Posted on 07/06/2014 8:45:50 AM PDT by Kaslin
It all started while we were on vacation and watched a video on the Daily Caller from the Jimmy Kimmel show. Jimmy likes to continue a tradition of the “Man on the Street” interviews started by the original late night guy – Steve Allen. This time Jimmy was on a mission to show that anti-gluten is fueled mainly by ignorance. Four saps were lured into telling the world that they would never let gluten touch their lips or enter their body. Then when asked to describe what gluten is they were left on the clown pile of life helplessly babbling.
Personally, I was a naysayer on the subject of gluten as the California crazies hopped on the bandwagon of the mania. That was until my endocrinologist told me that avoiding gluten would help me control my blood sugar level while I was losing weight which aided my avoiding diabetes. Mr. Kimmel sent me to the internet to research the subject to avoid the pratfalls of other health-crazed Californians.
What I found was that gluten is a protein found in grains – particularly wheat, rye and barley. Gluten causes dough to rise and gives it a chewy texture. It is true that some people have intolerance to gluten, but it is not an allergy – it is just an intolerance. That is estimated to be one person out of every 133. Here is where the fun starts – there has never (yes, never) been a study that has shown that avoiding gluten for the other 132 people without an intolerance has any beneficial effect. But don’t try to convince the crazed people who have sworn off gluten as if it were a deadly poison.
Then I found out that corn, rice, and potatoes have no gluten. Being the cynical person I am, it occurs to me who might be behind this entire fad. Certainly there is no science behind it, but there sure is plenty of push to avoid gluten. Could it be corn, rice, and potato growers have banded together to convince the American public to eat their product and avoid those other foods? No that would never happen – would it? We never been told something was good for us and then later experienced an Emily Litella (Gilda Radner) moment – Never Mind.
Then I read about Peter Gibson, a professor from Melbourne, Australia, who did a study in 2011 that found gluten intolerance is a genuine condition. The study was widely accepted and accelerated the concern about gluten launching an increase of 50 percent in the sale of gluten-free products in the United States. However, Gibson did not have the “settled science” lobby breathing down his neck and redid his testing. He discovered that the reactions found in the first tests were not actually related to gluten. As stated in the article in Real Clear Science, “The rise in non-celiac gluten sensitivity seems predominantly driven by consumers and commercial interests, not quality scientific research.”
Concurrent with the world realizing that gluten-mania was driven by both false science and irrational exuberance, we have found out that the entire basis of our diet has been founded on bad science. The original research was done by a man named Ancel Keys and then accepted unflinchingly by the establishment that embraces these issues, like the American Heart Association, Centers for Disease Control and the Agriculture Dept. Some have questioned Keys’ work over the past 50 years, but we have been told that the consumption of animal fat in our diet was too high and we needed to avoid it. It has become “settled science.”
Then the Annals of Internal Medicine actually did an extensive study and found out animal fat is not the leading cause for heart disease, diabetes and obesity. So butter that corn and down that steak because that is not what is causing heart disease. Just do it in moderation.
Now the entire food world has turned over the essence of what is a good diet except – the American Heart Association (AHA). For good fun we read a column in that radical, right-wing publication—The Daily Beast – telling of the AHA’s refusal to alter their guidelines regarding consumption of saturated fats. Wow, nothing more amusing than seeing the left go after the left. But the doctor who wrote the column blamed “commercial interests.” Excuse me! The AHA is part of the left-of-center, East Coast intelligentsia. Don’t try and hang this one on us – the Republicans. We still eat our meat and baby backs. We didn’t fall for all this malarkey. But accepting blame for their errors has never been a big feature of the left – (note their blame of GWB for the last decade).
The reality is that food fads are food fads, science is never settled, and eating a well-balanced diet which includes fruits, vegetables, grains, meats, and yes some fats, will keep you in good stead unless you indulge in gluttony. Also, what you eat is your choice and if you want to die with a cheeseburger hanging from your lips God bless you. But watching the left genuflect to the latest food fad or any other unscientific craze is always great entertainment.
So this 4th of July weekend eat those hot dogs and burgers and enjoy yourself with reckless abandon while you celebrate your freedom from the food police.
Heh heh heh.
Did I mention that cities suck?
Yeah-—I saw that recipe.
Even easier-—I make 1/8” cuts tip to tip-—when pan-grilled in butter, the cuts crisp up and brown, and are very tasty.
Everything keeps my weight up, flour, potatoes anything with sugar. I’m an equal opportunity fatty.
Haven’t have bread for 20 days and it helps a lot, but no potatoes either.
I notice that if I eat less beef, I lose faster.
Read a book once, I think it was called “Eat for Your Type. Theme was your blood type determines the style your should eat, meat, vegan etc.
Author tracked it back to cave man days.
I wanted to be a carnivore, but book said we A+ types need to be vegans. My experience with beef may confirm that but gotsta have my steak.
On the one hand, I find all this glutenphobia just another example of Silly Oat Bran Syndrome (anybody remember the Oat Bran craze?). On the other hand, gluten - among other things - makes my daughter break out with zits like nobody’s bid’ness, so this time I’m grateful for the ignorant fools who are responsible for bringing many more gluten-free products to the grocery shelves. Heh.
“But don’t try to convince the crazed people who have sworn off gluten as if it were a deadly poison.”
The nice thing about a (relatively) free country is that we can do our research and draw our own conclusions.
In the case of gluten, I’m with the “crazed people”. We have COMPLETELY re-engineered wheat (via hybridization) to the point where it does not even remotely resemble the wheat your grandmother grew up with 50 years ago. For starters that there are new proteins, many, that humans never dealt with in the past. On top of that, the wheat grown today is 18” tall, no more 6 foot stalks blowing in the wind - totally re-engineered. Also, I actually find it MUCH MORE LIKELY that companies like ADM would be covering up the issues with wheat, rather than growers of rice, corn, and potatoes gathering in smoke-filled rooms to figure out how to bad-mouth wheat. Conspiracies which involving widely differing entities are not easy to pull off - whereas one player (or group of similar players) hiding bad data from the public is MUCH EASIER (just look at the drug companies).
On the good side, yields have increased 10-fold, which is why the world (with the exception of war zones) has an OBESITY problem now, rather than a hunger problem.
So, in the end, yes, I will eat wheat products if there’s nothing else practical to eat (and with a few exceptions, like being on vacation at my handful of favorite eating places) - my body will take the punishment. But on a regular basis, I’m done with wheat, and I’m light on other carbs.
But, as I said, people are free to choose as they wish, at least for now.
It might be a bad stereotype if it were false, but the streets and roadways here in CA are oft clogged with them and most of them ARE douchebags and look like pansies to boot...
I will tell you what--our food, here in the United States, is so chemicalized. When I am out of the country, in Europe in particular, I feel 1000% better. They actually have real food. Dairy tastes like dairy. Produce is ridiculously fresh and natural. Bread? Forget about it. Divine. No rubber tires in the bread. The Euros don't do much right but food, they do it well.
Even beer. I was in the Czech Republic the past three weeks. I was drinking a beer every night with dinner. A big beer--if for no reason other than it was, like, $1 for an enormous beer vs a 6 oz Coke. I never got one headache. If I drink one beer here in the US---headache within an hour.
I am convinced much of our problems is due to chemicals. Overeating. Lack of movement.
On a serious note, there is an increase in energy, but the accompanying gitters that come from a caffeine rush are not present, so I can get lots done, methodically. Finishing the gragae clean out this afternoon ... four days of it is methodical work don'tchaknow.
Ooops, never mind.
Why can’t I have a ll gluten diet?
I say again:
Heh heh heh.
A bunch of holier-than-thou liberal cretins who WON’T get out of the way.
I’m sure there must be a superior, respectable and respectful cyclist crowd, who ride the trails and logging roads on mountain bikes, and who wouldn’t be caught dead on a paved road. Out there in the sticks, viewing the best unspoiled scenery of all.
There must be, but of course, our paths would seldom cross.
I live in a small "city" in the south. We have several farmers markets that we can get fresh produce that was literally on the vine or branch yesterday. It tastes so much better than the processed stuff.
I was going to try eliminating gluten from my diet till I had my first sandwich made from gluten free bread........After taking my first bite, I quickly switched to cardboard.
I’m just amazed at how many conservatives will be so judgmental on other peoples food choices.
“avoiding carbs is a good thing for most people no matter in what form they come.”
You are right, of course. I don’t believe a damn thing coming from the “experts”. They have been wrong so many time, on so many topics related to health, that I don’t know how ANYONE can believe them.
Avoiding (or at least minimizing) carbs, and now avoiding gluten has NOTHING TO DO with Big Medicine - they haven’t changed their tune a bit and I doubt they ever will - the push to get this stuff our of our diet is by a small group of people with really nothing to gain other than, maybe, book royalties. The ones pushing the status quo are looking at huge research grants and also liability protection (i.e., if you tell diabetics to eat carbs, as the government does, then you can’t be sued when they get sicker...since you are following government guidelines - but do the opposite, and you might go broke).
But the funny thing is that Americans are getting SICKER and FATTER by the year, and, especially, diabetes is going through the roof - and why? Because people listen to Big Medicine (which, of course, is in bed with big government).
Have you any idea how much fat is in that butt, Ted?
There aren't though. Not unless you have Celiac Disease.
So how did you ditch gluten? Avoid foods that contain it? What else was in those foods?
50 years ago, wheat wasn’t 6 feet tall. Highest was 2 feet. I drove a combine. Extra stalk was just a waste. Contributed nothing to the quality of the wheat.
I remember when Dr. Atkins was alive. The medical profession and associations excoriated him. The week after he died, the stories trickled out proclaiming he may have been right all along.
My wife’s cousin is a past president of the medical society of DC, an AMA chapter. You should hear his rants about how the AMA sold out to Obamacare despite various chapters objecting.
I don’t trust the medical profession. Find a Dr. you trust and hang on. And read as much as you can from a variety of sources.
Sometimes I get good referrals from this site.
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