Medical Info that backs up the LDL plan

[LINDA RN]

Starting a new thread to kinda centralize some of the articles we have come across that shows science is finally catching up to God's Plan!

Here is one I found on Gluten:

Gluten: What You Don’t Know Might Kill You

SOMETHING YOU’RE EATING may be killing you, and you probably don’t even know it! If you eat cheeseburgers or French fries all the time or drink six sodas a day, you likely know you are shortening your life. But eating a nice dark, crunchy slice of whole wheat bread–how could that be bad for you? Well, bread contains gluten, a protein found in wheat, barley, rye, spelt, kamut, and oats. It is hidden in pizza, pasta, bread, wraps, rolls, and most processed foods. Clearly, gluten is a staple of the American diet. What most people don’t know is that gluten can cause serious health complications for many. You may be at risk even if you don’t have full blown celiac disease. I want to reveal the truth about gluten, explain the dangers, and provide you with a simple system that will help you determine whether or not gluten is a problem for you.

The Dangers of Gluten

A recent large study in the Journal of the American Medical Association found that people with diagnosed, undiagnosed, and “latent” celiac disease or gluten sensitivity had a higher risk of death, mostly from heart disease and cancer. (i)

This study looked at almost 30,00 patients from 1969 to 2008 and examined deaths in three groups: Those with full-blown celiac disease, those with inflammation of their intestine but not full-blown celiac disease, and those with latent celiac disease or gluten sensitivity (elevated gluten antibodies but negative intestinal biopsy).

The findings were dramatic. There was a 39 percent increased risk of death in those with celiac disease, 72 percent increased risk in those with gut inflammation related to gluten, and 35 percent increased risk in those with gluten sensitivity but no celiac disease.

This is ground-breaking research that proves you don’t have to have full-blown celiac disease with a positive intestinal biopsy (which is what conventional thinking tells us) to have serious health problems and complications–even death–from eating gluten.

Yet an estimated 99 percent of people who have a problem with eating gluten don’t even know it. They ascribe their ill health or symptoms to something else–not gluten sensitivity, which is 100 percent curable.

And here’s some more shocking news …

Another study comparing the blood of 10,000 people from 50 years ago to 10,000 people today found that the incidences of full-blown celiac disease increased by 400 percent (elevated TTG antibodies) during that time period. (ii) If we saw a 400 percent increase in heart disease or cancer, this would be headline news. But we hear almost nothing about this. I will explain why I think that increase has occurred in a moment. First, let’s explore the economic cost of this hidden epidemic.

The most serious form of allergy to gluten, celiac disease, affects one in 100 people, or three million Americans, most of who don’t know they have it.
Undiagnosed gluten problems cost the American healthcare system oodles of money. Dr. Peter Green, Professor of Clinical Medicine for the College of Physicians and Surgeons at Columbia University studied all 10 million subscribers to CIGNA and found those who were correctly diagnosed with celiac disease used fewer medical services and reduced their healthcare costs by more than 30 perecnt. (iii) The problem is that only one percent of those with the problem were actually diagnosed. That means 99 percent are walking around suffering without knowing it, costing the healthcare system millions of dollars.

And it’s not just a few who suffer, but millions. Far more people have gluten sensitivity than you think–especially those who are chronically ill. The most serious form of allergy to gluten, celiac disease, affects one in 100 people, or three million Americans, most of who don’t know they have it. But milder forms of gluten sensitivity are even more common and may affect up to one-third of the American population.

Why haven’t you heard much about this?

Well, actually you have, but you just don’t realize it. Celiac disease and gluten sensitivity masquerade as dozens and dozens of other diseases with different names.

Gluten Sensitivity: One Cause, Many Diseases

A review paper in The New England Journal of Medicine listed 55 “diseases” that can be caused by eating gluten. (iv) These include osteoporosis, irritable bowel disease, inflammatory bowel disease, anemia, cancer, fatigue, canker sores, (v) and rheumatoid arthritis, lupus, multiple sclerosis, and almost all other autoimmune diseases. Gluten is also linked to many psychiatric (vi) and neurological diseases, including anxiety, depression, (vii) schizophrenia, (viii) dementia, (ix) migraines, epilepsy, and neuropathy (nerve damage). (x) It has also been linked to autism.(ix)

We used to think that gluten problems or celiac disease were confined to children who had diarrhea, weight loss, and failure to thrive. Now we know you can be old, fat, and constipated and still have celiac disease or gluten sensitivity.

Gluten sensitivity is actually an autoimmune disease that creates inflammation throughout the body, with wide-ranging effects across all organ systems including your brain, heart, joints, digestive tract, and more. It can be the single cause behind many different “diseases.” To correct these diseases, you need to treat the cause–which is often gluten sensitivity–not just the symptoms.

Of course, that doesn’t mean that ALL cases of depression or autoimmune disease or any of these other problems are caused by gluten in everyone–but it is important to look for it if you have any chronic illness.

By failing to identify gluten sensitivity and celiac disease, we create needless suffering and death for millions of Americans. Health problems caused by gluten sensitivity cannot be treated with better medication. They can only be resolved by eliminating 100 percent of the gluten from your diet.

The question that remains is: Why are we so sensitive to this “staff of life,” the staple of our diet?

There are many reasons …

They include our lack of genetic adaptation to grasses, and particularly gluten, in our diet. Wheat was introduced into Europe during the Middle Ages, and 30 percent of people of European descent carry the gene for celiac disease (HLA DQ2 or HLA DQ8), (xii) which increases susceptibility to health problems from eating gluten.

American strains of wheat have a much higher gluten content (which is needed to make light, fluffy Wonder Bread and giant bagels) than those traditionally found in Europe. This super-gluten was recently introduced into our agricultural food supply and now has “infected” nearly all wheat strains in America.

To find out if you are one of the millions of people suffering from an unidentified gluten sensitivity, just follow this simple procedure.

The Elimination/Reintegration Diet

While testing can help identify gluten sensivity, the only way you will know if this is really a problem for you is to eliminate all gluten for a short period of time (2 to 4 weeks) and see how you feel. Get rid of the following foods:

    ■  Gluten (barley, rye, oats, spelt, kamut, wheat, triticale–see www.celiac.com for a complete list of foods that contain gluten, as well as often surprising and hidden sources of gluten.)
    ■  Hidden sources (soup mixes, salad dressings, sauces, as well as lipstick, certain vitamins, medications, stamps and envelopes you have to lick, and even Play-Doh.)
For this test to work you MUST eliminate 100 percent of the gluten from your diet–no exceptions, no hidden gluten, and not a single crumb of bread.

Then eat it again and see what happens. If you feel bad at all, you need to stay off gluten permanently. This will teach you better than any test about the impact gluten has on your body.

But if you are still interested in testing, here are some things to keep in mind.

Testing for Gluten Sensitivity or Celiac Disease

There are gluten allergy/celiac disease tests that are available through Labcorp or Quest Diagnostics. All these tests help identify various forms of allergy or sensitivity to gluten or wheat. They will look for:
    ■  IgA anti-gliadin antibodies
    ■  IgG anti-gliadin antibodies
    ■  IgA anti-endomysial antibodies
    ■  Tissue transglutaminase antibody (IgA and IgG in questionable cases)
    ■  Total IgA antibodies
    ■  HLA DQ2 and DQ8 genotyping for celiac disease (used occasionally to detect genetic suspectibility).
    ■  Intestinal biopsy (rarely needed if gluten antibodies are positive–based on my interpretation of the recent study)
When you get these tests, there are a few things to keep in mind.

In light of the new research on the dangers of gluten sensitivity without full blown celiac disease, I consider any elevation of antibodies significant and worthy of a trial of gluten elimination. Many doctors consider elevated anti-gliadin antibodies in the absence of a positive intestinal biopsy showing damage to be “false positives.” That means the test looks positive but really isn’t significant.

We can no longer say that. Positive is positive and, as with all illness, there is a continuum of disease, from mild gluten sensitivity to full-blown celiac disease. If your antibodies are elevated, you should go off gluten and test to see if it is leading to your health problems.

So now you see–that piece of bread may not be so wholesome after all! Follow the advice I’ve shared with you today to find out if gluten may be the hidden cause of your health problems. Simply eliminating this insidious substnace from your diet, may help you achieve lifelong vibrant health.

http://drhyman.com/gluten-what-you-dont ... ll-you-11/

[Joyful Friend]

Linda, after I stopped eating breads and cereals, I have felt better.  My fingers and feet do not swell anymore.  I have  more energy.  I also look for gluten free products. I learned about it from the boards, so thanks, Linda ,for the added info.      JF

[witheraway1]

My husbands DR. just told him to add a slice of good whole wheat bread to his diet, that a persons body needs that. Now I am comfused, you have always heard bread is the staff of life. Neither of us eat bread. He had told me he was going to add it in.

[LINDA RN]

The problem with the bread may be the Genetically Modified grains that are used, the way the flour is processed and how the bread is cooked. Maybe back in Biblical times they had a different way of making it that kept the gluten from forming. I caught a segment on America's Test Kitchen on PHS a few weeks ago and I can't remember what they were making (pie crust or banana bread) but they were telling how to mix it to prevent so much gluten from forming. I only half listened because I knew I was not even half way to goal so I am not going to be messing with that stuff for a long time. Like JF I have not had the problem of swelling (edema of lower legs and feet and sometimes hands), joint pain or headaches since staing away from grains. I plan to continue.

[CodingQueen]

Witheraway1,

Bread is healthy as long as it's homemade and gluten/yeast free (flat breads are an example) but, unfortunately, I can't go into details on these boards as to why most physicians tell their patients what your husband's doctor told him. I already aggravate RT enough as it is. I will say this....if that's what his doctor prescribed for him then try to find a whole grain rye bread (yes, I know that was one of the grains listed) without any wheat among the listed ingredients. Whole grain rye doesn't affect the blood sugars the way others do and does help with weight loss.

CQ

[witheraway1]

Thanks CQ, I will look for that and get the best I can...

[LINDA RN]

Actually DH's favorite bread was Jewish Rye. What we got from OroWheat I am sure was pretty processed.
Of coursed he liked his salami and mustard with the rye bread         
He was able to give it up though and dropped his weight and got off his BP meds.

[CodingQueen]

LINDA RN,

I guess so...salami is full of nitates and has been linked with hypertension. That's the major reason why I don't allow bacon or any other processed meats in my refrigerator. I told the boys that if they wanted any of those items then it was time to move out on their own. I could never get so lucky. Seriously, I'd miss them, though.

CQ

[graceface66]

matza crackers are good.......just flour and water........mixed and baked within 17 minutes so that even naturally occuring yeast cannot form.

[MsHeirloom]

What about Ezekiel 4:9® Sprouted Organic Whole Grain Cereal.  I don't think it has added yeast.  They have a whole line of breads including yeast-free, gluten-free, soy-free.  They might have something that would be appropriate.  Pam

[LINDA RN]

The problem with the Matza is that when you mix the wheat with water, you get gluten.

[witheraway1]

PAM, OUR SON WAS JUST TELLING US ABOUT THE SPROUTED BREAD, SAYS IT HAS NO FLOUR AND HE EATS IT AND LIKES IT. WE WILL TRY THAT, YOU HAVE TO GO TO A DIFFERENT STORE FOR THAT WHERE THEY SELL HEALTHY FOODS. hAVE YOU TRYED IT YET?

[LINDA RN]

I have and it is very good, but you have to keep it refrigerated.

[JerrieH]

I haven't had Ezekiel Bread for a long time, but I have tried it and it is very good.  Has kind of a nutty taste, without nuts, very hearty.  It seems I recall it being kind of high in calories, compared to typical bread (not sure, maybe 150 calories for one slice) but much better for you than typical bread, I'm sure.  It is probably much less processed, and your body has to work harder to process the grains.  In fact, I think I probably have part of a loaf from over a year ago out in my overflow freezer in the garage.  Since my family doesn't eat it, and since I didn't eat it often, I would freeze what I didn't use, so it would keep longer.  It does keep really well in the freezer and it does taste very good.  Not only do they sell it at my local health food store, but they also sell it at Dierbergs in their health food section.  I think both stores have it in their freezer section, as it probably doesn't have a very long shelf life, due to the sprouted grains.  Jerrie

[witheraway1]

Thanks for the info on the bread, going to try it. Thanks for letting me know about keeping it in the frig. Everyone on the boards are so helpful.

[mylifeforhim]

I haven't eaten the Ezekiel Bread since LDL.  Kroger's carries it in the organics freezer section and they have several varieties. I would keep mine in the freezer and when wanting a slice take it out, put it on a plate and cover with saran wrap until it thaws or unthaw in the toaster.  That's how I keep and thaw the homemade bread I make for my DH as well.

[MsHeirloom]

I haven't eaten Ezekiel bread for about 5 years or more, but I used to get it at Krogers or Meijers.  I am awaiting Roger's verdict.  I did enjoy it when I was eating it.  Pam

[CodingQueen]

I wouldn't start eating bread, either. I've used the bread before but you have to be very careful. Even though it's sprouted grains some of the breads contain tapioca flour, fresh yeast and vegetable gum (xanthan, cellulose).

CQ