Another Nail in the Wheat Coffin

It appears that even with the evidence staring them in the face (from their own wheat bellies) registered dietitians are not willing to eliminate wheat from their diet recommendations. This article in WebMD clearly shows the conflict they are having with wheat. They know that it is the cause of weight gain, but do not want to give up the calories and fiber that wheat supplies. Sorry people, you cannot have it both ways.

I doubt the author of the WebMd article has read “Wheat Belly” by William Davis, MD, but she should. Then she could be more confident in her knowledge of how wheat does affect us and the reason we need to avoid bread at all costs, and not just the highly refined wheat products she identifies. Healthy whole grains are not that different from refined wheat products, just a little more fiber in the whole grains, but no other health benefits. Both types of bread can be fortified.

Those of us with type 2 diabetes are aware of the effects of the carbohydrates in wheat so when authors change to calories to emphasize the value of wheat in a low calorie diet, we know that they do not have our health as one of their interests. They are still promoting wheat even though their own research verifies that it is part of the weight problem in so many people.

Then they try to side step the issue and put the blame on highly processed wheat, meaning white bread, crackers, pretzels, and other highly refined grains that have come to symbolize the struggle with weight control. Then they return to whole wheat as the high-fiber super food.

How diabetes ended up in the discussion seems so that they could again blame highly refined wheat as the culprit and claim that whole wheat is a help. They say that whole wheat is complex carbohydrates that take longer to digest and will not cause blood glucose spikes. Then the claim is made that whole wheat has more vitamins, minerals, and fiber. What is not said is that most wheat products are fortified whether they are highly refined or whole wheat. The other fallacy of the argument is that the vitamins and minerals in whole wheat can be had in other foods.

The only reasonable discussion is on celiac disease. There is not much they can do to promote whole wheat. There is a section on limiting bread, but even then, they say if you are eating bread, make it whole-grain bread and limit the amount. I recommend that you read the article in WebMD. They are trying to have it both ways and still promote whole-grain wheat bread.