Subscribe to our free, daily publication for all your Westford news.
Last week’s article in “Thin Strong Healthy” was about Going Gluten Free for Beginners. As a result, my editor emailed me and suggested a possible follow-up article addressing the statement in the article that, “…the gluten of today and the wheat of today are not what your great grandparents ate…” She also proposed the question, “How much has a company like Monsanto altered wheat crops? I thought it was a great idea.
To further galvanize the topic, this past weekend I attended the screening of a terrific documentary, “What’s with Wheat”, at the Fletcher Library. It was sponsored by our local chapter of the Weston A. Price Foundation, and was hosted by Kathy Lynch and Linda Cox, the chapter’s founders. I feel very strongly it’s something worth your time to view.
Now…about that wheat…Although hybridizing of plants in general (the crossbreeding of different parents to create a new offspring with different characteristics) began way back in the 17th century, in the past 50 years our food supply has undergone a warp-speed overhaul. Modern food manufacturing, which includes hybridizing and genetic modification (commonly referred to as GMO) has allowed us to “enjoy” grains that contain up to 40 times the gluten contained in the grains our great grandparents ate. I say “enjoy” because the gluten found in wheat, rye and other grains is addictive and, just as sugar does, it lights up the pleasure centers in our brains.
If you eat your favorite doughnut, pastry or crusty bread and just feel fantastic, even euphoric afterwards, it’s not your imagination. When the gluten breaks down, it binds to your brain’s opiate receptors, producing a legitimate high just as sugar does. That also explains why, when you try to reduce or eliminate sugar or gluten from your diet, your body protests and protests loudly.
We are addicted to gluten-containing foods just as we are addicted to sugar- containing foods. We crave them; we eat them; we have to have more; we gain weight…doesn’t matter…we still crave them desperately because we’re addicted.
GMO wheat is not permitted to be grown anywhere in the world at this time. However, there are conflicting reports that it has been discovered growing in fields in the northwest. Monsanto has already paid millions of dollars in settlements over GMO wheat scares in Oregon. Monsanto has also developed a genetically modified wheat which is resistant to the herbicide glyphosate known commercially as Roundup and, curiously enough, manufactured by Monsanto. This means while Roundup kills everything in sight, it won’t kill Monsanto’s wheat and can be sprayed liberally without harming it. If we end up eating Monsanto’s wheat, we will be ingesting Roundup.
The wheat grown today has been hybridized to be shorter and faster growing as well as much much higher in gluten content than the wheat of decades gone by. While it’s a very difficult thing to do, it would serve us all well to at the very least, reduce our gluten consumption.
I encourage you to check out the documentary, “What’s with Wheat.” It’s a fast hour that will make you think about eating that next sandwich, doughnut or bagel. Here’s a link to the DVD… http://thinstronghealthy.com/whatswithwheat
Cheryl A Major lives in Westford and is a Certified Nutrition and Wellness Consultant. Her TV show, Thin Strong Healthy, airs on WestfordCat and is an offshoot of her blog http://ThinStrongHealthy.com Cheryl offers ongoing information and personal health coaching to help you feel better and be healthier. Follow Cheryl on Twitter @CherylAMajor. She is also a full time residential Realtor with Coldwell Banker with more than 25 years experience.
Questions? Email Cheryl at cheryl@thinstronghealthy.com and be sure to put Health Question in the subject line. Your question and its answer will be included in a future article
P.S. Get a copy of this special report I’ve prepared as my free gift to you: 10 Tips for Healthy Eating on a Budget at http://ThinStrongHealthy.com . As a bonus, you will receive Your Major Health Minutes, a quick bite of healthy information that will come to you a couple of times a week. You know you want to lose weight and be healthier!
