Gluten, wheat subsidies, disease, etc...

djklambake

Learning a bit about gluten... Going to likely go gluten free...

The wheat we eat today is a shorter crop that produces more than the wheat our ancestors ate, and it's supposedly messing us up (arthritis, obesity, etc)

What do you guys know about going gluten free... Drawbacks...?

Looking into writing a letter to my congressman about wheat subsidies and studies on the wheat we eat...

(sounds a little nutty, I know... But something's fishy...)

brianlux

Just this last week I spoke with a friend who has gone on a gluten free diet and she's really happy with it. I asked her why she decided to go gluten free and she said, "Well, it's not the most pleasant subject but let's out it this way, the words glue and gluten are similar and that's the clue."

I also saw an article recently (which I'll look for) that tells a lot about how different the wheat that is grown today is from that in the past. What I read leads me to believe the modern day stuff is very inferior.

I just bought some gluten free pasta- both organic- one made with brown rice one from corn. I'll post my review of them after I've tried them.

Great idea, djklambake. I'd also be interested in hearing ideas from others who have tried a gluten free diet.

djklambake

Also, from what I've read today's wheat crops make us want to eat more.

Kinda funny how we were told "eat whole wheat" and now we're a very obese culture.

I think there's a direct correlation there.

brianlux

djklambake wrote:

Also, from what I've read today's wheat crops make us want to eat more.

Kinda funny how we were told "eat whole wheat" and now we're a very obese culture.

I think there's a direct correlation there.

Yes! I remember now, that was in the article as well. I emailed the nutritionist friend who sent me the article and asked her to send the link again if she has it.

djklambake

brianlux wrote:

djklambake wrote:

Also, from what I've read today's wheat crops make us want to eat more.

Kinda funny how we were told "eat whole wheat" and now we're a very obese culture.

I think there's a direct correlation there.

Yes! I remember now, that was in the article as well. I emailed the nutritionist friend who sent me the article and asked her to send the link again if she has it.

Sweet! Thanks, man! Can't wait to read that. My wife is currently reading "Wheat Belly" by Dr. William Davis... Lots of interesting stuff

lukin2006

Just a question ... and probably a cynical one at that ... if they lied to us about wheat, how can we be sure the food industry is telling us the truth about gluten free products? I've also read that where not getting the truth about organic food.

djklambake

lukin2006 wrote:

Just a question ... and probably a cynical one at that ... if they lied to us about wheat, how can we be sure the food industry is telling us the truth about gluten free products? I've also read that where not getting the truth about organic food.

Good question!

stuckinline

djklambake, check your PM's

Thirty Bills Unpaid

The wife has colitis and an intolerance to gluten. Our household 'tries' to eat as healthy as possible given time constraints and daily pressures.

Have read quite a bit about food and diet. With today's mass production and dispersion of food and food products, both meat and plants have become less and less rich in nutrients. Not only that, as someone earlier had said in this thread... the genetic composition of our supposedly 'healthy and natural' food- like wheat, fruits, vegetables and poultry- has changed: not only by cultivation methodology, but through engineering as well. For example, our ancestors used to eat beef that fed on grass. Most of the beef we eat now has fed on grains. Consequently, the composition of beef has been altered over time. Further, we have a hard time escaping grains no matter what we choose to eat.

What's tragic about this whole direction humanity has taken, is the fact that medical technology- designed at curbing the effects of our horrible dietary patterns- has prolonged life and health. Our life expectancy statistics are a little deceiving. Instead of focusing on developing and sustaining healthy dietary options... we have focused on and settled for treating the ailments resulting from poor nutrition. An industry has spawned from our poor lifestyles.

Now over-fed and under-nourished, we don't feel pressured to change dietary habits- doctors and a medical industry are there to take care of us when we fail to take care of ourselves.

brianlux

Thirty Bills Unpaid wrote:

The wife has colitis and an intolerance to gluten. Our household 'tries' to eat as healthy as possible given time constraints and daily pressures.

Have read quite a bit about food and diet. With today's mass production and dispersion of food and food products, both meat and plants have become less and less rich in nutrients. Not only that, as someone earlier had said in this thread... the genetic composition of our supposedly 'healthy and natural' food- like wheat, fruits, vegetables and poultry- has changed: not only by cultivation methodology, but through engineering as well. For example, our ancestors used to eat beef that fed on grass. Most of the beef we eat now has fed on grains. Consequently, the composition of beef has been altered over time. Further, we have a hard time escaping grains no matter what we choose to eat.

What's tragic about this whole direction humanity has taken, is the fact that medical technology- designed at curbing the effects of our horrible dietary patterns- has prolonged life and health. Our life expectancy statistics are a little deceiving. Instead of focusing on developing and sustaining healthy dietary options... we have focused on and settled for treating the ailments resulting from poor nutrition. An industry has spawned from our poor lifestyles.

Now over-fed and under-nourished, we don't feel pressured to change dietary habits- doctors and a medical industry are there to take care of us when we fail to take care of ourselves.

Great points, Thirty Bills, and a good argument for growing some of ones own food, especially heirlooms, or buying from local growers who do that.

brianlux

djklambake wrote:

brianlux wrote:

djklambake wrote:

Also, from what I've read today's wheat crops make us want to eat more.

Kinda funny how we were told "eat whole wheat" and now we're a very obese culture.

I think there's a direct correlation there.

Yes! I remember now, that was in the article as well. I emailed the nutritionist friend who sent me the article and asked her to send the link again if she has it.

Sweet! Thanks, man! Can't wait to read that. My wife is currently reading "Wheat Belly" by Dr. William Davis... Lots of interesting stuff

I'm pretty sure this was the article. It's interesting (and a bit disconcerting) that wheat is described as an "opiate" here!:

http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-505269_162- ... ctor-says/

My friend also sent this link which has interesting info:

http://www.wheatbellyblog.com/

Great thread- really interesting!

djklambake

Thanks Brian!

mikalina

In the last 6 months or so - I too have cut back on my wheat. I feel it is junk and seems to upset my stomach.

I have switched to rice chex cereal and rice crackers. Rice is a great alternative to avoid any kind of wheat. I am just learning about the gluten and wheat free diet. I find it difficult to cut out completely but I have cut back as much a possible and I feel better....


Good luck to all of us.

polaris_x

this is a another bag of worms associated with the industrialized food system ... i firmly believe that gluten (as well as dairy) has major implications to our overall health ... the issue with gluten is that it is often associated with wheat products of which I believe that it is not so much the gluten as the type of wheat we produce that is causing a lot of the problems ... just like everything else that has been industrialized and gm - it creates consequential problems that has basically contributed to our overall decline in general health but because it is part of a larger problem - it doesn't get recognized as such ...

Leezestarr313

I am from Germany and moved to the States recently. I was constantly on the hunt for good bread since I came here, and because of that was called a bread snob. In Germany, I tried to avoid eating pure wheat stuff. I think someone at some point in my life implanted the thought in me that pure wheat flour makes you big and I enjoy eating dark breads a lot. Now here in the States, I checked a lot of different breads. Apart from all of them being spongy and without a crust, all of them had wheat as the first ingredient and then sugar :shock: A lot of them tasted like cake!

I don't want to eat that bread. Now, from time to time we buy German packaged rye breads from the international aisles in the supermarket and I started making my own rye sourdough breads. Maybe that is something that you might want to look into as well. I am not on a gluten free diet, but I read somewhere that rye bread contains less. I use rye flour and water to make a sourdough (that takes 5-6 days) and then just add rye flour, salt, caraway, fennel or whatever spice I want to have in there and bake it in the oven. It is not perfect yet, but it tastes awesome and the crust is heavenly, and I feel much better eating it than the American kind of bread. It is just so weird to see what kind of stuff is pumped into the food over here when you see that with a lot less ingredients (and ingredients that you actually know) you get much more delicious and healthy results.

But that is just my thoughts. I'm Leeze and I'm a bread snob.

brianlux

Leezestarr313 wrote:

Now here in the States, I checked a lot of different breads. Apart from all of them being spongy and without a crust, all of them had wheat as the first ingredient and then sugar :shock: A lot of them tasted like cake!

Welcome to America!

Your sourdough rye bread sounds great! And much healthier that most store bought. It really is hard to get good bread in stores unless you go to a good independent baker and pay $5 or $6 or more for a loaf. We have one in our area but I consider getting bread there a treat- not every day food.

Jason P

To go gluten-free ... that means you have to stop drinking beer, correct?

:wtf:

Leezestarr313

brianlux wrote:

Leezestarr313 wrote:

Now here in the States, I checked a lot of different breads. Apart from all of them being spongy and without a crust, all of them had wheat as the first ingredient and then sugar :shock: A lot of them tasted like cake!

Welcome to America!

Your sourdough rye bread sounds great! And much healthier that most store bought. It really is hard to get good bread in stores unless you go to a good independent baker and pay $5 or $6 or more for a loaf. We have one in our area but I consider getting bread there a treat- not every day food.

We once drove a couple of miles to go to an independent baker in the area. The bread was okay, but it got mouldy really fast and they also made it in a bread maker. So it didn't have a proper crust and it had a hole in the bottom. That's when i decided to do it myself.

I just did a little research and I found recipes for gluten-free breads. They use things like sorghum, amaranth, buckwheat, brown/white rice flour. I don't know what a bread like that tastes like, but if you need to have bread every day (like me ), you might want to try it.

I eat more healthy over here than in Germany, because I pay so much more attention to the labels and ingredients. That is funny somehow...

brianlux

Leezestarr313 wrote:

brianlux wrote:

Leezestarr313 wrote:

Now here in the States, I checked a lot of different breads. Apart from all of them being spongy and without a crust, all of them had wheat as the first ingredient and then sugar :shock: A lot of them tasted like cake!

Welcome to America!

Your sourdough rye bread sounds great! And much healthier that most store bought. It really is hard to get good bread in stores unless you go to a good independent baker and pay $5 or $6 or more for a loaf. We have one in our area but I consider getting bread there a treat- not every day food.

We once drove a couple of miles to go to an independent baker in the area. The bread was okay, but it got mouldy really fast and they also made it in a bread maker. So it didn't have a proper crust and it had a hole in the bottom. That's when i decided to do it myself.

I just did a little research and I found recipes for gluten-free breads. They use things like sorghum, amaranth, buckwheat, brown/white rice flour. I don't know what a bread like that tastes like, but if you need to have bread every day (like me ), you might want to try it.

I eat more healthy over here than in Germany, because I pay so much more attention to the labels and ingredients. That is funny somehow...

I would love to see the recipe but bread is tricky for me because I also have trouble with yeast- thus mostly wine not beer, bread with sourdough starter, not regular baking yeast. And yeast is a tough one to avoid. Reading labels, it's amazing how many products contain yeast. Even canned re-fried beans. Most have yeast in them!

BinFrog

Jason P wrote:

To go gluten-free ... that means you have to stop drinking beer, correct?

:wtf:

there are a couple of gluten-free beers

djklambake

I funny statistic I'd learned from a math professor several years ago.

In America we eat a LOT of corn and wheat and we have a high incidence of colon cancer.

In Asia, they eat a lot of rice and have a high incidence of stomach cancer.

Feels like, no matter what, we're effed...

Honestly, I think everything in moderation is the answer... The question is what might be moderate for one person, might be high or low for others...

Go Beavers

BinFrog wrote:

Jason P wrote:

To go gluten-free ... that means you have to stop drinking beer, correct?

:wtf:

there are a couple of gluten-free beers

I've read reviews of some, and they haven't been good.

djklambake

I've just read that humans have zero physiological need for gluten.

Essentially, it's a drug, an opiate.

It's why of the five basic food groups people say they like bread the most.

Innnnnnnteresting stuff here. I imagine once the war on 64 oz soft drinks and trans fats cools out, the gluten war is going to be much more widespread and mainstream than ever.

MotoDC

Jason P wrote:

To go gluten-free ... that means you have to stop drinking beer, correct?

:wtf:

Some craft breweries make a gluten-free variety, but...yeah the one I tried was not up to my tastes. :beer:

brianlux

It just occured to me to recommend a few books (like I never do that... ) on the subject of food and grains:

Richard Manning: Against the Grain: How Agriculture Has Hijacked Civilization
Michael Pollan: The Omnivore's Dilemma: A Natural History of Four Meals

catefrances

http://alifeinfood.com/five-minute-glut ... -flatbread

brianlux

catefrances wrote:

http://alifeinfood.com/five-minute-gluten-free-flatbread

Oh yay! And no yeast! Thanks!

djklambake

brianlux wrote:

It just occured to me to recommend a few books (like I never do that... ) on the subject of food and grains:

Richard Manning: Against the Grain: How Agriculture Has Hijacked Civilization
Michael Pollan: The Omnivore's Dilemma: A Natural History of Four Meals

Thanks Bri!

brianlux

djklambake wrote:

brianlux wrote:

It just occured to me to recommend a few books (like I never do that... ) on the subject of food and grains:

Richard Manning: Against the Grain: How Agriculture Has Hijacked Civilization
Michael Pollan: The Omnivore's Dilemma: A Natural History of Four Meals

Thanks Bri!

You bet, dj!

Great ideas all around, everyone!

MotoDC

I have a bowl of frosted shredded wheat almost every morning and a beer almost every night.

You guys are seriously harshin' my buzz, man.

riotgrl

Much of the research I have done has been limited about the implications of a wheat based diet but much of what I have seen leads me to believe that our current wheat crops are highly addictive and should be avoided as much as possible. I have cut my family's consumption down to beer (but only for me and the hubs ) and GMO free bread for the kids. It is amazing how much better we all feel with removing most of the wheat from our diet. In addition to the wonderful books that Brian mentioned, I would suggest checking out one of the web blogs I follow that give great grain free recipes and detailed explanations about how the elimination of wheat/gluten can really improve your health. I fix her Gluten Free Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip cookies all the time and even my daughter who detests peanut butter loves them!

http://deliciouslyorganic.net/

This is probably my favorite grain free site. If you haven't considered the type of cooking oils that you use, I also suggest reading the paper she references on her site called "The Oiling of America". I never knew how bad these oils were for me. I exclusively use coconut oil and occasionally use olive oil. Coconut oil has so many uses and has so many health benefits!