I met Jason at a lecture I did a couple of months ago. He described his family’s story of health transformation to me, including relief from a range of conditions, after everyone eliminated all wheat/gluten from their lives. So I asked him to put his family’s story down into words for others to read.
My wife, Kim, and I had our first child in 2003 and everything was normal. But a couple years later, she started experiencing endometriosis and her OB [obstetrician] recommended she have a full hysterectomy. We were not done having kids, so she refused and continued birth control etc., to try to curb the inflammation. She had one minor procedure to “clear things up” and that helped for a small period of time. Soon after that, we decided that it was time to try to expand our family. After a full year-and-a-half of trying, a couple more “clean up” surgeries, hormone therapies from a fertility specialist, and even artificial insemination, we gave up hope. Thankfully, the Lord had a different plan for us and we became pregnant in the spring of 2007 and delivered a healthy baby boy in December of that year. Immediately after, my wife’s problems returned with a vengeance.
Soon after that, we hired Dr. Brooks Rice [in Kansas City]. After a few questions, he immediately told her to get off gluten, which she begrudgingly did, but almost instantly saw results. The pain that she had endured went away and to this day has not returned. Her OB was amazed and grateful. Other issues that cleared up were some rollercoaster of energy associated with the gluten and mild mood swings. Those, too, have subsided with the gluten free diet. While she has never officially been tested for celiac disease, trace amounts of gluten in food is enough to make her sick for hours, so we obviously treat it as she has the disease.
While she has gotten her life back, I will say the biggest thing that has taken place was in the summer of 2010 when we decided to try one more time to add another child and, without being too graphic, one night of trying created our next child. It is amazing how well the human body works when you put it in the right environment.
The second gluten victim in our household is our son. When he was one year old, he was tested for milk allergy due to severe eczema, but the test was negative. Well, good old Dr. Rice advised us to take him off anyway and see what happens. And, as you can probably guess, he cleared up almost instantly. As he got a little older, he developed some breathing/coughing problems. First diagnosed as croup, and he was treated repeatedly with antibiotics until finally we were stuck giving our little dude breathing treatments twice a day for “illness induced asthma.” Again, Dr. Rice recommended removing gluten. And by now you know the ending of this story: fixed him completely. He is now a very healthy, happy almost 5-year-old and he really does not miss gluten at all. When offered a snack, he always asks the giver if it has wheat or gluten. They are kind of surprised but will look in the ingredients for him. When it does, they feel bad (also typically surprised at what has wheat in it), but he just says “that’s OK,” and goes on his merry way.
My story is a bit different, as I never exhibited symptoms that I knew of. But we did a 3-week cleanse at work in the spring of 2011 and wheat was one of the foods that were eliminated during the cleanse. Upon reintroducing it to my system, my body completely rejected it: stomach cramps unlike anything I had ever felt. I waited a couple days and tried a piece of pizza: no go. While I had cut back my wheat with my wife, I was now forced to a life of being gluten-free. Well, that spring I turned 40, and for the first spring of my life I had no allergies: no symptoms, no drugs, no nothing. Which is amazing, since I had been on every drug for allergies ever created at some point or another. I was previously forced to carry prescription eye drops because my eyes would swell shut several times a season, and I always had in inhaler to treat asthma that would be present with my allergies. I am now FREE of that life, and it is so worth the “inconvenience” of being gluten-free.
While I would like to think our story is unique, I know it is not. We cross paths with countless people who know some or part of our story and describe similar issues they are experiencing and we have helped them achieve similar results. In fact, since your talks, I have come across several people from our pool that have gone gluten-free, and all of them have had amazing results. One woman went from being a gall bladder removal candidate to completely free of pain. My very good friend, who has always had a problem with weight and adhering to any lifestyle change, emailed me this week to let me know he is down 15 lbs, and his wife is down several too. I emailed him back to tell him that is awesome and that I am sure it goes without saying that he is not starving himself or even hungry. He immediately responded, “Yes, it goes without saying, it is truly amazing.”
One family who experienced relief from the pain of endometriosis, infertility, eczema, allergy, low energy, mood swings, including a young mother who avoided hysterectomy–just by choosing to not eat “healthy whole grains.”
Can any other food result in such an incredible array of health conditions, all cured by removing it, even within a single family? I don’t know of any.
Dear Dr Davis,
, My husband and I have been doing the wheat belly diet for about Six weeks now.Even though we have alot of nasayers around us we keep plugging along.Made a coconut flour pizza that was delish for tonight’s dinner.My question to you is for my husband.My husband suffers horrible allerys.He hasa constant draining of his nose(has trouble sleeping because of the constant draining)He even sticks cotton up his nose to stop it.No matter what he takes for his allergies nothing seems to help.He does have nasal polps. the doctor says they will not do surgery only steroids.He has lost seven pounds. he also no longer suffers from cancer sores that he would suffer from every two weeks.He has better energy but the allergies just get him down.Do you have any suggestions that will help him with his allergies? sincerely Teresa
Terrific article! I am on board with doing this – recently purchased the cookbook and wheat belly book. I’ve been seriously cutting my wheat but feel like I need to have several days worth of meals planned before I can sweep the kitchen of wheat. I desperately need ideas for how you transition kids. I want to have some good food options planned as I have 3 little fellas (2, 4 and 7). My 7 year old is hard to feed as he just wants cereal, sandwiches, mac n cheese, pizza,fruit, dislikes veggies and most meat options (except for bacon and baked drumsticks). I want to feed the kids healthy food, reduce sugar intake but finding alternatives he will eat has so far been tough. He is a super hearty/stocky (not fat at all) who eats a ton, unlike any other kid I have ever seen. He is often expressing hunger (which now I’m wondering if it is wheat related). I’d love to hear from any parents who have good options that their kids will eat or which recipes in Dr. Davis’ book work for your kids I also purchased a paleo book called”eat like a dinosaur” but none of the recipes so far have been hits except for basic applesauce for my kids. I really want to give this a good effort but I have to be prepared with enough options. Also, does anyone know about any kind of protein powder that is healthy or recommended? I use that in some smoothies to add in spinach and blueberries to get more veggies in my kids. Thanks for any help!
I am a 61 year who has fought with eczema on and off since a child. In my mid 40’s I started having GI symptoms: nausea, abdominal pain, occasional frequent bowel movements, although not diarrhea, and occasional constipation, especially when traveling. I am starting a gluten-free diet but I also wonder about dairy products. It’s been a few days and my GI symptoms are lessened but not my eczema. Any success with eczema out there?
Lots!
Give it time, Barbara, at least several weeks. If it persists, then a trial of other food eliminations is indeed a good idea. And I believe you are correct to next finger dairy.
I’m eager to learn about eczema success stories, too, so when I saw your post I had to respond. I have eczema and by accident, I discovered that cod liver oil REALLY helps. I hadn’t taken any in a while, so I took a double dose of cod liver oil for good measure. The next day, I noticed my eczema was much improved and wondered if there was a connection. Over the next few weeks, I kept taking my double dose daily (about a tablespoon) and my eczema has continued to improve. A few times I forgot and noticed the inflammation coming back, but now that I’ve seen such great results I’m very religious about taking it. I’ve since learned that the good stuff in fish oil alleviates chronic inflammation. Having been reminded of what it’s like to have normal skin, I’m determined to eliminate it and have given up wheat for 2 weeks now. No instant results, but I can tell you that it’s gradually diminishing. Keep at it and give fish oil a try, but be sure to get the right dosage. Good luck!
My daughter has been having an awful time with asthma this month and has just concluded she’s allergic to wheat, so we’re going to try this–at least she is, and I’ll try too. My question is, though, what about disaster preparedness food storage. How do we feed ourselves at a decent price without cheap wheat???
Disaster preparedness? Alright, that’s a new one!
It simply means looking for canned and dried foods that do not contain wheat. Unfortunately, it rules out 90% of all processed foods, but you can indeed find foods that are wheat-free, such as some canned soups, dried nuts, canned vegetables, etc.
Why don’t you learn about herbs and how beneficial they are. Many things you think of as weeds in your garden are actually very good for you. Google a Herb book by Isabel Shipard, an Australian who is one of the most informed people on herbs. It truly is an Encylopedia and written with humor and many anecdotes of healing. Lots of stories of people who have passed on their own stories to her. I have many herb books but this is the best one I have. Many people eat lettuce but as she points out it is low in nutrients compared to other herbs. If things go bad, you will have a ready supply of food (or know which herbs are edible if you go foraging) and if not you will have foods to use in your meals on a daily basis. She has great insight and info on her webpage as well. You can also dry the herbs and save them in a dried form (in a survival situation) to use to add nutrients to foods or even as a tea.
Victoria,
Before three weeks ago, I thought I would NEVER give up bread, but I did and I don’t even miss it. What I have lost is the joint pain and all the other crap I was experiencing due to wheat. Change is not always easy, but you just have to weigh the advantages against the disadvantages.
It is said that hind sight is 20/20 and if I had known 40 years ago what I know today at 60, well, I probably wouldn’t be sitting here typing this response, much less even know this site and the book existed.
I wish you luck!
Thank you, Wanda.
Yes, there are millions of us who wish we had not had to endure the last 30-40 years wondering why the heck we did everything “right” yet felt so bad!
I am 62 years old, suffer from constant body pain, joint pain, difficulty walking,stomach pain, lack of energy, sleepiness, dry skin, eczema like patches, sneezing, I’m considering going wheat free, but it is sooo hard!
I can’t tell you what to do Victoria, but my own mother is about your age with some of the same issues and it is difficult for me to watch her suffer knowing that going wheat free would help dramatically, and while it seems difficult, I have 3 kids under 10 and a really busy life, but we manage to do it every day.
Good Luck to you, and I think if you gave it 3 weeks, you would find the reward is much better than the difficulty.
Victoria,
I am 66 years old and went wheat free a year ago. My asthma is gone, old-age pains greatly improved, eczema totally gone, acne gone. So worth the couple of weeks of discomfort. I knew after 4 days that this was the right path for me.
Ok. I’ve got to stop the whining and the excuses! I have “tried” to give up wheat but seem to fail after one day. It’s time to get serious. There is just no disputing the benefits. I’m ready to feel better!! Here I go :)
Good luck Melanie, you can do it:) I have a very good friend that went gf after hearing Dr. Davis at the conference he spoke of. He is now down 17 pounds, and he still just can’t believe that he doesn’t have hunger like he used to. And now bread just doesn’t even really interest him anymore. If you can kick it for a couple weeks, it gets very easy, because if/when you get it, you will know it and you will not like the results. My friend said a couple weeks ago he had a piece of birthday cake, and just felt “jittery and completely foggy”. He is lucky to not have much worse symptoms like myself and my wife, but is was uncomfortable enough for him that he knows he does not want to do it again.
Thankyou Jason for sharing your miraculous story.. It is stories such as these that Wil stand out and urge people to give this lifestyle a try.. I do not call it a diet..
I have been wheat free for 5 months and have now gone grain free.. Step by step.. Giving up all grains has not been easy but I want to see the benefits of doing this..
Thankyou dr Davis..
Hi Iris,
For us, going wheat free cold turkey had to include grain free as well. Depends on people but we decided to go through this huge diet turn-around once. We adjusted minor things as we learned afterwards, but the main thing was to be free of grains all at once.
Dear Dr Davis, in Your video for Newsmax You have said that acid reflux is an indicator of intestinal irritation and damage by wheat . Coffee causes me acid reflux as well.
Should i consider coffee, and other acid reflux producing foods(if i find more of them), as also damaging to the intestines ?
Former GERD sufferer here. I had to eliminate not only wheat but fruit as well and cut way back on the carbs. Others have to eliminate dairy. Those so-called trigger foods like coffee, chocolate, spicy foods, onions, etc. will make acid reflux worse, but without so many carbs (or wheat, or fruit, or dairy, whatever is really setting you off), the trigger foods won’t do anything.
Thank You for your answer. I find that eating a little snack before having coffee, helps a lot with stomach irritation sometimes to the point of non existence… But still coffee causes me a lot of bowel movements, even diarrhea… Black tea does not have the same effect, so i suspect some other irritants in coffee disturb G.I. track.
Thanks Jason for sharing. It is so sad to see the effects of the wheat on so many people young and old. I pray peoples eyes are opened, by Dr Ds book and all our own efforts to save people from this poison. I can now see symptons of wheat intolerance in alot of people. I am doing my part to help spread the word, but its tough, as you know Doc. Thx Doc for being so diligent, persistant, and present.
Kelly from Vcr, Wa.
Please vote tom for love of country!
Thank you Jason for sharing your story. I am one of the quiet folks who regularly reads this blog but does not post often. I am so glad that you found Dr Davis and I appreciate your willingness to share what has happened to you and your family. Continued success!
Thank you for speaking up, Pat! Please continue to do so.
I’ve had a similar experience. I used to be a little bit overweight, had severe asthma and allergies, and it seemed that I was always sick with whatever my 6 children brought home from school. Since giving up grains and following a “primal” lifestyle as of January 1st, 2012, I have lost 30 lbs, cured my asthma, and I have not been sick once! Ragweed allergies used to keep me hiding indoors with swollen eyes, runny nose, asthma attacks and hives. This year I made it through the ragweed season with only a few rashes from contact with plants that likely had ragweed pollen on them. My husband joined me in giving up grains on Sept 5th, has lost 27 lbs, brought his blood pressure from borderline to good and cured his problems with heartburn. Everywhere I go now, people ask me what we have been doing, and when I tell them they want to share stories of how Dr. Davis’ book has changed their lives too.
That’s great, Adri!
Now, pass it on to the 6 kids!
I am really sorry if that is the only part of the story that you could pick up on. While for me personally, the testimony of how we got our son is far more important than the impact of removing wheat from our diet, it was not something I was even thinking about when I wrote the email to Dr. Davis.
The fact remains, removing wheat from our diet has been one of the best life decisions that we have ever made. Everything about it is positive, and we try to be an example and help those that are attempting it to lose weight, increase health or even been diagnosed as a Celiac. Life does not end when you go gluten free, in fact for some, it really begins again. We are just so thankful that there are resources like Dr. Davis and his book along with all of the Paleo books and blogs that help us help others. When we started this journey, we were pretty much on our own.
And I appreciate that you shared your story, Jason.
Funny thing about putting things out for the public: For every 100 really nice people who read a story like yours, 95 or so will love the story, but do so silently. A handful will leave a positive comment. One of that hundred will have some objection or criticism, founded or not.
I point this out because it’s often easy to forget about all those nice silent people who appreciate your story but just do so quietly!
I concur !!!!!!!!!!! : >)
I appreciate it! Thank you for sharing your journey!
I agree… thank you for sharing. I rarely post in the comments, but I sure do share these stories with others. Your family has gone through an amazing transformation!
I appreciate it too! Sharing these positive stories only helps this movement spread and help more people.
Agreed! Thanks for sharing your story, Jason. I’m on this blog EVERY day, sharing with others what I learn from Dr D and people like you who share their stories. I often remain quiet because what I’m thinking has already been expressed more eloquently by someone else!
This story had a small similarity to our own family.
Both my wife and I decided to go on a wheat free diet about 6 weeks ago. Immediately we both lost a few extra pounds but since we were not particularly heavy but just a little bulgy around the middle, it was no mind bending event.
However, after about a week or 10 days, we pleasantly noticed that my wife, who has always thought she had severe allergies, although the many doctors consulted have had a hard time pinning down just what they are, but who almost always wakes up with a sneezing attack, which starts when just off the pillow and continues for awhile then finally starts to calm down, well she suddenly stopped sneezing in the morning.
If this were the only benefit from the wheat free diet, it would be great, but I am sure there are many others as well.
After picking up First magazine today, then downloading your book on my Kindle and reading it all afternoon, I am so ready to try this. It makes so much sense but sounds too good to be true. Maybe now I can stop blaming my messed up thyroid, postmenopausal 50+ self for seeing the scale continue to go up, not down in spite of walking 3 miles and giving up foods I love. I will let you know how it goes.
Please be sure to update us with your experience, Teresa!
Im with you here Teresa, haven’t got the book yet but hope to have very soon. Have been ‘gluten’ free for a while but not strictly, so hope to see some big changes once I get, read and put in place Wheat belly! :) GF=grain free for me
God is good! Looking to make these same changes!! Thx for sharing!
The story would have more resonance without the god bothering.
I just have to reply to Peter because his comment is completely inappropriate for this blog. While the sentence construction made no sense whatsoever, it is apparent you are hostile to the mention of God. This story was not religious in the least bit, and the mention of “the Lord” should give no cause for your response. It’s fine if you disagree, but the blog is here to share helpful stories of going wheat free, and this account was no more than that. Keep your antagonistic statements to yourself or share them on HuffPost stories. They don’t belong here.
Thanks Renea! I could not have said it better.
AMEN! TO THAT RENEA… don’t kill the messenger.
Your comment would have been better without the whining about someone expressing himself in his own way.
I don’t believe in God either, but it’s their choice to believe or not believe. The single mention does not change the story.
It’s 2 if you count the gratuitous use of the word created. It’s an unscientific and unnecessary use of language.
is it not science that says that whole grains are healthy.
And is not the science that advances food modification
Somewhere in the midst is the truth and the none truth.
Could you imagine that science could hold many secrets
umm huh?
It’s NOT science that says that whole grains are healthy, it’s MARKETING.
I don’t think it was unnecessary. It conveyed that the “science” of the doctors was trumped by reality; so yes, it was “unscientific.” Call what is beyond the ken of orthodox science the Lord, or call it Nature. I think it is good writing either way. It is a fine and inspiring narrative.
I hope you don’t judge everything or everyone through the lens of god or no god. That limits your critical thinking, IMHO. Thomas Jefferson said that his neighbor believing in God neither hurt nor enriched him. Something like that anyway. It was a personal belief either way. A certain political party should take that advice and quite promoting themselves as the only “God approved” party. Personal choice. Politicians have way too many agendas to lend credence to being the God Party.
Spare the rest of us this nonsense comment. Don’t you have better things to do than flame such an awesome story that obviously took a lot of time and effort to write? Grow up.
Great story…very inspirational.
Peter: The message here is about wheat, gluten-good health, good results…. etc… not about resonance. Stick it!(resonance)
Excellent. Very similar, drastic results for my self 41yr male and my son of 12yrs. Of course I encourage everyone I can yet the negativity from those that will not budge being so ingrained in believing that std Dr’s and drugs are the only true way drives me insane. I still won’t give up reaching out. Congrats to you and your happy wheat free family! -Ryan in Huntington Beach Ca.
But, why did it work?
The precise biochemical reasons will be found out after sugar and grain industries receive the tobacco-industry-like treatment they deserve. First you have to take out Big Foods money out of the equation.
Here you can read the dirty story of the sugar industry (it’s so disgusting):
http://www.motherjones.com/environment/2012/10/sugar-industry-lies-campaign