I recently read a book,  Grain Brain by David Perlmutter.

Main takeaway?

Each and every person should try going off of gluten for 2-3 months and see what impact it has on their life.

That sounds dumb, Ryan!  Why would I go off of it if I don’t have any health issues and eating it doesn’t cause a noticeable reaction?

Ah.. I’m so glad you asked this question!  Let me tell you why I speak such dumbese.  Today’s gluten isn’t your ancestor’s gluten.  In fact, it hasn’t been since around 1950.  Our society has been tweaking wheat genetically without really understanding the long term effects of it on mankind.  Well… the data is flooding in and things aren’t looking so good.  Let’s not even include the folks with Celiac’s disease in this, also known as gluten intolerance, also know as folks who have an acute allergic reaction to the consumption of gluten.  This is a small percentage of the population and this seems to be the only time the main stream medical community takes gluten issues seriously.  I’m talking about everybody else here… yes! I’m talking about you (and me)!

I want to talk about the rest of the spectrum that is usually referred to as ‘gluten sensitivity’.  I used to think that this spectrum was confined to those that had some degree of mild allergic reaction to eating gluten.  That it had to cause your digestive tract to become inflamed to some degree to even warrant a discussion about cutting out gluten.  This book has convinced me that I was wrong.  The spectrum is so broad.  I can hear you all chanting in Match Game style “How broad is it?”  It is so broad that it seems to include everyone to some degree.

This book talks about studies tying gluten to brain degenerative disorders like dementia, Alzheimer’s, Parkinsons, MS and many other of your lifestyle altering favorites like anxiety/depression, chronic headaches, ADHD and many more.  This information, coupled with all the data tying gluten sensitivity to autoimmune disorders (see yours truly), makes an overwhelming argument for a person to at least try going off of gluten for a period of time and see how their amazing body responds.

I have been off of gluten for over a year and my results are pretty well documented on this blog.  I have helped to inspire others to try this (my mother and my wife to name a couple) and while it is early, everyone has experienced positive change.  Some of the short term results are brain fog disappearing, bellies/butts slimming down in a way that exercise hasn’t touched, faces/skin clearing up.  I will report back on the long term effects as they become more clear.

My challenge to all of you is this.  Don’t ignore this!  I know you like yourself some bread and some pasta.  I was at the top of the gluten enjoying pyramid.  You can go without this in your life.  It isn’t as big of a deal as it seems right now.  It also might be the best decision you can make for your future and your family’s future!  JUST TRY IT! Start today… start right now.