Why Wheat is More Dangerous than Sugar

Dr. Sal [00:00:00]:
What it does is that this sugar then starts to bind to proteins and it makes them dysfunctional. And this is what is responsible for aging. Welcome to the Health Quest podcast, your guide to God's will for good health. Hello. My name is doctor Sal, and I've been a practicing doctor and surgeon for well over 30 years. And my goal for each episode is that you'll be able to Have your mind transformed to God's design for good health, and hopefully, affect the way that you eat and the way that to live. If you're new here, we release a new episode every week. And if you enjoy the content, would you please leave us a good review? Because it really helps our ratings It allows us to reach more people, which hopefully, in turn, we can help them change their ways.

Dr. Sal [00:01:05]:
Thank you for your support. And on today's episode, we're gonna be talking about the book, Wheat Belly by doctor William Davis, cardiologist. So let's dive right on into today's health, pod quest. We're gonna review this book, And I wanna start off with the introduction and what he says, and we're gonna cover Some of, the highlights of this book I I refer to this book continuously because of the fact that he is a cardiologist, but his approach This is a lot different than most conventional physicians. He states in the introduction, flip through your parents' or grandparents' family albums, And you're likely to be struck by how thin everyone looks. The women probably wore size 4 dresses, and the men sported 32 inch waist. Overweight is something measured only by a few pounds. Obesity, rare.

Dr. Sal [00:02:12]:
Overweight children, almost never. Any 42 inch waist? Not here. 200 pound teenagers? Certainly not. So we start to see in how this book starts. And, of course, me being as young as I am, I could recall what things were like back in the seventies. And it it it really is kind of Co it collaborates with a lot of the things that I recall from the 19 seventies, but this is something Like, going back even to the fifties sixties. Now on chapter 1 loaf of bread made according to the best scientific evidence, Such a product can be induced in diets both for the sick and for the well with a clear understanding of the effect that it may have on digestion and growth. Now That's when doctors were much more involved, and we had a government before the FDA was even formed that actually took a look at The ingredients that people were eating, doctors were looking at modifying your diet to treat your ailments long before the pharmaceutical industry or to mass produce, medications as we see it today.

Dr. Sal [00:03:37]:
And so what he was basically saying Is that is that do we really have a good wheat product out there? And this is some of the stuff that I'm trying to educate people as of today. Now when you move to page 89, he talks about the glycemic index, which many of you folks are very familiar with. And wheat has a higher glycemic index than sugar. So Here on page 9, he says when he started seeing his patients, he said, I provided a simple handout detailing How to replace wheat based foods with other low glycemic whole foods to create A healthy diet. Now whole foods means something that is a process, eating something the way it is. For instance, if you're gonna Turkey don't have sliced turkey that comes from a turkey roll. You know, actually cook the turkey and eat the, you know, the turkey. I mean, you could slice that turkey because It's a whole turkey.

Dr. Sal [00:04:42]:
He puts these people on a low glycemic whole food diet, eliminating the wheat. And after 3 months, My patients return to have more blood work done with only rare exceptions. Blood sugar was normal. Acid reflux, diarrhea, irritable bowel syndrome, rashes, rheumatoid arthritis, asthma symptoms improved or resolved completely. We start to see how you have a cardiologist that before he even puts you on any medication, first thing he's doing is getting you off of wheat products. Now in chapter 3, he talks about weak deconstructed. And The objective with this is is is a confusion about wheat products. And what he's saying is is whether It's a loaf of organic high fiber multigrain bread or a Twinkie.

Dr. Sal [00:05:40]:
What exactly are you eating? And he goes on to say that, okay, we know that, you know, the Twinkie is a processed, indulgent. When he's talking about the whole grain bread, That a source of fiber and b vitamins and rich complex carbohydrates, but there's always another layer to the story. Let's peer inside the contents of this grain and try to understand why regardless of shape, color, fiber content, organic or not, It potentially does odd things to humans. What he's saying is we take a look at a Twinkie, and we know it's already processed. But when you read a label that says, oh, This is all organic, and it's brown, and it's colored a certain way. If if you break it down, you start to realize that it's Not all that it's meant to be. And he talks about, again, this amylopectin. And amylopectin is the sugar That is in wheat products.

Dr. Sal [00:06:41]:
And it is the sugar that, stays increased for up to 4 to 6 hours after consumption. So if you had a plate of pasta, folks, it increases your blood sugars for up to 4 to 6 hours. Now keep in mind that high blood sugars or high blood sugar levels increases insulin. So you have high levels Close the blood, glucose, and your body's secreting all this insulin to try to get it down. And then on page 35, he talks About how this, over time, increases visceral belly fat. That's the fat that surrounds your intestines, that's Inside your body, not the the fact that you can pinch outside. Now when you increase this visceral fat, people have a poor response to insulin. What's more, the more of this visceral fat that in Larges.

Dr. Sal [00:07:39]:
What ends up happening is your body starts to produce more estrogen, particularly men. And this leads to gynecomastia, which are these man boobs, which is a a big time surgery now Now being done by plastic surgeons where they're liposuctioning, the quest to try to get it to, you know, look more normal for a male. On page 37, he starts talking about gluten and gliadins and wheat germ agglutinins, that are in this new wheat that we're growing today. And we talked about these in previous podcasts and how it stimulates zonulin. And zonulin is what breaks down the junctions that Keep those gut epithelial together. So if it starts to break down, that's how you start getting bacteria. That's how you get Chosaccharides, which is a toxin that stimulates inflammation in the body, and this is what eventually results in and we talked about this before in a previous podcast, Leaky gut. Gluten sensitizes the body, and then our body actually becomes more sensitive to allergens.

Dr. Sal [00:08:51]:
Let's talk about that for a minute. So, you know, you go to the allergist and you you get a blood test and you get a scratch test you get all these quest, and you're allergic to everything under the sun from eggs to milk. Of course, you're gonna be allergic to gluten, but then you're allergic to all these other foods. And I'm like, how is this possible? Well, what ends up happening is this gluten raises the eosinophils. And so it puts you in this low grade chronic inflamative state, and so your body is producing This eosinophils, which are related to allergens. So now when you get exposed to anything health, and it may not be the Show a food product with some of the chemicals that are in it. We realize now that eggs that are, I mean, chickens that are fed grains actually have a different component to the eggs, which now you could be sensitive to sensitive to that, not the egg itself. So, again, gluten may increase your sensitivity not only to other allergens, But now we're starting to show that it sensitizes your heart to developing irregular heartbeats or dysrhythmias.

Dr. Sal [00:10:06]:
Moving on to chapter 4, And we're gonna go to chapter 11 because now these 2 chapters somehow overlap. And wheat is unique among all other foods for its curious effects on the brain because the it it the effects are We shared with opioid drugs. It's not just a matter of inadequate resolve. It's like the health heroin has over the desperate addict. On page 44, wheat is addictive to The point of obsession is what he states. And there's a quote that says that bread is my crack. I just can't Give it up. I've spoken to people everywhere across America, and it's amazing that it doesn't matter what's your nationality, What's your ethnic background? What color you are? What religion? People are like, oh, I love bread.

Dr. Sal [00:11:05]:
I love bread. I gotta eat my bread. I gotta Now what do the Italians say? I can't give up my pasta. I'm Italian. I'm Italian. Well, I'm Italian too, and I have pasta only 1 day a week. That's it. That's my cheat day.

Dr. Sal [00:11:17]:
Of course, it's on the Lord's Day, which is Sunday. And, you know but I don't go hog wild on it. I just have a little bit with a little bit of bread on that day. And I'm not saying that you can't have it, but the fact is is if you're a 100 pounds overweight, if you're 80 pounds overweight, if you're 40 pounds overweight, You gotta lose that weight, and then you could only designate certain days, which then makes it a treat. You look forward to that day. But I'm telling you, After a while, you eat a certain way, you rearrange the neural networks, you create new habits. Here's where The miracle starts to set in and that's where we now start getting healthy. On page 48, we start talking about this term called exorphins.

Dr. Sal [00:12:02]:
Exorphins were designated by doctor Christine Ziadru and colleagues from the National Institute of Health, which identified gluten peptides that bind to the brain's morphine receptors, the very same receptor to which the drugs bind such as heroin. Now Zadrew and colleagues dubbed these polypeptides exorphins, short for exogenous morphine like compounds or gluteomorphine. These factors are believed to account for the deterioration of schizophrenic symptoms. Now if you wonder why so many Americans are now taking psychiatric medications for depression, Bipolar, sleeping disorders, any of these issues, mood swings, Here you go, folks. Gluten is gonna interfere with the body's sense of equilibrium or homeostasis. What's more, these Polypeptides are blocked by naloxone or NARCAN, which blocks morphine receptor in the brain. Now do you remember how now they're advertising carrying Narcan? You know? And if you think that somebody may be overdosed on Fentanyl, give them a shot on Narcan. Well, guess what? You give somebody Narcan and they eat bread, They will not get the same effects from the wheat.

Dr. Sal [00:13:24]:
Going to show you how wheat binds to those, to those receptors. Now on page 51, talk about how wheat stands alone as a food with The potent central nervous system effects other than alcohol that can alter behavior, induce, pleasurable effects, and generate withdrawal symptoms or syndrome upon its removal. On page 53 and 54, it's shown and he talks about how Weed acts as an appetite stimulant. So, basically, weed is the most common dietary mind The food known other than alcohol that we talked about earlier. Weed is a drug or at least it yields peculiar drug, like neurologic Take effects that can be reversed with medications that counter the effects of narcotics. I mean, it's fascinating, folks. What if you just remove wheat and tolerate the withdrawal. Guess what happens? Hunger and cravings diminish.

Dr. Sal [00:14:27]:
Calorie intake decreases. Mood and well-being increases. Weight goes down. Wheat belly shrinks. Well, wheat generates euphoria, Addictive behavior, appetite stimulation, sensitizes you to allergens, and even cardiac dysrhythmias. So you gotta really think about cutting back on wheat. And I'm telling you, even the book talks about Two slices of bread. And how long it keeps your blood sugars elevated, which also increases your insulin, which high levels of Insulin over time has detrimental effects.

Dr. Sal [00:15:04]:
Now we move to chapter 5, and we also see a correlation with chapter 7, and that starts on page 55. And he starts talking about visceral fat, and visceral fat affects hormones. Hormones such as insulin. Of course, we have elevated, levels of insulin. And what it does is it reduces adiponectin. Now adiponectin, we talked about this before in one of the previous podcasts. It's secreted by the fat cells, which, reduces your appetite. And most importantly, it protects against coronary heart disease.

Dr. Sal [00:15:43]:
And we talked about that in one of our previous podcast. So it affects the secretion of adiponectin. It also increases estrogen, Gin, which we talked about about a moment ago on how it builds up these man boobs or gynecomastia. Chapter 6, he now How it correlates or talks about celiac disease? Now when we talk about celiac disease, we talk about some gastrointestinal disorder, Cramping, constipation, diarrhea, but we all have a form of it. And on page 84, he talks about where we may not have the gastrointestinal symptoms. But we have other symptoms that are associated with this, and I talked about this before. I have psoriasis, which my father had, which my grandfather had. But my psoriasis only X up if I go ahead and start having any kind of gluten products for 2 or 3 days.

Dr. Sal [00:16:42]:
That's why holidays are kinda bad for me. But the psoriasis start I start getting the itchy, skin. It starts getting dry and scaly. So even though you don't have the, you know, the the gastrointestinal symptoms, doctor Davis says that you've got other issues that are related to the gluten concept. Now on page 90, he talks about where celiac disorder has a 77 Fold increase for cancers. So consider wheat, a product that makes us susceptible to cancer. Chapter 7, he talks about insulin resistance, And we've given a talk on insulin resistance. Remember that excessive sugars get converted into very low density lipoproteins, which then, get stored in the muscle, in the in the liver, which then makes us insulin resistant, which over time, leads to type 2 diabetes.

Dr. Sal [00:17:39]:
In chapter 8, he talks about the acid burden. What is that? Well, it's acid buildup in our body. Now the body neutralizes it by way of the kidneys, and the kidney Diseases, can disrupt this balance, between acids. And What ends up happening is the body starts drawing alkaline stores, which are available as calcium sal, for instance, like calcium carbonate, which is in the blood, and phosphate, which is in the bone. So the body really is happier in an alkaline state. What are acids that stress the body? Well, there's a number of them. Let's go over a couple of them. Number 1, carbonated sodas.

Dr. Sal [00:18:19]:
Carbonated sodas pop contain carbonic acid and phosphoric acid. Okay? And it's associated with well, there's a study that actually shows that it's associated with five Lifetime increase in fractures in high school girls. So young folks that are drinking all this pop have a higher incidence of fractures because the acid is drawing the phosphate and the calcium out of the bone. Meats. And you say, wow. But doctor Sal, you talk about It's okay to eat meat. Well, meat contains uric acid and sulfuric acid. And uric acid, of course, causes gout.

Dr. Sal [00:18:58]:
But they also have other benefits that negate the acid load. For instance, animal protein exerts a bone strengthening In fact, through the stimulation of a hormone called insulin like growth factors. And what this does is it really helps to build a bone. Now There are certain enzymes that can't break that uric acid down, and these are people that develop, gout. So for them, They really have to watch the consumption of meat and increase your fish intake. Vince Geronda, who's a trainer a bodybuilding trainer back in the He's, he advocating using beef and eggs and milk to build muscle. Also, always recommended consuming extra magnesium, through taking supplements, which reduces, the removal of phosphate from the bones. Vegetables, fruits, These drive more towards an alkaline state.

Dr. Sal [00:19:53]:
Hunter gatherers yielded more of an alkaline state, and they also had thicker bones. Once grains were introduced during the agricultural revolution about 8,000 BC, we started to create more of an acidic environment, And these stimulate these cells called osteoclasts, which work to, to dissolve bone much faster. And Calcium supplements do not they don't reverse bone loss, folks, so you're wasting your time taking the extra calcium. High protein from vegetables, fruits, animal products decreases these these fractures. Osteoporosis sal Eve to be due to a decrease in estrogen from menopause, but, actually, you're breaking down bone long before you go into menopause. And let's talk about wheat. The third one, wheat contains sulfuric acid, which is in car batteries and in acid rain. And it It accounts for about 38% of the acid load in America, and you can gauge this by doing a urinary calcium test.

Dr. Sal [00:20:58]:
If your calcium is high in your urine, You're consuming too much wheat. Chapter 9. Again, we review the add, the amylopectin A, which maintains high blood glucose or sugars, which is worse than candy and pot. It permits blood sugar to react with proteins. Remember, when those Blood levels of sugar are so high that it forms, you know, advanced glycosylated, end products. And diabetics have about a 60% higher level of these AAGES or Amadori products or Schiff intermediates. There's a bunch of names for it. And you gotta remember that what it does is that this sugar then starts to bind to Proteins, and it makes them dysfunctional.

Dr. Sal [00:21:46]:
And this is what is responsible for aging, neuropathies, we had a talk about that. Retinopathy, which is, you know, poor blood circulation to the eyes, which then starts breaking down the neurologic tissue around the eyes so we our vision starts to get, worse. Nepheropathy where you get a breakdown of the kidneys in hemoglobin a one c, which is sugar coated hemoglobin. And I'm sure many of you who are diabetic have heard that term. This is all because of this kind of stuff. In chapter 10 on page 147, he says how cholesterol has little to do with atherosclerosis. This is a cardiologist a cardiologist who said cholesterol has little to do with atherosclerosis. It's the small low Lipoproteins or the small LDL are the common cause of heart disease, especially the oxidized, low density lipoproteins, which doctor Fred Kumerall called oxysterols back in the fifties, and it's from trans Fats and excessive consumption of sugars.

Dr. Sal [00:22:54]:
Page 148, he says the granddaddy of them all is a very low density lipoproteins, which is created in the liver from fructose. And this excess VLDL results in increase in triglycerides, Apple protein b, which is these low density lipoprotein particles, plus the triglycerides, and that That's just atherosclerosis and cardiovascular disease. Page 157, increased fat intake has little or no change in triglyceride levels. That's why these people that go on the Atkins diet or they go on the ketogenic diet go off and Really, their their their dyslipidemia or their abnormal fatty, levels start to improve. And on page 154, he talks about de novo lipogenesis, which is where the liver makes fats from the Couple of hydrates, and we talked about this from fructose and amylopectin a. So you could start to see how A cardiologist treats his patients first and initially by getting them off of wheat products for at least 12 weeks. And in some cases, he doesn't even have to put him on medications, or he puts him on less medications. The objective here is wheat belly, the excessive amount of consumption of bread today.

Dr. Sal [00:24:21]:
And my aunt says, oh, but they eat bread and pasta in Italy. It's not genetically quickly modified. Even then, you could see how it tastes different over there if you've ever been to Europe. And they don't consume the amount that we do here in America. Of course, you know, everything is overindulgence in America. We have an overabundance of everything. Just eat it, you know, and enjoy it. Gluttony, not the way of God.

Dr. Sal [00:24:45]:
So with that, I'd like to thank you so much for watching our show. If you enjoy this episode, please be sure Leave us a good review and visit our website and social media accounts to connect with us more. If you have any questions about your health regarding this episode, Email us in, which we'll give you in the description, and I'll be more than happy to answer any of your questions. If you would like to see any of the resources, that, that I used as far as research in this episode, well, it's pretty much right here, wheat health. But there are also a number of articles that he refers to also in this book, and that'll be available in the show notes as well. With that, I'd like to thank you for joining us. I'm doctor Sal. Have a great day, And god