Wheat Cardiotoxicity: CVD Acceleration
I wanted to share with you today an article which appeared on the Green Med Info website: “Wheat Cardiotoxicity: As Serious as a Heart Attack”.
This article is based upon an article written by Loren Cordain:
“It was actually Loren Cordain, Ph.D., author of the Paleo Diet, who (to our knowledge) first pointed out the inherent cardiotoxicity of wheat. In the March 2008 edition of The Paleo Diet Newsletter, Cordain explains in an article titled, “Whole Wheat Heart Attack Part2: The Role of Dietary Lectins,” how dietary lectins, as found in wheat, promote the formation of fatty streaks and mature atherosclerotic plaque in the arteries”.
Lectins have received a recent surge of developing awareness as a result of the recent work and book written by Steven Gundry, MD
The prevailing attitude – one that I personally agree with that I have gathered by discussing this topic with many individuals within the practitioner community is that yes lectins can be important, however it is not something that everyone needs to be fanatical about in terms of avoidance.
It may be a factor to consider in individuals that are dealing with such conditions as autoimmune conditions, gut health etc. and short term elimination from the diet is worth considering to remove one potential causative agent.
Cordain’s hypothesis – echoed by Sayer Ji, the founder of Green Med Info is that lectins consumed with whole wheat products may be involved in the progression or acceleration of athersclerosis.