Wishing you Great health and happiness
For decades the food pyramid has grains proudly placed as a prominent food, yet over this time people have become fatter and unhealthier. Grains are consumed as rice, pasta, breads, flour cakes cookies, vegetable oils and a multitude of processed snacks.
There are a few issues to discuss.
- Grains are typically rich in omega 6 fatty acids. While fish are our primary source of omega 3 fats. The ideal ratio is 5:1, but because we consume so many grains as staples, as cereals and in snacks and treats the ratio is typically closer to 25:1.
The result is higher levels of inflammation causing problems all the way from arthritis to dementia. Inflammation is one of the bio-markers of aging, and anti-inflammatory drugs are amongst the most commonly prescribed drugs.
The problem is we have a never ending cycle, too much omega 6 (grains, pro inflammatory) too little omega 3 (oily fish, anti-inflammatory) and trying to fix the problem with NSAID’S (non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs) which cause their own problems by affecting the lining of the small intestine.
2. Grains and grain rich foods all have one thing in common they break down to sugar in your blood stream and disrupt normal hormones levels such as insulin, leptins and ghrelin. The net result is insulin sensitivity which leads to type 2 diabetes, hunger and weight gain.
These carbohydrates pull triglycerides (fats) into the blood stream, further contributing to the obesity rates of modern societies. We don’t think of a bowl of pasta as sugar but that is exactly what it is.
It breaks down into your blood stream as sugar, which raises your blood sugar, then your long suffering pancreas secretes lots of insulin in order to regulate your blood sugar. Then we eat more grains or sugar and the process starts again.
The grains also increase circulating ghrelin and leptin which cause an increase in hunger which often results in eating more grain sourced foods.
A part of the problem is the volume of carbohydrate we consume and the size of our portions. An Italian friend when visiting his ancestral country for the first time as an adult was amazed by the servings of pasta.
Typically there were half the size of what he would eat in Australia. He was surprised but he noticed he felt healthier eating these different serves often served with unsweetened tomato sauces.
3. Most grains contain gluten which is known to cause series health problems in those people who have coeliac disease. But research scientists estimate that as many as 80% of people have non coeliac reactions to gluten.
We don’t need grains to live a healthy life with perfectly healthy bodies, but we do need vegetables fats and protein.
Wishing you Great health and happiness
Ian & Dr Susan Newton