When I went on a 100% raw food diet back in 2003 obviously I got off of all grain. Now I eat a half paleo, half raw food diet. The only dairy I eat is raw grass fed butter or some Ghee which I’ve really been enjoying lately.
If I could talk to the average person off the street and tell them one thing to do to improve their health, I’d recommend getting off grains in every form possible.
If you make one simple change to your diet, do your best to slowly wean yourself off eating this destructive food.
Here are some reasons why I think grains are less than ideal for human consumption.
Grains Are Bad For Your Skin & Teeth
Grains contain high amounts of phytic acid which is an enzyme that prevents them from sprouting. Because of the high amount of phytic acid they rob minerals from your body and the first place that your body pulls minerals from is from your bones. So if you want to avoid osteoporosis or skeletal issues and keep healthy teeth as well as dramatically improve your skin, avoid grains.
Grains Are Addicting
Have you ever tried to just eat one slice of pizza or have 1 bite of warm tasty garlic bread? I’ve heard people like David Wolfe mention that they actually put addictive substances and chemicals into the breads to create that craving. I’ve never researched this but it wouldn’t surprise me if it were true. Also foods like breads, pasta, cupcakes, etc are supposed to be dark and made with whole grains.
This whole business of having white flour products isn’t natural. They’ve removed the elements and minerals like iodine from the grain and stripped them of what little nutritional value they once had. Then they replaced it with bromide which damages your thyroid even further.
Think about it, they remove iodine (which you need to have proper thyroid and hormone function) and replace it with bromide which further destroys your thyroid.
It’s double whammy.
Then on top of all that they add chemicals into grain to cause them to be addictive.
Grains Damage Your Gut
We all know that disease begins and ends in the colon. Your digestive health is everything. Over 80% of your immune system is in your gut. When your gut is damaged it cannot perform correctly to prevent you from getting diseases. Say hello to the yearly flu and cold.
The tiny particles of grains can pass through the barrier of your intestines into your blood stream causing immune response.
Grains Cause Inflammation
Because small particles can pass into the blood stream where they don’t belong, your body immediately sends white blood cells there to attack these foreign invaders. When this happens your immune system is always working. It’s always having to fight against the constant stream of foreign material coming into the blood.
What happens when any system has to work 24 hours a day 7 days a week? It gets tired and worn out. Perhaps this is why we die at 75 instead of 120 like we’re supposed to? Is this why we lose on average 5 inches of height when we get into old age?
Not only does your immune system get weak because it never gets a break, but it also can only fight one thing at a time. Not only is your immune system weaker so it can’t fight real viruses and pathogens, but it’s also completely pre-occupied with fighting the inflammation caused by grains all the time.
Grains Are Very Difficult To Digest
We all know how hard it is to digest gluten. I’ve heard from doctors that the actual size of the gluten molecule is too big to deal with. On top of that the shape of it is almost like swallowing shards of sharp glass. They described it like a Chinese throwing star where it’s sharp on all edges. This results in damaged villi inside our intestines.
The villi is how we transmit information from inside our intestines into the blood. No villi means no mineral or vitamin absorption.
Grains Don’t Contain Any Nutrients You Can’t Get Elsewhere
Think about it, it’s not like there any magical ingredients in grain that you can’t get anywhere else. Despite this fact the U.S. Government continues to say that grain should be a part of our food pyramid.
Sad.
I say follow the money trail…
Any vitamins, minerals or nutrients that are in grains can be found elsewhere where you can actually absorb it.
Any food that has to be subsidized to produce, you have to grind and mill for hours just to turn it into a flour is probably God’s way of saying,
“Hey you know what, this isn’t food buddy!”
Grains Are Easily Replaceable
There are many things you can use to replace grains in your diet. You can make cookies, cakes, pizza, pasata, bread and everything in between with whole food ingredients.
Getting off grains is easy. I’m saying that as someone who was addicted to grains on every level. But if you can get full on healthy fats like eggs, avocados, coconuts and good protein like salmon and chicken you’ll never miss grains.
But for those of you who want the best cookbook ever for making grain free recipes, check out Against All Grain by Danielle Walker.
Grains Are Bad For Your Joints
As we mentioned above grains cause inflammation inside the body. This inflammation usually localizes itself in areas of the body where there is a lack of blood flow, oxygen and circulation.
Where do you think this could be?
You guessed it, the joints.
On top of this have you ever stopped to consider what they’re kneading all the dough with?
Yep, most likely municipal tap water.
What does tap water contain? All tap water is not created equal but most likely it contains fluoride, chlorine and chloramine along with homeopathic residues of pharmaceutical medications coupled with tampon residue, urine and feces.
As if that’s not bad enough, all of it contains microscopic nano bacteria of calcium forming organisms.
What eventually takes down all mammals? Calcification and internal fibrosis of the organs and joints. Why do you think our internal organs shrink as we age? It’s called calcification. Why do you think we get stiff and our joints hurt when we get older? Calcification.
When a tree or plant gets old it becomes brittle, hard and breaks easily.
When a tree is young (just like a newborn baby) it is soft, pliable, supple and can easily bend in just about all directions. Have you ever notices how flexible a brand new baby is?
Calcification is what ages us, creates lines and wrinkles on our faces, shrinks internal organs, causes osteo and rheumatoid arthritis and eventually death.
If you would like more information on calcification you can look into The Longevity Now Program where David Wolfe covers this information in great detail. I have the program and HIGHLY recommend it.
Also you can listen to our interview with Dr. William Wong who talks extensively about fibrosis and how he uses systemic proteolytic enzymes to help in this regard.
In any event you want to filter your water and think about how municipal water is in the drinking water, breads and other food products you’re eating.
Ready to give up grains yet?