Wheat Belly: Lose the Wheat, Lose the Weight and Find Your Path Back to Health (28 page)

In terms of mitigating wheat’s adverse effects, there is no need
to restrict fats. But some fats and fatty foods really should not be part of anyone’s diet. These include hydrogenated (trans) fats in processed foods, fried oils that contain excessive by-products of oxidation and AGE formation, and cured meats such as sausages, bacon, hot dogs, salami, etc. (sodium nitrite and AGEs).

So what
can
you eat?

There are several basic principles that can serve you well in your wheat-free campaign.

Eat vegetables.
You already knew that. While I am no fan of conventional wisdom, on this point conventional wisdom is absolutely correct: Vegetables, in all their wondrous variety, are the best foods on planet earth. Rich in nutrients such as flavonoids and fiber, they should form the centerpiece of everyone’s diet. Prior to the agricultural revolution, humans hunted and gathered their food. The gathered part of the equation refers to plants such as wild onions, garlic mustard, mushrooms, dandelions, purslane, and countless others. Anyone who says, “I don’t like vegetables” is guilty of not having tried them all, the same people who think that the world of vegetables ends at creamed corn and canned green beans. You can’t “not like it” if you haven’t tried it. The incredible range of tastes, textures, and versatility of vegetables means there are choices for everyone, from eggplant sliced and baked with olive oil and meaty portobello mushrooms; to a Caprese salad of sliced tomatoes, mozzarella, fresh basil, and olive oil; to daikon radish and pickled ginger alongside fish. Extend your vegetable variety beyond your usual habits. Explore mushrooms such as shiitake and porcini. Adorn cooked dishes with alliums such as scallions, garlic, leeks, shallots, and chives. Vegetables shouldn’t just be for dinner; think about vegetables for any time of day, including breakfast.

Eat
some
fruit.
Notice that I did not say, “Eat fruits and
vegetables.” That’s because the two don’t belong together, despite the phrase sliding out of the mouths of dietitians and others echoing conventional thinking. While vegetables should be consumed ad libitum, fruit should be consumed in limited quantities. Sure, fruit contains healthy components, such as flavonoids, vitamin C, and fiber. But fruit, especially herbicided, fertilized, cross-bred, gassed, and hybridized fruit, has become too rich in sugar. Year-round access to high-sugar fruits can overexpose you to sugars, sufficient to amplify diabetic tendencies. I tell patients that small servings, such as eight to ten blueberries, two strawberries, a few wedges of apple or orange, are fine; more than that starts to provoke blood sugar excessively. Berries (blueberries, blackberries, strawberries, cranberries, cherries) are at the top of the list with the greatest nutrient content and the least sugars, while bananas, pineapple, mango, and papaya need to be especially limited due to high sugar content.

Eat raw nuts.
Raw almonds, walnuts, pecans, pistachios, hazelnuts, Brazil nuts, and cashews are wonderful. And you can eat as much as you want. They’re filling and full of fiber, monounsaturated oils, and protein. They reduce blood pressure, reduce LDL cholesterol (including small LDL particles), and consuming them several times a week can add two years to your life.
²

You can’t overdo nuts, provided they’re raw. (Raw means not roasted in hydrogenated cottonseed or soybean oils, not “honey roasted,” not beer nuts or any of the other endless variations in processed nuts, variations that transform healthy raw nuts into something that causes weight gain, high blood pressure, and increases LDL cholesterol.) This is not the “No more than fourteen nuts at a time” or one-hundred-calorie pack recommendation issued by dietitians fearful of fat intake. Many people are unaware that you can eat or even buy raw nuts. They’re widely available in the bulk section of grocery stores, in three-pound bags in “big box” stores such as Sam’s Club and Costco, and at health food stores. Peanuts, of course, are not nuts, but legumes; they cannot
be consumed raw. Peanuts should be boiled or dry roasted and the label should not include ingredients such as hydrogenated soybean oil, wheat flour, maltodextrin, cornstarch, sucrose—nothing but peanuts.

Use oils generously.
Curtailing oil is entirely unnecessary, part of the nutritional dietary blunders of the past forty years. Use healthy oils liberally, such as extra-virgin olive oil, coconut oil, avocado oil, and cocoa butter, and avoid polyunsaturated oils such as sunflower, safflower, corn, and vegetable oils (which trigger oxidation and inflammation). Try to minimize heating and cook at lower temperatures; never fry, since deep-frying is the extreme of oxidation that triggers, among other things, AGE formation.

Eat meats and eggs.
The fat phobia of the past forty years turned us off from foods such as eggs, sirloin, and pork because of their saturated fat content—but saturated fat was never the problem. Carbohydrates
in combination
with saturated fat, however, cause measures of LDL particles to skyrocket. The problem was carbohydrates more than saturated fat. In fact, new studies have exonerated saturated fat as an underlying contributor to heart attack and stroke risk.
³
There’s also the issue of exogenous AGEs that accompany animal products; AGEs are unhealthy components of meats that are among the potentially unhealthy components of animal products, but not the saturated fat. Reduced exposure to exogenous AGEs in animal products is a matter of trying to cook at lower temperatures for shorter time periods whenever possible.

Try to buy meats from grass-fed livestock (which have greater omega-3 fatty acid composition and are less likely to be antibiotic-and growth hormone-ridden), and preferentially those raised under humane conditions and not in the Auschwitz-equivalent of a factory farm. Don’t fry your meats (high temperatures oxidize oils and create AGEs) and avoid cured meats entirely. You should also eat eggs. Not “one egg per week” or some such non-physiologic restriction. Eat what your body tells you to eat, since appetite
signals, once rid of unnatural appetite stimulants such as wheat flour, will let you know what you require.

Eat dairy products.
Enjoy cheese, another wonderfully diverse food. Recall that fat is
not
the issue, so enjoy familiar full-fat cheeses such as Swiss or Cheddar, or exotic cheeses such as Stilton, Crotin du Chavignol, Edam, or Comté. Cheese serves as a wonderful snack or the centerpiece of a meal.

Other dairy products such as cottage cheese, yogurt, milk, and butter should be consumed in limited quantities of no more than one or two servings per day. I believe that adults should limit dairy products outside of cheese due to the insulinotropic effect of dairy proteins, the tendency that dairy protein has to increase pancreatic release of insulin.
⁴
(The fermentation process required to make cheese reduces the content of amino acids responsible for this effect.) Dairy products should also be in the least processed form. For instance, choose full-fat, unflavored, unsweetened yogurt over sugar-containing, high-fructose corn syrup-sweetened yogurt.

Most people with lactose intolerance are able to consume at least some cheese, provided it is real cheese that has been subjected to a fermentation process. (You can recognize real cheese by the words “culture” or “live culture” in the list of ingredients, meaning a live organism was added to ferment the milk.) Fermentation reduces lactose content in the final cheese product. People who are lactose intolerant also have the option of choosing dairy products that include added lactase enzyme or taking the enzyme in pill form.

The subject of soy products can be surprisingly emotionally charged. I believe this is primarily because of the proliferation of soy, like wheat, in various forms in processed foods, along with the fact that soy has been the focus of much genetic modification. Because it is now virtually impossible to tell what foods have soy that has been genetically modified, I advise patients to consume soy in modest quantities and preferably in fermented form, e.g., tofu, tempeh, miso, and natto, since fermentation degrades the lectins and phytates in soy that can potentially exert adverse intestinal effects. Soymilk can be a useful milk substitute for those with lactose intolerance, but I believe that, for the above reasons, it is best consumed in limited quantities. Similar cautions apply to whole soybeans and edamame.

Odds and ends.
Olives (green, kalamata, stuffed, in vinegar, in olive oil), avocados, pickled vegetables (asparagus, peppers, radish, tomatoes), and raw seeds (pumpkin, sunflower, sesame) are among the nutritional odds and ends that provide variety. It’s important to extend your food choices outside of familiar habits, since part of the success of diet is variety in order to provide plentiful vitamins, minerals, fibers, and phytonutrients. (Conversely, part of the cause of failure of many modern commercial diets is
their lack of variety. The modern habit of concentrating calorie sources in one food group—wheat, for instance—means many nutrients will be lacking, thus the need for fortification.)

Condiments are to food as clever personalities are to conversation: They can run you through the full range of emotions and twists in reason, and make you laugh. Keep a supply of horseradish, wasabi, and mustards (Dijon, brown, Chinese, Creole, chipotle, wasabi, horseradish, and the unique varieties of regional mustards), and vow to never use ketchup again (especially any made with high-fructose corn syrup). Tapenades (spreads made of a paste of olives, capers, artichokes, portobello mushrooms, and roasted garlic) can be purchased ready-made to spare you the effort and are wonderful spreads for eggplant, eggs, or fish. You probably already know that salsas are available in wide variety or can be readily made in minutes using a food processor.

Seasonings should not begin and end at salt and pepper. Herbs and spices not only are a great source of variety but also add to the nutritional profile of a meal. Fresh or dried basil, oregano, cinnamon, cumin, nutmeg, and dozens of other herbs and spices are available in any well-stocked grocery store.

Bulgur, kamut, barley, triticale, and rye share genetic heritage with wheat and therefore have at least some of the potential effects of wheat and should be avoided. Other nonwheat grains, such as oats (though, for some gluten-intolerant people, especially those with immune-mediated diseases such as celiac disease, even oats may fall into the “never” list), quinoa, millet, amaranth, teff, chia seed, and sorghum, are essentially carbohydrates without the immune or brain effects of wheat. While not as undesirable as wheat, they do take a metabolic toll. Therefore, these grains are best used after the wheat withdrawal process is over, once metabolic goals and weight loss have been achieved, and a relaxation of diet is permissible. If you are among those with a powerful potential for wheat addiction, you should be careful with these grains, as well. Because they are rich in carbohydrates, they also increase blood
sugar flagrantly in some, though not all, people. Oatmeal, for instance, whether “stone-ground,” Irish, or slow-cooked, will cause blood sugar to skyrocket. No diet should be dominated by any of these grains, nor do you need them. But most people can do fine by ingesting these grains in modest quantities (e.g., ¼ to ½ cup). The exception: If you have proven gluten sensitivity, then you must meticulously avoid rye, barley, bulgur, triticale, kamut, and perhaps oats.