Vegan diet without wheat

[rainforests1]

I finished the book Wheat Belly by William Davis. He feels wheat is a leading contributor to many health problems(including obesity). He recommends berries, avocado's, raw nuts and seeds, and vegetables, but says you should limit beans, grains, much fruit, and especially wheat. He seems like he knows what he's talking about, so I'm contemplating it. If you're vegetarian it would be easier but if you're vegan(especially a male who requires more calories than a woman does) it would be difficult. How do you do it?

 

[Second Summer]

I have not read the book, but thought maybe the Wikipedia article on dr. William R. Davis would be of interest. Regarding Wheat Belly it says:

[...]
The book inspired analyses which compare Davis' conclusions with the current evidence-base published in the established scientific literature. One analysis found that Davis used some data that was associated, but did not prove causality (false analogy), compared food data that is not naturally comparable (that is, incommensurable), made false assertions, ignored studies that disproved some of his claims, made assertions that were not backed up by any case studies, made self-contradictory statements and, while he made some statements that were true, they were not catastrophic as he claimed. Most of the true claims he makes do not smear wheat at all, such as increasing one's intake of fruits and vegetables and avoiding deep fried foods. One reviewer cited a recent review of studies on refined grains, which concluded: "The great majority [of studies] found no associations between the intake of refined-grain foods and cardiovascular disease, diabetes, weight gain, or overall mortality."[5][6]

Davis also has something to say about veganism:

While Davis does not advocate vegan diets, he says that it is possible to stay wheat and grain free on a healthy plant-based diet. He says vegans should eat non-genetically modified fruits, vegetables, nuts, legumes and other seeds.[7]

 

[rainforests1]

Pro wrestlers and football players eat a lot of meat and other animal products. Those who die young usually use drugs. It seems that drugs are much more of a problem to a person's health than excessive consumption of animal products. I endorse veganism for ethical reasons, but I'm not convinced it's the healthiest diet.

 

[Calliegirl]

I think anyone's diet is as healthy as they make it to be. A vegan diet can be very healthy if it's all or mostly whole foods, but it can be as crappy as the SAD diet if all you eat is vegan junk food.

I tried to go gluten free for a few months; I didn't notice a difference except being miserable from giving up some of my favorite foods.

 

[Tom L.]

I haven't even thought about avoiding gluten. As I understand it, some folks do have a problem when they consume gluten ("celiac disease", also known as "sprue"), and it's logical and necessary that they avoid it. But if I had a problem with gluten I'd most likely be dead by now- I often eat 4 slices of bread with a meal.

 

[KLS52]

I don't think I could give up gluten. I did contemplate it because it's supposed to be linked to inflammation. I even went so far as to buy a few different gluten free flours, like sorghum and some other ones that I can't remember now. They ended up expiring and I had to throw them out. Plus, I haven't had anything that is gluten free that was even half good.

 

[Tom L.]

^^^ I've been trying to find out more information about the inflammation factor of different foods. I make a point of eating a variety of things because I think that will be healthiest: if there's anything bad in a particular food, it probably won't harm me if that food isn't half of what I eat, and if there are nutrients missing from it, I'll be getting them from other things. But I did try to find out the inflammation factor of some of my dietary staples... and all I've gotta say is: I hope this inflammation business is all hype.

But some gluten-free baked goods are rather tasty. There's a vegan bakery in my area which is not exclusively gluten-free, but they do include non-gluten offerings each day and I've had them occasionally. (I usually go with the more conventional offerings because "gluten-free" is usually a bit more expensive, and I'm not yet convinced I need to go that way.) I don't know how they manage it; they're professional bakers, so they probably have a lot of ingredients on hand I wouldn't even know where to get.

I tend to be skeptical of dietary theories, at least at first. There is/was something called the Feingold Diet, which excludes artificial flavorings and colorings, some additives, and also foods which naturally contain salicylates (until the subject is shown to be able to handle certain foods without adverse effects). The theory is that hyperactivity or attention deficit disorder is caused by these things. But after reading some of the literature put out by this group I had a bad impression of them. In any case, I have a good friend who's a nurse and she told me that professional medical opinion did not support the diet.