Grain Brain And Mojo Divider

Unless you’ve been hiding under a rock, you’ll have probably heard about the caveman / paleo diet. At first, I was dubious, until I did some solid research on the topic and all the research I’ve done over the years just fell into place. If we go back to basics and eat as our ancestors ate before the introduction of all the toxins, chemicals and poisons that were added to our food supply; preservatives, pesticides, herbicides, hormones, GMOs, artificial sweeteners, sugar, refined carbohydrates, trans fats and grains – then we’d all be much healthier people. Job done! Fresh fruits and vegetables, animals and fish, nuts and seeds and other plant-based foods can only mean for a far healthier lifestyle. Inflammation is the route course of most illnesses and diseases. It’s the silent slow killer. Inflammation is a cause of the introduction of toxins into the body and lack of movement. Want to think longterm vitality, healthy and vitality? Eat as we’re meant to eat. Here’s a brilliant article as to why grains are slowly killing us. This is a good’un and may just make you think a little differently about your bowl of cereal in the morning with milk – possibly the worst way to start your day in my opinion! Ignoring everything else you’re about to read, grains are high on the GI scale meaning your blood sugars will spike, your fat-storing hormone, insulin, will extract the excess blood sugar from your blood or it’ll become toxic and it will convert it into fat (unless you’ve just done an intensive workout). And your testosterone levels will drop immediately.

In the last 130 years of increased grain consumption, chronic disease rates have skyrocketed, fertility has fallen and the average weight of the population has steadily risen. The more consumption of grains rose, the more fertility rates fell. Research from the University of Missouri, the average sperm count of American males has dropped 50% since the 1930s. To add insult to impotence, testicle size tends to have an inverse relationship with grain consumption.

We have found that grains can deplete nutrients, cause weight gain and infertility, but don’t they still have nutrients? Unfortunately, grains do not have the nutritional profile that all the granola-pushing commercials of late make them out to have. It makes much more sense to get your nutrients from foods like vegetables, fruits, proteins and healthy fats, which offer much higher nutrient profiles without the drawbacks.

Back to the insulin equation for a second… It is no secret that the United States is facing a very real epidemic of insulin sensitivity, Type 2 Diabetes, insulin resistance, and obesity. If the corresponding rates of disease and weight gain with grain consumption over the last 130 years aren’t enough to convince you, consider this: when ground into flour, the surface area of a grain is increased to 10,000 times the surface area of the grain itself. The resulting high-starch food is biologically similar to consuming pure table sugar. Consider the fact that flour is often mixed with sugar to create recipes (or used to make wall-paper paste, your choice) and you have a virtual diabetic coma in a bowl (or can).

Sounds bad enough to me, but there are still a few villains left in this mystery story! Behold gluten and lectins! These two are the Bonnie and Clyde of digestive health.

Gluten is a sticky, water soluble protein that is found in your favorite grains (wheat, rye, barley, etc). Grains like corn, rice and oats have similar proteins that cause problems over time. Gluten and similar grain-based proteins work to break down the microvilli in your small intestine, eventually letting particles of your food leech into your blood stream (a lovely term called “leaky gut syndrome”) causing allergies, digestive disturbances or autoimmune problems.

Gluten’s sidekicks, the posse of  Lectins, are mild toxins the inhibit the repair of the GI track. Lectins are not broken down in the digestive process and bind to receptors in the intestine, allowing them and other food particles to leech into your bloodstream. Nothing like pre-digested food circulating the blood stream! The body views these lectins and the food they bring with them as dangerous invaders and initiates an immune response to get rid of them. This immune response to particles of common foods explains the allergy creating potential of grains.

Gluten and Lectin now move their destructive dance to the gallbladder. The Gall bladder releases bile salts that help break down and properly digest foods. When the intestines are damaged, the chemical responsible for starting this bile secretion is not released. Bile backs up in the gall bladder, and cholesterol that is left there crystallizes into little “stones” that are usually surgically removed with the rest of the gall bladder. Talk about cutting off the nose to spite the face!

These chain-reactions created by grain consumption are shown to increase your risk of:

• Various cancers including, drumroll please: pancreatic, colon, stomach and lymphoma
• Autoimmune diseases like Hashimoto’s Thyroiditis
• Infertility
• Diabetes
• Obesity
• Arthritis
• Autism
• Depression, Anxiety and Schizophrenia
• Allergies

It all boils down to this: Grains are not healthy and they are toxic to the body. That is the way they were designed. The non-digestible proteins that wreak havoc in our system allow grains to pass un-harmed through the intestines of animals and emerge victorious and in a pile of fertilizer at the other end. Good for the grains-bad for us! Studies have shown, and I have seen in my own work with clients, that a no-grain diet can lower cholesterol, lower blood pressure, reduce inflammation, promote weight loss, alleviate dermatitis or acne, end digestive disturbances like heart disease,  increase fertility and dramatically improve  energy levels.

Did she just say no-grain? That means pasta, bread, pastries, desserts, rolls, crackers, etc! (I would actually add white potatoes, corn, and any forms of “whole grains” to that list.) Say it isn’t so!

Trust me, I like them too and used to live on them! From personal experience I can tell you that there is no comparison between how you feel when you don’t eat grains and when you do. I realize that you like grains, probably a lot, and that your doctor probably even encourages you to eat them. I understand that the idea of giving them up might sound absurd, even impossible. I also know that giving up the grains is one of the best things you can do for your health.

Do you want to lose weight, or do you suffer from any of those medical conditions above? You can continue on the high insulin, pre-diabetes and cancer roller coaster, or you could try cutting the grains for a couple months and let your body tell you what it thinks. (Important Note: Even a little exposure to grains every couple weeks can keep the intestines damaged, so to see improvements, you will have to completely cut grains like wheat, barley, oats, rice, rye, millet, corn etc. and it also helps to limit beans and legumes)

Try it for 90 days! If you hate it, you can always go back to your carb consuming ways and live the rest of your life in bagel paradise. Instead, you might discover that you feel better than you ever have, have more energy than you did as a kid and don’t even want the grains anymore.

If you need help making the switch, check out these sample meal plans and recipes. Also, check out the posts on nutrition, fats, proteins and fitness to help make the transition easier.

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