Is Grain-Free Right For Me?

Paleo diet? Grain free? Without gluten? Low in carbohydrates?

There are many rumors in the diet and nutrition world about the benefits of low carb diets. Books like Atkins Diet, Grain Brain, and Wheat Belly have brought up a very interesting conversation about the place some of our favorite foods can play in causing chronic disease.

The New York Times even published an article this week looking at a National Institutes of Health study that said the decades-long war on fat has been wrong from the start.

But if you’re like most people, chances are good that you think gluten-free and any other such similarities are probably a fad.

Why Grain-Free?

According to Dr. David Permutter, a board certified neurologist and author of Grain brainA diet rich in carbohydrate-rich foods such as cereals and processed sugar has a detrimental impact on our brain. Dr. Permutter goes on to describe how Alzheimer’s disease can be classified as a form of type III diabetes, and the standard high-grain American diet is a major culprit for the rise in dementia. But can changing your diet improve your brain function and recovery from neurological disorders?

There are many promises in the epilepsy world of using an ultra-low carb diet called the Keto diet. Basically, a person on a ketogenic diet consumes a diet almost exclusively of fat and protein. The result is that many people with seizure disorders have seen a great improvement in brain function and a reduction / elimination of seizures.

Case studies and self-experimentation?

In my practice, I see many people who come in with chronic neurological disorders, especially people with headaches. Headaches are such a common secondary condition to the Atlas Shift Complex, that I am always very surprised when a patient with headaches does not improve after their neck is corrected.

However, a few times in the last month, I have had patients whose headache status stalled for a month after their neck was corrected. This lasted over the course of a month, where his neck was KEPT in its correct position and did NOT need an adjustment, but the state of the headaches would not change. He knew he had to think outside the box. When you focus on one thing in your office, it’s easy to become shortsighted and think that every nail needs your hammer.

While I am not a nutritionist, I am familiar with many trends and research that occur in the field of health optimization. I asked the patients what they eat on a daily basis and found that they all ate an enormous amount of bread, pasta, and cereals on a daily basis.

I asked them to put down bread, cereals, pasta, rice, and all cereals for 2 weeks, and to journal about it every day to see how they were feeling. As with most elimination diets, most people collapse when cold from a powerful substance like sugar or carbohydrates. Their energy crashed, their headaches were still there and they felt lazy. I encouraged them to stay with him for a few more days.

Low and lo and behold, by the second week, all patients were headache free and had better energy than in years.

I even tried this approach for myself. While I did not feel sick or fat, I had noticed that bread, rice, and noodles became too common in my own diet. After taking 2 weeks without eating grains, I had lost 8 pounds and started feeling faster in my workouts again. It was great!

Okay for me?

Now take this with a grain of salt because I am not a nutritionist or a health advisor. IF you have a complex neurological disease process, then stopping grains / sugar can be a great natural way to help with brain health, and you should probably talk to your doctor about it.

But what if you are Joe Average and just looking to lose weight or feel better?

In my opinion, I believe that almost everyone can benefit from eliminating these types of carbohydrates from their diet. It is too abundant in our day to day, and WE HAVE NO IDEA because it has taken root in our normal daily life.

If you’re an athlete and in need of that carb fix, there are whole food sources like fruits, sweet potatoes, whole potatoes, and squash that can give you that fix without the addictive quality of bread and pasta.