wheat belly
 

I'm reading "Wheat Belly" by William Davis MD.
It's been three days since eliminating all wheat from my diet and I've lost 2.5 lbs with no hunger.
I'm also "minding" my overall carb intake, but my focus is to eliminate wheat. I do feel better, but it's earyly yet.
Whole foods have long been a mainstay of my diet, but for two years I haven't lost the additional 15 pounds I need to lose.
I'm really excited about this diet.
Anyone else following this plan?

I'm not aware of the "wheat belly" diet either, but i removed all wheat and grains when I went low carb and I can't even begin to tell you how much better I feel. :) Good luck with your new way of eating and congrats on the weight loss so far! Your body will surely thank you for ridding yourself of the wheat!

Hi, and thanks for the replies. I was a little surprised by the replies. Dr. Davis spells out a very clear program of avoiding all wheat products. Other gluten sources, and the non gluten starches such as corn starch, rice starch, etc. are also prohibited.
This is clearly a 'diet' in the sense of "What does your diet consist of"
Perhaps if his book were titled the 'Wheat Belly Diet' it would be more readily understood that he makes very clear recommendations as to what a person should eat and not eat to lose weight and gain health.
As a matter of fact I was encouraged by this site because it does not specify "Which diet do you follow" (although as stated I firmly believe that there is clearly a 'wheat belly diet') but rather this site asks for our Way Of Eating, WOE.
Dr. Davis also has written the "Wheat Belly cookbook" subtitled "150 recipes to help you Lose the wheat, Lose the weight, and find your path back to health...................sounds like a diet to me.
But I understand the confusion. He has promoted his findings as a health program, not specifically a weight loss program. I'm going to visit his website (Wheat Belly Blog | Lose the Wheat Lose the Weight) and suggest that he design and publish a detailed diet plan for adherents of his approach... Thanks so much for the feedback.
Wishing everyone fitness and health.

Most low carbers avoid wheat and other grains as a rule (grains = carbs) so I guess by your/his definition we're all on that plan.

Yes, Im just starting too, cleaned my kitchen of all wheat/grains! Im only halfway through the Wheat Belly book, but feeling better already!

Hi Sharon.
thanks for the feedback. I think the wheat belly program is different from low carb in some subtle but significant ways. Dr. Davis is not saying "count carbs", whereas low carb diets insist on that. He is saying 'No wheat, no gluten, and no high glycemic index starches' NONE. By default this will significantly lower carb intake for anyone following the typical American diet.
However, someone on a low carb maintenance diet could lightly bread their chicken cutlet for example, and still be within the guidelines of their program. Not so with the wheat belly plan.
I made a post on his blog suggesting he design and publish a formal wheat belly diet. If I get a reply, I'll post it.
Thanks for the responses, and please keep them coming. Like I have said, I'm new to this and find this exercise very helpful.

YAY!!!
I can't wait to compare notes with you and others who are follwing this plan. So far I am losing a pound a day and feeling more energetic and alert.
So glad to hear from you! :high5:

Dr. Davis responded to my suggestion that he write a book titled "the wheat belly diet".
He thanked me for the suggestion and added "not a bad idea". I take that to mean that we can expect a formalized wheat belly diet plan sometime in the near future.

He's already got the recipe book published so I bet he will do a formal diet book sooner rather than later.

I'm LC following a LCHF type woe.

I got Gary Taubes 'Why We Get Fat' and read it and then got Wheat Belly immediately afterwards and read it.

Let me tell you what. I used to roll my eyes at the gluten-free wheat-free stuff on the store shelves. The over-protective moms forcing their kids to eat that way. The nutty people that ate that way. Healthy whole grains was stamped on everything normal people ate that were trying to eat healthy.

Whew!!! lol Man. I was wheat-free within 50 pages of reading that book!

It was life changing for me. I used to suffer from headaches constantly. Almost every day. And terrible heart burn that would not subside without some sort of pill. And migraines occasionally. I never had a normal headache that would go away on its own like other people claimed to experience. Frankly, I really thought most of them were lying about a headache just going away.

Within a week of quitting wheat I stopped suffering from headaches and heart burn.

How do I know it was within a week?

Well, my constant companions - aspirin, tylenol, ibuprohen, alieve, generic pepcid - were sitting next to my weekly dosed vitamin container thing.

I happened to glance over and see it and I realized I hadn't taken my vitamins in several days.

At first I was just surprised with my absent mindedness. But, after I'd thought about it and wondered why I had suddenly gotten so absent minded, I realized that I hadn't reached for an analgesic or heartburn pill in days.

Wow!

I doubt many people can understand how stunned I was to realize I hadn't had a headache in days.

That roller coaster effect of eat wheat, get hungry two hours later, eat more wheat - described me to a T. In fact, That was another thing I used to think other people were lying about. Putting off lunch or dinner. If I did that I'd get a banging headache. And if I didn't eat soon after getting the normal headache it would mutate into a migraine. Let me tell you, Darin was focused on not going too long without eating something.

Another blessing I've realized since discovering wheat makes me sick - it is much, much easier not to 'cheat' on LC. Most of the common cheat stuff is wheat based. I know if I do that, without regard to ketosis and LC, I will get physically ill from the wheat.

Anyway. Sorry for going on so long but you can't overstate the importance of that book in my formerly head-achy opinion.

Wow! powerful stuff reddarin!.
I started on the wheat belly plan because I was having trouble losing my belly fat.
I was over 180 lbs. about 3 years ago, and using various diet plans lost about 25 pounds and felt much better. But I still needed to lose more. I kept trying the things that were working before, portion control, calorie counting, mostly, but I couldn't lose those stubborn last pounds. As is often the case, as time went on I started to gain back some of the weight I had lost. I was determined not to let this happen and did research. I googled a search that said something to the effect of " How can a healthy guy who exercises regularly lose 10 -15 pounds?" The wheat belly book and blog came up several times in the results. It seems that in his book Dr. Davis mentions people who lived the "healthy" lifestyle of 'healthy whole grains' low fat diet, and exercise yet were still overweight with high triglycerides and cholesterol....Bang!!! This was me ...exactly.... so of course I got the book and a whole new world opened up to me. The pounds are finally dropping off and like you, I am noticing non wieght benfits. Most prominently for me so far is that my chronic knee pain is significantly improved.
Thanks for the feedback.
Wishing you all health and happiness.

=)

Same here for joint pain. I always thought my knee hurt because of an old Army injury from 25 years ago and rainy weather.

Now, it does hurt on occasion but nothing like before and it goes away without any pain killer.

In fact, it has been rainy here since yesterday and I haven't had to take a sinus pill yet. I did finally take some ibuprophen a little while ago but it was more from an indulgent comfort aspect than 'omg I am dying' type thing.

Before I'd peaked at my fat 265, I'd tried the sensible eating thing and failed I don't know how many times.

I'm glad you posted the thread. I hope lots of people read it and consider getting the book, giving up wheat and getting better.

:)

I am so excited to find a thread on here. I just saw info on this for the 1st time when someone mentioned it on a thread in another website this past weekend. I just ordered my book from Amazon today and it is supposed to be here Thursday, 9-20. I read wheat is bad for knees as well as weight so I'm looking forward to seeing what he says. I also read and printed out an interview Dr. Davis did with someone called Fat Head and I'm sold on it. I have done low carb and am presently doing Carboydrate Addict's diet and decided to take wheat out of my plan until I get the book and learn what else has to be done. I can hardly wait.

Hi Patty =)

You'll be blown away by the book :)

You can watch the authorized distribution of Fat Head for free on YouTube. Tom Naughton gets paid by the advertising revenue generated with this version:

His blog is very interesting too. Google 'Fat Head The Movie'.

I'm curios, does he say why it's called a wheat belly when all grains are disallowed?
And for thoe of you following the plan....are there no more sandwiches, or do you use something else?

I don't follow his diet plan. Just sort of skimmed that part of the book.

As for bread replacements he has recipes that he posts at his blog. Google Wheat Belly blog. I'm pretty sure I've seen flat bread type recipes.

You can make stuff like that with almond flour and coconut flour for sure.

Dottie posted a recipe for coconut flour biscuits.

all grains are not disallowed. Barley and other gluten grains are, but rice for example is allowed if the portions are kept under 1/2 cup. The reason is to prevent the blood sugar levels from spiking, thereby promoting insulin release, which leads to getting fatter.
Wheat is the main focus of Dr. Davis' program for a number of reasons.
Two of the most prominent are that wheat is the ubiquitous grain in America. It's in so many processed foods. Breads, rolls, bagels, cookies, cakes, and snack foods almost always contain wheat. Cheerios use wheat flour, as well as many frozen dinners. Label reading is a must for anyone following the wheat belly program.
The other, and this was the clincher for me, is that wheat seems to have undergone genetic alteration to such a degree that it is no longer metabolized in our bodies the way nature intended. A gram of whole wheat bread has a higher glycemic index than a gram of sugar. I was amazed by this claim, but a look at any glycemic index chart shows it to be true. This was mind blowing to me....Eating "healthy" whole wheat bread was spiking my blood sugar higher than if I just ate pure sugar. So the body was pumping insulin into my bloodstream to adjust this onslaught of sugars with the result being that two hours after eating a very filling meal, I was hungry again. Dr. Davis makes a compelling case that the gentically engineered wheat, including "healthy whole grain" wheat is a leading cause of obesity, diabetes, heart disease.
I only know that I followed the government recommended program, of low fat "healthy" whole grains, and exercise, yet could not lose weight.
Eliminating wheat from my diet has helped me lose weight and gain vitality.
And no, I don't miss sandwiches.
I look at bread now and see a slow acting poison.

So it's not only the wheat, but also the gluten? I really need to see if our little library has the book. ( our budget is on a diet :cry:)

Darin - Thanks for the link. I will watch it.

Avid - Thanks for sharing info and your experience.

I am in the process of eliminating the wheat while waiting for the book and I joined Dr. Davis blog and will be reading there as well.

LOL that is a great goal! :)

I remember finally being able to bend over in the chair again to tie my shoes. It was very satisfying. I think I tied them a couple of times that day.

If they don't have it be sure to request it.

Got my book and read Part 1. Boy, I will never look at a slice of wheat bread the same way again. In fact, DGD came in with a PB sandwich on whole wheat bread and my thought was "poison, poison". Now starting Part 2. I can sure see why blood sugar goes so high. REAL EYE OPENER!!! We have really been lied to haven't we.

Yeah. I used to roll my eyes at the thought of wheat being unhealthy or bad. Somewhere before page 50 I was a changed man :)

I skipped over to the diet plan... I can do this, but will have to wait on some things until I can get to the store to get them and I can absolutely see how this will work for me. I hope I can get my DH sold on it as he has so many health problems that would improve. Maybe when he sees it work for me, he'll change his mind.

it's really not so hard to do....I grew up on pasta, bread, and cake eating wheat at virtually every meal for 60+ years. I 'weaned' myself for about 5 days, then just went for it. It's been about 2 weeks. I have lost 8 pounds and my chronic knee pain is gone. Pretty cool benefit.
Good luck, and let us know how it turns out.

Could you give an example of a typical day or two please.

Thanks Avid. Not only do I want to lose weight, but I'm looking for those joint relief I read about too.

I just received this on FB from Wheat Belly and thought y'all might like a recipe to make your own ice cream that is diabetic friendly. Haven't made it yet because I don't have the heavy cream, however, I really look forward to it because ice cream is one thing I really miss.

VANILLA CUSTARD ICE CREAM

The basic recipe can be altered in an unlimited number of ways, e.g., add 1 cup mixed fresh or frozen berries, 1 cup wild blueberries, dark
chocolate chunks with or without peppermint extract, bing cherries, walnut fragments, etc. Using an inulin-based sweetener, such as the Trader Joe’s stevia, or Swerve, helps generate a custard that is smoother and defrosts to a softer texture when taken out of the refrigerator. Alternatively, a teaspoon of xanthan or guar gum can be used, but I’ve found this still allows the ice cream to acquire the hard consistency of ice when frozen.

Makes 6 servings
Ingredients:
4 egg yolks (large or jumbo eggs)
12 ounces (1 1/2 cups) heavy whipping cream, preferably organic
Sweetener equivalent to 1 cup sugar (I used the stevia + inulin mixture from Trader Joes, 1/3 cup)
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
Dash ground nutmeg

Place eggs yolks in small saucepan and heat over low-medium heat. With
electric or hand mixer, beat for several minutes until creamy while heating. Keep heat low enough that yolks do not scramble or coagulate but are warm to touch.

Blend in cream, stevia, and salt and blend until well-mixed.
Pour entire mixture into ice cream maker and follow manufacturer’s directions. (My device required 25 minutes to convert to thick custard texture.)

OK... hope this helps...you will see that I still cling to some of my old habits, but I am still new at this.
breakfast has been the same for years. I dump a big serving (cup and half??) of frozen veggies...birdseye normandy blend Into a bowl and nuke it for 4 mins.
when done I add some evoo and stir....then I pour in some liquid egg whites, and some egg beaters then back into the microwave. I then sprinkle some milled flax seed over it for fiber. I really mised not having a bagel in my left hand to scoop with, so I now use a celery stalk, and sometimes dip it in some cream cheese ....
Breakfast is my biggest meal of the day.
For lunch I often have a hard boiled egg, with the celery stalk and often some hummus
for dinner, I will grill up a bubba burger, or a fish fillet, some more of the birdseye veggies and/or spinach or just open and heat a can of del monte aspragus.
I use alot of evoo
for snack I LOVE planters delux mixed nuts, with couple of grapes (about 1 carb each but delicious)
for desert or a treat I have developed a taste for sour cream...add a few berries and its like an ice cream treat for me.
The KEY for me is the celery. My whole life I would eat every meal with a piece of bread in my left hand. I went crazy for a couple of days till I got the clelery...it isn't bread of course but it keeps my left hand busy.
so there it is.....I really hope there is something here that can help you.
Oh,,,,and the fiber...another big deal for me....I sprinkle the flax meal on almost everything. Keeps everything nice and regular.
Peace.

Thanks :)

I have read the book but I was also wheat free BEFORE reading. I was trying to find some ammo to get my DH to quit eating wheat and then whining and complaining about his joints hurting.

I was raised eating very little wheat. Sunday morning pancakes and yeast rolls only on Thanksgiving and Christmas. My mother was a cornbread maker and we grew up eating cornbread and she NEVER used macaroni or spaghetti she cooked with rice for those types of things.

So was I ever surprised that as a adult I had all kinds of issues that were resolved when I had allergy testing done and I was severely allergic to wheat. I will never be able to convince my DH to give up bread since they ate a loaf of white bread at every meal when he was growing up. I have tried. I guess my only option is to plant some heirloom wheat and make my own flour and then make him bread.

The absence of wheat has made no difference in my migraines however so they are apparently not food related. Weather changes for sure as well as mold and mildew allergies will set me off.

I feel great being wheat free and IF I eat anything with a substantial amount of wheat, I can count on having severe joint pain in my hands the next few days. A pretty good reminder that wheat is not good for me.

AND this is the biggie. I was told I would never have children but two years after going wheat free I had my one and only child who is now 23. SO you can see I have been off wheat for many years.

Wow! You should post that over on Dr. Davis' Wheat Belly blog Adi.