’s inherent defense against infection ….

    “Bacteria in the mouth convert nitrate to nitrite, which gets swallowed, so the stomach can naturally produce nitric oxide …. “

    ”’We’ve gone from considering all of these things to be toxic and carcinogenic to realizing that [nitrates are] playing a fundamental homeostatic role [safe and required, and NOT cancerous],’ says microbiologist Ferric Fang of the University of Washington.” (Emphasis added.)"

    Hope that answers your question and helps round out the nutritional picture.  Live long and prosper.

  • Renfrew

    9/2/2011 7:32:44 PM |

    "Wheat Belly" arrived today at my door (in Germany). Great reading and a real eye opener. I am distributing the message here as well and will loan the book to others. Would make a good candidate for translating into other languages. How about Nihongo?
    Renfrew

  • Dr. William Davis

    9/2/2011 7:55:08 PM |

    Thanks, Amy! Be sure to come back and share your impressions.

  • Dr. William Davis

    9/2/2011 7:56:22 PM |

    Hi, Chow--
    I was referring to the terrible practice of replacing wheat/gluten with cornstarch, rice starch, tapioca starch, and potato starch that make you diabetic, give you cataracts, arthritis, and heart disease. We should be eating wheat-free and low-carb.

  • Gary

    9/2/2011 8:08:05 PM |

    Dr. Davis, is it true that there are no sound scientific studies referenced in the book that support your case?

  • Steve Brecher

    9/2/2011 8:17:09 PM |

    I haven't looked at the book, but I have the same question.

    I've been a subscriber to this blog for a while, and I recall when Dr. Davis solicited reader experiences, along the lines of, "if you stopped eating wheat and it helped your health let me know!" I don't recall any solicitations along the the lines of, "if you stopped eating wheat and nothing happened, let me know!"  In sum, I suspect that the grains marketing group's criticism of the book's advice being based on anecdotal evidence may be substantially correct.

    I should mention that for a variety of reasons, I don't eat wheat.

  • Don

    9/2/2011 10:11:34 PM |

    Are there studies to show the current version of wheat is safe? It would seem to me the burden is on the produce of a new food.

  • Don

    9/2/2011 10:12:38 PM |

    Make that "producer of a new food"

  • Might-o'chondri-AL

    9/2/2011 11:03:07 PM |

    Hi cancerclasses,
    Maybe (?) you'd like last week's Oncogen journal's full "Dynamic epigenetic regulation of ... tumorigenesis" ,see  http://www.nature.com/onc/journal/vaop/
    current/full/onc2011383a.html

  • Dr. William Davis

    9/2/2011 11:43:16 PM |

    Hi, Don-

    Absolutely none. Of course, wheat lobby defending the status quo will quote the studies that say things like replacing white flour products with whole grains yields less diabetes, heart disease, hypertension, and colon cancer--that is indeed true. What they fail to ask is what happens when you replace wheat products with NO wheat products? The products of "traditional breeding methods" have also been assumed to be safe for human consumption, essentially no questions asked.

  • Dr. William Davis

    9/2/2011 11:44:24 PM |

    Noted. However, Steve, I would reserve judgement until you read the book. It is not just a compilation of anecdotes; all the science is laid out as plain as day.

  • Dr. William Davis

    9/2/2011 11:46:41 PM |

    Hi, Gary--

    No, of course not. There are several hundred relevant references over 16 pages. And that was just a partial compilation of the literature already published.

  • Serge

    9/3/2011 12:09:46 AM |

    I think you need to package your book with Tom Naughton's "Fat Head" movie.  It could be the Fat Head/Wheat Belly combo!

    (Seriously.)

  • LINDA

    9/3/2011 12:30:17 AM |

    Dear Doctor Davis,
    I'm so glad that  you've published your book. I will be buying it for myself and others. Also,my library is waiting for it to come in, 5 people are waiting for it!.  I have a calcium score of 206. I HAVE HASHIMOTO THYROID and b 12 intrinsic factor problems,,,I HAVE ALSO HAD LYME DISEASE AND BABESIA A FEW YEARS AGO ,,I have been wheat (and grain -free) since 4/11 and I'm down to 130 pound (from 150) and with a thyroid problem.....this is amazing.  MY lipids have dropped significantly .  Thank you...I hope to contact your office to look at my NMR in the future....Linda

  • Might-o'chondri-AL

    9/3/2011 1:29:21 AM |

    Wheat adherents are mostly orientated to a nutritional perspective; and so miss out on Doc's point that unique byproducts of wheat digestion affect the brain, irregardless of one's intestinal and/or metabolic response. His clinical results seem to indicate that some wheat digestion byproducts acting in the brain influence the gene BDNF (brain derived neuro-trophic factor) to either encode different proteins for expression &/or down-regulate the DNF total output; BDNF is inherently related to being overweight and obesity (but not "morbid" obesity).

    BDNF experimentally  injected into the cerebral ventricle affects circulating triglycerides,  the size of adipocytes and most importantly visceral fat mass ( see Doc's recent 27 Aug post "Good Fat Bad Fat" for orientation on non-nutritional relevance of visceral fat). When there is more BDNF produced the lower the blood glucose levels go and the more peripheral insulin sensitivity improves; as well as the less visceral fat there is. The mechanism whereby BDNF expression works is  apparently via a cortico-trophin releasing hormone (CRH)-urocotin-CRH R2 pathway in the hypo-thalamus PVN (para-ventricular nucleus). Nutritional needs on a fad diet isn't the same as practicing medicine; Doc elsewhere said no one diet is right for every person (nor all life long, I'd add).

  • Kurt

    9/3/2011 2:17:32 AM |

    My comment at sixservings.org has also not appeared.

  • Tracy

    9/3/2011 2:52:59 AM |

    Dr. Davis,  What do you think of The Esselstyn diet?  They are making some of the same claims you are but with a different diet with about the only thing the same is to eat lots of fresh vegetables.

  • Might-o'chondri-AL

    9/3/2011 3:17:20 AM |

    2 days ago in  "Adipose Tissue Dysregulation in Patients with Metabolic Syndrome" from Sept.  Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism lead author ( I. Jialal, 34 years in endocrinology , quote) " ... some body fat may actually be toxic. .. dysfunction in the fat of people with metabolic syndrome is more than can be explained by obesity. " Report shows when fat cells outgrow their supply of blood those cells have macrophage crusts crowning them; the macrophage inflammation has cardiovascular implications. Team previously found those with metabolic syndrome visceral fat have less endothelial progenitor cells to preserve blood vessel lining functional integrity.

  • Chuck

    9/3/2011 3:25:21 AM |

    I like how Ashley at SixServings.org infers in her statement that being a vegan or vegetarian in "not only unrealistic, but dangerous." And she's their crack PR person - what a joke. Wheat Brain!

  • Helen

    9/3/2011 3:38:06 AM |

    I so need to get your book.  I test positive for the DNA that leads to Celiac disease and was diagnosed with IBS (before I went low-carb, now I'm symptom-free).

    My only concern is my kids.  They have my genes, LOL.  Is there a resource for feeding them properly so they're not getting wheat, or spelt, but still get to eat "bready" style things?  Basically I guess I mean a cookbook.

  • pam

    9/3/2011 4:17:01 AM |

    yes, this book deserved to be translated into multiple languages!
    am going to order one!
    my colleagues won't believe me that "wheat is evil" & causes "man boobs" & belly.

  • Steve L AU

    9/3/2011 5:06:23 AM |

    comments I just posted (awaiting moderation) at Six Sevings:


    No Comments
    Steve L says:
    Your comment is awaiting moderation.
    September 3, 2011 at 4:45 am
    So, cutting wheat is not a cure all for coeliac disease??

    Well, I have coeliac disease.

    Sure, there are other sources of gluten in western diets, but wheat is by far the most important source…by a country mile.

    So, maybe cutting wheat is not a cure all for coeliac disease, but it goes pretty damn close.

    Steve L AUS 20110903.14.45

    Reply
    Steve L says:
    Your comment is awaiting moderation.
    September 3, 2011 at 4:58 am
    …further to my comment (above) regarding the nonsense in this article about coeliac disease, let’s also consider the value of wheat (and other grains) for various nutrients.

    Look at nutrient density tables. Wheat is only a good/cheap source of energy/calories, especially if your government subsidises its production. Maybe fibre too, depending on how heavily its processed. As to other nutrients, its a pretty poor source compared to vegetables and meat (incl poultry and fish).

    This is without getting into more contentious issues such as whether wheat (and other grains) damage the gut of even non-coeliacs, causing leaky guy syndrome and possibly being involved in the pathogenesis of some autoimmune diseases….

    Then there is the high glycaemic load wheat provides in the diet, with metabolic consequences.

    Remember too that there is not unanimity amongst experts regarding official dietary guidelines: far from it. So, you can’t reasonably appeal to a consensus among experts.

    But leave that aside, and also the damage it does to coeliacs (I was VERY ill for 10 years because of wheat), wheat is a pretty poor source of nutrients apart from calories.

    Steve L Australia 20110902.1500

  • rhinoplasty

    9/3/2011 7:52:58 AM |

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  • Michia

    9/3/2011 10:20:56 AM |

    Challenge them on Twitter and Facebook. Ask them why they are not allowing comment on the Wheat Belly post.

  • Debbie B in MD

    9/3/2011 11:46:23 AM |

    What struck me from this post is the "concern" that those who do not eat wheat are missing out on essential nutrients, but there seems to be none of this concern for those who do not eat wheat because of celiac disease or gluten-intolerance. So does that mean that since I have celiac, I wouldn't "suffer" by eliminating that nutrious wheat? Eliminating that wonderful wheat has transformed me. I was constantly in pain, muscular and headaches, terrible heartburn, skin issues, etc. Eliminating that nutritious wheat has been amazing. I believe that everyone can take in all of the nutrients they need by eating the good stuff. I can't wait until my copy of "Wheat Belly" arrives. It will be on my 17 year od son's reading list too.

  • Debbie B in MD

    9/3/2011 11:49:18 AM |

    Sadly lots of people are that clueless.

  • Debbie B in MD

    9/3/2011 11:59:05 AM |

    Check out everydaypaleo.com. I don't know about wating "bready" things but that blog is all about getting the kids on board.

  • Dr. William Davis

    9/3/2011 1:42:14 PM |

    Hi, Debbie--

    Yes, a crucial point. Provided wheat calories are replaced with real foods like vegetables, nuts, avocados, cheese, eggs, etc., there is absolutely no deficiency that develops. Of course, Mary Q. Dietitian automatically assumes that you replace lost calories with Slurpies, Twinkies, and French fries--the default position being we're stupid.

    Be wheat-free, be healthy!

  • Dr. William Davis

    9/3/2011 1:42:38 PM |

    Yes, Michia. We should all do that and not let up!

  • Dr. William Davis

    9/3/2011 1:44:35 PM |

    Thank you, Steve. I find it incredible, also, that for every person who knows he/she has celiac disease, nine others don't know it.

    Keep on punching away!

  • Dr. William Davis

    9/3/2011 1:45:19 PM |

    Thanks, Pam. This is why I wrote Wheat Belly: to bring to light all that is ALREADY known about wheat and its relationship with human health.

  • Dr. William Davis

    9/3/2011 1:47:16 PM |

    Hi, Helen--

    The world is indeed a field of wheat landmines, especially for kids who eat at friends' houses, school cafeterias, etc. There's little to do except educate them and help them understand why they shouldn't eat the foods their friends are eating.

    Rodale has mentioned the possibility of a Wheat Belly Cookbook, but it's still pretty early, only 5 days after release of the book! So stay tuned . . .

  • Dr. William Davis

    9/3/2011 1:47:47 PM |

    Yes, indeed: impaired, foggy, wheat-added thinking!

  • Dr. William Davis

    9/3/2011 1:48:53 PM |

    Yes, Might: a crucial issue in understanding how visceral fat is bad, bad, bad, unlike the fat, say, on the arms or backside.

  • Dr. William Davis

    9/3/2011 1:52:02 PM |

    Hi, Tracy--

    A strict vegetarian low-fat diet can be better than an average American diet--minus fast food; junk food; hydrogenated fats; meats from warehouse-raised livestock given corn, hormones, and antibiotics--but it is far from an ideal diet. Esselstyn and Ornish, while they have great intentions, are beating a dead horse in this diet. This is the diet, by the way, that made me diabetic 20 years (yes, 20 years! that's how long they've been preaching this nonsense), made me gain 30 lbs, and gave me lipid distortions: HDL 27 mg/dl, triglycerides 350 mg/dl. It all reversed when I stopped following their advice.

  • Mike

    9/3/2011 5:04:58 PM |

    I just checked that blog you referenced and they didn't post my comment that questioned their approach...interesting.

  • Peter Silverman

    9/3/2011 7:10:37 PM |

    Since people eat clusters of foods rather than single foods (wheat, sugar, vegetable oil; hot dogs, hot dog buns, Coke; brown rice, tofu, broccoli) it must be hard to single out individual foods as being lifesavers or villains.

  • Dr. William Davis

    9/3/2011 9:31:58 PM |

    HI, Peter--

    Nope, I don't think so.

    Wheat stands apart at many levels, unique in its protein content (glutens, gliadin, and others), carbohydrate (amylopectin A), and glycoprotein lectins (wheat germ agglutinin).

    Parallel to this is allergy: You can have fatal allergy to peanuts but not to walnuts. That's a bit difference, though on the surface they seem roughly similar. Food composition is a crucial factor in human tolerance and foods cannot be lumped together willy nilly.

  • CathyN

    9/3/2011 11:48:39 PM |

    Great interview with Robb Wolf. I have been waiting for Wheat Belly to come out, so we're getting ours and several others to share ASAP. LIke many, many others, eliminating wheat (and other bad juju) from my diet dramatically changed my health (it's been almost 2 years, now).

    The Go with the Grain commentary was rubbish. And I find it very telling that they are not printing the critical comments. Not to mention that their site is sponsored by the Grain Foods Foundation. I'm sure they only have everyone's best interest at heart - yeah, right.

    Thanks for your bold move with this book. It is needed.

  • Corina

    9/4/2011 12:04:42 AM |

    I have just gotten started in your book (around 50 pages) and am really enjoying it.  Who would have thought a book about wheat and science would be such a page turner!

    I have a question though:  Why?  Why are the doctors/dieticians/nutritionists so uninformed?   Why is this seemingly such a 'fad' diet to so many?  Is it really just about money and keeping the cycle going?  I just find this concept so hard to fathom.  Do 'they' really want us sick and fat or have they just created a mess that is far too big to clean up and now they are just saving face?  

    I also posted over at that six serving's blog and thought something was a bit fishy when I didn't see any other comments.  It is clear that she/they can't take any form of reasonable, informed rebuttal.  Mostly though, my thought was: that's it?  That is all you are coming with?  That is your review?  Saying nothing would have been better than what she tried to pass off as an honest review of your book.  I would be very surprised if she even read it.  If you had, one can't remain that misguided can they?

  • Fat Guy Weight Loss

    9/4/2011 1:44:33 AM |

    Hmm, wonder if my comment will ever get approved on the sixservings.org site Smile

  • Tony Plank

    9/4/2011 3:12:54 AM |

    I was struck by the tenor of the wheat-industrialist organs in that they seem a bit defensive. If I were in charge of their message, I would have a very low key response. I would make some low level noise about the science being on our side and use some back handed compliments directed at “fringe nutritional ideas”.

    In other words, I think it is a mistake for them to act provoked. It is actually in their power to control this because in my experience, people do not want to listen to the message of wheat-belly. If the noise level stays down a bit, people will keep on eating their “healthy whole grains” and downing Twinkies when no one is looking because fundamentally they do not want to change. Everyone wants to know what I did to transform my health, but when I tell them, they look at me like someone who escaped from a mental institution and generally, they never bring it up again. I understand that completely too, because at one time, I would’ve said you’ll have to pry the baguette from my cold dead fingers.

    The best thing that can happen for you, Dr. Davis, is a full scale onslaught by the evil empire. That is the only way people like me will take note of the message in a serious way.

  • Susan Moles

    9/4/2011 4:20:48 AM |

    Hi Dr. Davis,

    This is my comment I left at sixservings.  I am pretty sure it will not get posted either:

    Honestly,
    If you don’t start posting some of the comments coming your way from the folks that have been commenting about their experiences regarding wheat consumption, then people are just going to think of this organization as a bunch of intellectual cowards! What is so hard about defending your position?

    Or, are you just having technical challenges?
    Susan Moles

  • Dr. William Davis

    9/4/2011 1:16:23 PM |

    Thanks, Susan.

    It looks like they've censored--CENSORED--all of our comments, so I posted a challenge on their Facebook page (though I had to "Like" them to do it).

    I'm itching to engage these people. I'm not hoping to convert them, just to allow me to bring all the incredible and damning evidence against wheat out into the open.

  • Dr. William Davis

    9/4/2011 1:18:04 PM |

    Hi, Tony--

    You clearly understand the ways of the world! I am going to hammer away and try to embarrass and shame them into responding!

  • Dr. William Davis

    9/4/2011 1:18:53 PM |

    It looks like they've blocked all of our comments. I've counted 5 people who say they've posted comments, none show on their blog. Yes, I believe they are practicing CENSORSHIP.

  • Dr. William Davis

    9/4/2011 1:21:06 PM |

    Thank you for joining the fight, Corina! You are absolutely correct: NONE of our comments are showing up.

    They are choosing to not engage in the fight face-to-face. I suspect they will never engage in a public debate, since it will allow me and others to publicly air all the damning evidence against wheat. Instead, they will rely on the misleading and deceptive research showing that whole grains are better than white flour.

    All I want is not to convert them to our way of thinking, but a chance to articulate these ideas to the broader public.

  • Dr. William Davis

    9/4/2011 1:22:55 PM |

    Thank you, Cathy. "Wheat and other bad juju" . . . that made me laugh!

    I knew the fight was coming. It would be nice if they would not just say nasty things and then run away, but confront me and others face-to-face.

  • Ari

    9/4/2011 3:15:03 PM |

    Dr. Davis,

    I just wanted to tell you how much I enjoyed Wheat Belly.  Not only was it informative, but it was fantastically well written as well.  Over at Tom Naughton's blog, I joked that your huge number of synonyms for "extreme" and "extremely" show that you must have either a massive vocabulary or the Deluxe Edition of Roget's Thesaurus.

    But in all seriousness, it is a great book!

  • damaged justice

    9/4/2011 3:43:12 PM |

    Who profits? Follow the money:

    http://www.cnpp.usda.gov/Publications/DietaryGuidelines/2010/Meeting2/CommentAttachments/GrainFoodsFndn-182REF.pdf

    ConAgra, Pepperidge Farm, various milling companies.

  • Dr. William Davis

    9/4/2011 4:08:49 PM |

    Yes, indeed, Damaged. And a LOT of money--hundreds of billions.

  • Dr. William Davis

    9/4/2011 4:09:42 PM |

    Thanks, Ari. I'm extremely happy you like Wheat Belly!

  • Alexandra

    9/5/2011 12:49:44 PM |

    Sarah  from Everyday Paleo did a great podcast over at The Paleo Solution, here is the link:
    http://robbwolf.com/2011/01/11/the-paleo-solution-episode-62-everyday-paleo/

  • Leslie

    9/5/2011 9:10:22 PM |

    So why don't they go after vegans and vegetarians?

  • Leslie

    9/5/2011 9:23:32 PM |

    How can these people live with themselves?

    Rhetorical question, yes ... sigh.

    Looking forward to reading WB after being blown away by Dangerous Grains.  Have been eating a paleo diet for 6 months and the improvement in my health is nothing short of astonishing.  In my 50s, I look and feel 20 again, actually better.  I truly believe if everyone dumped grains from their diet for a month, you could kiss Cargill, Monsanto and ADM good-bye.

  • Dr. William Davis

    9/6/2011 12:14:15 PM |

    Hi, Leslie--

    Yes, I agree wholeheartedly. Feel and look like in your 20s while in your 50s? That's great!

  • Dr. William Davis

    9/6/2011 12:14:52 PM |

    I think they're worried about Wheat Belly"s head-on attack. This is the most direct attack they've suffered yet.

  • Leslie

    9/6/2011 1:03:18 PM |

    Don't take it personally  ... in looking over all the blog posts on that site there are no comments on any of them.  Comments likely encounter a script that reads, "send acknowledgement message then delete"  Wonder what happens if someone posts a positive comment?  Smile

  • Karn

    9/9/2011 12:51:31 AM |

    I posted a comment over there, I loved that 99% of the comments were anti-wheat.  This is awesome.  Great book and great interview on LLVLC.

    Thanks for all you do!

  • Dr. William Davis

    9/9/2011 2:18:37 AM |

    Hi, Karn--

    The battle being waged over at Good Grains Foundation has been nothing short of an anti-wheat rally with placards reading: "We won't eat wheat!"

  • Curmujeon

    9/9/2011 11:56:01 AM |

    Read a bit of "Wheat Belly" while in the bookstore taking a break from flood traffic.  I probably won't buy it for awhile since I already have a long reading list and consider myself in the "choir" since I've been eating Paleo/Primal for almost a year.  I do have three diabetics in the family that are so stuck in conventional wisdom that I don' t think it would be much help for them.  Lent Mom my Paleo book at her request but she never got around to reading it.  I had hoped that she would take to it and become n=2 and turn their T2D and Dad's congestive heart failure around, but maybe they are two far down that path.  Time is running out and all they do now is treat the diseases and resulting symptoms and are clueless about the underlying causes.  Death by Conventional Wisdom and "Modern Medicine".   I was happy to see the book make the NYTBS list.  This may be a good shot at getting the health/healthcare situation turned around.  Unfortunately, 99.99% of people are not paying attention or are fixed on the CW way.  "Eat less fat!  More healthy whole grains!  More cardio!"  The rest just wants food thats cheap and tastes good(sweet or salty).  Just waiting for the other shoe to drop and the book get recalled from the stores and the Kindles since it presents such radical, subversive information and viewpoints.   The book will become a black market item and will only be shared in meetings of the anti-wheat cell groups in private homes of those trying to stop the Great Amirican Wheat Machine.

  • m

    9/12/2011 10:49:07 AM |

    Your book is great!
    I happened upon your blog through another blog 6 months ago.
    I am gluten free but became fat from all the new products and assumed I was eating real food.
    With a bit of reading, I connected the sugar
    being the problem. I am a 58 yr old woman who runs 5 miles 5 days a week and who by accident through trial and error happen to eat your diet and was convinced to by another doctor friend to go for the higher fats.
    My old body is back less 2 sizes in 5 mos. I feel wonderful again. I too feel like a lean machine again while jogging. It feels great!
    The body fat is so noticably gone that people in the large community I live in have asked me how I did it.
    I have directed them to read your book. Better understanding of the real reasons to get fit may change their old beliefs and give it a try.
    I am curious to see Dr. Oz's new live show today. He will be discussing how to lose belly fat. I hope you
    are his guest!!! congrats to you on your contributions to a better life!

  • Dr. William Davis

    9/12/2011 11:49:39 PM |

    Thanks, M!

    I, too, had to stumble my way to find the path to a diet that truly works. So why are given this information at the outset? Why do we all have to inadvertently commit egregious errors of dietary misbehavior to learn from mistakes?

  • Momof2Groks

    11/22/2011 7:46:58 PM |

    I agree so much Dr. Davis.  In fact, I often think that the replacing of gluten containing products with other very processed starches is the reason why so many parents and studies have concluded that GFCF diets do not work for kids on the autism spectrum.  GFCF was where we started with my son, but he did not show significant improvement until we went grain and sugar free, including severely limiting fructose.  Low carb GAPS/Paleo or Primal diets are much more helpful for kids with neurological and digestive issues, but do not get nearly the press.  Love your blog.  Keep it up.

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