Grains kill

The myth that "whole grains" are good for you is akin to the dairy industry propaganda that milk is good for teens and adults.  It simply isn't so.  Even whole grains lead to diabetes and a host of other ills.

Our bodies were not designed for grains.  They were designed for the hunter gatherer diet which was primarily meat and vegetables such as fruit, tubers, and nuts.  (Even many human developed vegetables such as squash and pumpkins are not found in nature.)  The Egyptians were on the American Heart Association diet of whole grains and low fat and by studying their mummies it has been found that they had atherosclerosis (heart disease) and a host of other problems.

If you read "The Seven Daughters of Eve" by Bryan Sykes (an eminent geneticist), you will find that the human body changed with the advent of agriculture 10-12,000 years ago.  Prior to agriculture a woman couldn't conceive during lactation which lasted from 3 - 5 years and this fact kept the human population at a low level.  With the introduction of agriculture and the high carbohydrate diet (no refined flour, no sugar), it changed women's bodies and lactation no longer prevented ovulation.  Women were now able to conceive immediately after birth.  This is why you will find the population expanding with the onset of of agriculture.

I've been on the McDougall diet, and all that it got me was fat and diabetes.  I have a relative who is vegetarian who after months of persuasion I convinced to eliminate all grains from her diet because of allergy skin conditions.  She did that and even though she was not overweight, lost 10 pounds within a week and her skin conditions improved dramatically, with doing nothing but eliminating grains.  After a few weeks she went on vacation and reverted to bread and the weight and skin conditions came back.  She is still trying to get off of grains.

Here is just one excellent link to the problems with grain - published in Britain because our American grain farmers are so tied into government pork that it is difficult to get good evaluations here in the U. S.  (You can also check out the "No Grain Diet" by Joseph Mercola and find much of the same information.)

http://www.drmyhill.co.uk/article.cfm?id=288

Here is just a portion of the article:

Updated October 2007

Grains are a common cause of symptoms, possibly because from an evolutionary point of view they have only recently been introduced into the diet of Homo Sapiens, partly because grains are so widely eaten and people tend to sensitise to foods eaten most often. At a recent medical meeting that I attended, the problems of wheat were discussed at length. I came to the view that wheat and related grains are a problem to eat for many reasons and perhaps as a Nation we should be avoiding them! The main problems arise for several possible reasons.

a) High glycaemic index.

b) Common cause of problems associated with allergy such as fatigue, IBS, migraine, depression, skin disorders, asthma and "candida".

c) They contain lectins - see Lectins - Natural Toxins found in some grains and some vegetables

d) They contain endogenous opiate mimics which may be a problem in susceptibles eg autistics.

e) Most are grown with pesticides and have high levels.

f) Bran is high in phytic acid which binds and inhibits absorption of minerals such as iron and zinc.

g) They are shallow rooting annual plants, often grown year in, year out on the same patch of land. They are markedly deficient in trace elements.

Grains are a major source of carbohydrate and so cause all the problems of eating food with high glycaemic index. Please refer to Hypoglycaemia - Not just about diet and Hypoglycaemia - low blood sugar - a major problem for many people! They are digested in the gut to form sugars which may worsen a hypoglycaemic tendency or feed a yeast overgrowth. There is also a theory that wheat protein (gluten) is digested into short chain proteins which have endogenous opiate like effects (endorphines) and this upsets normal brain chemistry making one lethargic and slow.