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The number one get-fat-quick food

When I taught my nutrition classes at the Ashram and Infinity Retreats, I was always grilled with this simple question - what is the number one food when it comes to undesirable weight gain? I would emphasize that there are many factors to what constitutes your overall health, but that low body fat is part of it. Of course it's a broad topic but I'm going to focus on this simple question.

So, to cut right to it....drumroll...

It's wheat flour.  

This is unfortunate news due to the fact that it's in so many of our foods - aisle after aisle, even at your local natural food store. Think about the popular foods most Americans consume throughout any given day: cereal (cold or hot), toast, pastries, tortillas, pizza, crackers, cookies, energy bars, breaded meats, sandwiches, pastas, soy sauce, salad dressing, thick sauces, soups and soup bases, beer, desserts...and more bread!

Of course there are many foods that we instinctively know do not work in our favor for trimming body fat. Like refined sugar, processed carbs, and fried food. And we know these are categories of foods that are not in our best interest for a number of reasons, more than just weight gain alone. The essence of it is these are not life-force and longevity foods, which is what a truly healthy diet boils down to, right? 

But to focus on wheat: it's the number one food for undesired weight due to two reasons. One is the glycemic index. The second is gluten. 

Glycemic index (GI) is a measurement of the rate at which a food raises blood sugar. Naturally all sugar, whether it's from processed sugar or fruit, has a relatively high GI that can raise your blood sugar.

However, check this out - wheat flour has a higher GI than even processed sugar. I know this may be a surprise. The disadvantage of the highest GI foods, like flour and sugar, is this: Look at the calories from high GI foods as like a nearly uncontainable burst of fuel. These are foods that increase blood sugar rapidly within just a few minutes. If you're in the middle of a workout, burning calories, then, ok, this degree of increased blood sugar is just fine since you're burning it right away. 

But let's say you're just going about your day running errands, working long hours at a desk, etc. 

What happens is this (nutshell version): You have a sandwich with wheat bread. Your blood sugar spikes from high GI wheat flour. Your body then says "yikes!...I'm not sure what to do with this burst of fuel!" Then in order to protect organs that are sensitive to sugar the body stores this 'fuel' in fat cells. 

Of course we can burn fat with exercise, but high GI foods make the whole process much harder. As for the solution to this, it's more than just a newsletter! Have you read my book, Infinity Health Manual: the essentials for life-force, longevity, and weight-loss, simplified, yet? The title, of course, is what it's all about - both the how-to's and how to make it easy, too. 

Like I shared, the second and lesser known reason that wheat flour causes weight gain is gluten.

We hear a lot about it, but few of us know what the issue really is. Is gluten bad for us? What does it do? And just what the heck is it anyway?

To put it simply, gluten is the protein component in grains such as wheat, spelt, and barley. And it’s now in almost everything we eat. This means we’re constantly eating gluten.

The problem with gluten is that it’s hard to digest. Our bodies simply haven’t adapted to today’s prevalence of so much gluten in our foods. We can handle it in moderation, but we’ve gone way beyond that. With a high intake of gluten, the digestive system has to work harder and, over time, this means wear and tear. And this is why many of us are becoming gluten-sensitive.

Some people are actually gluten-intolerant, so even a little is problematic. People living with celiac disease fall into this category. Celiac disease is a rare autoimmune disorder and I talk about it in my book.

The issue with gluten and weight gain is this, and the news isn't all bad. Gluten is an inflammatory. Yes, it creates inflammation in the body. To start with the bad news, inflammation from a poor diet is the last thing we want when it comes to life-force and longevity. Now I won't call it good news, but the not-so-bad news is inflammation is essentially water retention - not good for your health, but relatively easy to correct. 

​​​​​​​So the nutshell of gluten, inflammation, and weight loss: cut wheat flour and inflammation quickly recedes. This is how cutting back on gluten does offer some solid weight loss in just a few days. It's eliminating unnecessary water retention, not fat cells (yet), nonetheless it's weight loss of great value. 

Look, I know it’s hard to keep away from wheat flour since it’s everywhere, but there are alternatives. Unprocessed options can include rice, quinoa, and corn. For breads, sprouted grain breads are a great alternative. They’re flourless. One-hundred percent rye breads are a good bet, too. But I mean one-hundred percent. All grocery stores sell “rye” bread, but most often it’s flavored with rye with wheat still as the main ingredient.

Be careful not to rely on all the “gluten-free” (GF) foods that are out there nowadays. GF baked snacks have become very popular, but a lot of them just use other processed high GI grains instead of wheat. And so you’re just substituting one kind of processed food for another!

Sourdough bread is worthy of special attention. Sourdough bread has a significantly lower GI than regular wheat bread. Reducing the rate of digestion in sourdough bread is through the formation of organic acids that delay the absorption of starch. The natural fermentation also breaks down some of the gluten making it a more digestible food. Personally I'm a fan of having a little sourdough bread from time to time. It's not exactly a medicinal food, but think of it as a vehicle to have excellent foods like avocado and sprouts in a sandwich with other simple unprocessed foods.

Coming full circle, I understand that a complete dietary overhaul for some of us may be a bit overwhelming. Cereals and breads and snacks have become dietary staples. But if you make a conscious effort to start substituting with healthier, unprocessed foods, you’ll notice a funny thing start to happen. The processed junk will actually begin to seem unappetizing to you.

Very truthfully, processed foods like bread, crackers, chips, and other snack foods have become totally and completely undesirable to me. Why? The body recognizes nutrient-rich foods and, if given a steady supply, will naturally gravitate towards the good stuff and away from all the junk. It’s true. Believe me. I saw it countless times during my years at the Ashram and Infinity Retreats. During the course of their time there, guests would develop an improved taste for good, healthy, nutritious, lower-calorie, natural, unprocessed food. They’d come back a year later looking and feeling like different people. The difference? They successfully incorporated the dietary principles that I share into their lives. Try it yourself and see if the same thing doesn’t happen to you. I have a hunch your body’s instinctual wisdom may just tip the scale in your favor.

Billy

PS. Over the last nineteen years, the Infinity Superfoods have become a powerful force, enhancing the lives of many thousands of people, and my wish is for you to be part of the tribe. If you've had the opportunity to experience the guaranteed benefits of the Infinity superfoods and health information that I have to share in my book, Infinity Health Manual, then pass the word to your friends and family, or even better, give them Infinity products to try so they can experience the brilliance of what they're all about. 

Lastly, I appreciate that you read my articles! It simply gives me reason to do it. Please pass this one along to a friend who you feel might benefit from the content! 

 

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