We are a wheat-loving nation. Breads, pastas, baked goods, you name it, we are a people who just can’t say no to their carbs. Yet we are also a fatter, sicker and far less-healthy nation than most of the rest of the world, even though we have an abundance of medical technology and some of the top research facilities in the world. So why are our bodies so much worse off than those of other cultures? While the answer lies in a compilation of factors, there is one major contributor: wheat. Here are just a few reasons why no one should eat wheat, ever.
It Aint What It Used To Be
Hundreds of years ago mankind learned to grow wheat. They learned to incorporate bread products into a diet that was already high in fruits and vegetables. Flash forward to today and it’s easy to see that a majority of Americans barely incorporate fruits and vegetables into a primarily wheat-based diet. This complete turnaround of our natural eating patterns has lead to the rise of a major health crisis.
Why blame wheat if we’ve been eating it for centuries? The answer is because today’s wheat crops aren’t what our ancestors ate. Scientists have tinkered with natural wheat crops and developed a plant that resembles its predecessor, however is very much different. Today’s crops have been engineered to be shorter and stockier so that they can support a heavier seedbed. They also grow considerably faster to increase yield and are both drought and fungi-resistant. These “hybridized” crops are the product of scientific tampering techniques involving gamma irradiation and exposure to chemicals that are highly toxic to humans. To make matters even more alarming, the long-term effects of consuming these wheat-imposters has never been tested.
Today’s Wheat Makes You Fat
Our new-and-improved wheat contains amylopectin A, a carbohydrate that is perhaps easier to convert to blood sugar than all others. Thanks to this little carbohydrate, after consuming a serving of wheat, our blood sugar spikes and is followed by a quick decent. The rapid drop leaves us feeling foggy or even shaky and looking for another quick snack. As if the constant rise and fall of blood sugar weren’t bad enough, eating an excess these carbohydrates often leads to a buildup of low-density lipoprotein particles in the arteries, which is a major cause of heart disease. So even though you may not always feel a restriction in your waistline, you’re experiencing one in even more important lines: those that lead to your heart.
One Bite and You’ll Be Coming Back For More
Today’s wheat is extremely addictive and eating wheat-based products often leads to a sense of pleasure. Researchers have found gluten-derived polypeptides often bind with the brain’s opiate receptors, which cause that euphoric feeling after the first few bites. So your body continues to crave those slices of bread and bowls of pasta each time you feel the slightest hunger pang. Combine our addiction to modern modified wheat with the fact that it’s practically everywhere and you have a nation who can’t get away from their drug of choice.
The best way to escape wheat’s effects on your health is to avoid it all costs. Choose a diet rich in organic fruits, vegetables and healthy fats and skip the wheat!
Sources for this article include:
- www2.macleans.ca/2011/09/20/on-the-evils-of-wheat-why-it-is-so-addictive-and-how-shunning-it-will-make-you-skinny/
