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kelldozer's review against another edition
3.0
I've been trying to eat wheat/gluten free for months now... this book just goes into depth as to the reasons why I decided to do it. Not much new information for me, but plenty of food for thought for those currently adhering to the SAD.
justin92's review against another edition
3.0
BLUF: Valuable information but the author sounds like a fanatic and blames all world problems on eating wheat. I'm not saying his theories are wrong, he does have some compelling evidence but his delivery needs some major work.
More info:
Proposes wheat causes major issues and uses science jargon and sources, with in-depth discussion on celliac disease and diabetes, and some discussion on ulcerative colitis to illustrate what he believes is predominantly caused by "wheat intolerance".
His works ties into low-carb and keto as well but that is not his focus. He does connect insulin issues, weight gain, etc. similar to low-carb/keto proponents but believes wheat to be the main culprit and believes most persons affected with these issues only need to remove wheat to gain benefits. He offers low-carb/keto as a way to go further if one wishes towards the very end of the book, but his main ax to grind is wheat and the problems wheat appears to cause.
Major issues were his fanaticism against wheat and how it causes all problems in life and the overly science jargon in a couple of chapters that drones on and on.
More info:
Proposes wheat causes major issues and uses science jargon and sources, with in-depth discussion on celliac disease and diabetes, and some discussion on ulcerative colitis to illustrate what he believes is predominantly caused by "wheat intolerance".
His works ties into low-carb and keto as well but that is not his focus. He does connect insulin issues, weight gain, etc. similar to low-carb/keto proponents but believes wheat to be the main culprit and believes most persons affected with these issues only need to remove wheat to gain benefits. He offers low-carb/keto as a way to go further if one wishes towards the very end of the book, but his main ax to grind is wheat and the problems wheat appears to cause.
Major issues were his fanaticism against wheat and how it causes all problems in life and the overly science jargon in a couple of chapters that drones on and on.
jennyhamel's review against another edition
2.0
Wheat Belly is wordy, redundant, and a horribly boring read. It makes some good points, and I agree with the overall message, but I think Whole 30 and It Starts With Food are more readable, relatable, and have a better route to health through not just wheat elimination, but removal of sugars/dairy/other foods that cause an array of problems as well.
equilibriax's review against another edition
3.0
I've been interested in a gluten-free/wheat-free diet for a bit. This had a lot of interesting information in it, but most of the book is a bunch of scare tactic stories. No, not everyone that eats wheat is going to lose their hair or destroy all their joints. Despite the scare tactics, there's a lot of good information about the history of wheat, how it's been genetically modified in just the past 50 years, and how it affects your blood sugar and digestive tract. There are some ok recipes in the back but nothing that looks _that_ great.
libellum_aphrodite's review against another edition
3.0
[to state my biases upfront: I have been following the paleo diet for about a year and have studied some nutrition and biochemistry in college]
I found this book to be very readable and compelling case for correlation of health problems and wheat consumption. While eliminating wheat may not be the irrefutable answer for everyone's ailments, the changes Dr. Davis has witnessed in patients who have given up wheat are quite astounding, as are the trends of increasing occurrence of disease with increasing wheat consumption. Furthermore, Davis's explanation of how genetic modification has impacted its interaction with the human body is the most cogent and least scaremongering criticism of GMOs I have ever read, especially notable for a popular science book.
To those crying "anecdotal pseudo-science!": yes, I agree that Davis doesn't address every corner case, his suggested diet is very similar to paleo and its low-carb friends, and a large portion of his tales are anecdotal; however, such imprecision is the nature of nutritional studies. Despite all we do know about cellular processes in the body, our knowledge is still extremely limited, not to mention that in practice, between genetics and epigenetics, half of what we think we know falls by the wayside.
I found this book to be very readable and compelling case for correlation of health problems and wheat consumption. While eliminating wheat may not be the irrefutable answer for everyone's ailments, the changes Dr. Davis has witnessed in patients who have given up wheat are quite astounding, as are the trends of increasing occurrence of disease with increasing wheat consumption. Furthermore, Davis's explanation of how genetic modification has impacted its interaction with the human body is the most cogent and least scaremongering criticism of GMOs I have ever read, especially notable for a popular science book.
To those crying "anecdotal pseudo-science!": yes, I agree that Davis doesn't address every corner case, his suggested diet is very similar to paleo and its low-carb friends, and a large portion of his tales are anecdotal; however, such imprecision is the nature of nutritional studies. Despite all we do know about cellular processes in the body, our knowledge is still extremely limited, not to mention that in practice, between genetics and epigenetics, half of what we think we know falls by the wayside.
bubbleteabooke's review against another edition
hopeful
informative
reflective
slow-paced
ermcgowan's review against another edition
1.0
This book was insanely repetitive, like actual word for word repetition of entire sentences. It read like cherry-picked studies and anecdotal only evidence. I was interested in learning more about the topic but Just not a good book.
ovenbird_reads's review against another edition
4.0
There's some crazy information in here about how the body processes food and how wheat/gluten are frequently destructive to our systems. I was off wheat for a few years and recently started eating it again. After reading this book I'm going back off. The evidence is highly compelling, suggesting that gluten is related to a host of major health issues and simply cutting wheat from your diet might add years to your life. Anyone looking to optimize their health should read this book and try out the associate diet.
The writing is also very good--it manages to be extremely readable even though it contains some complex chemical and physiological science. Detailed studies are mixed with anecdotes and the author's own theories providing a broad view of the topic. The author is good at pointing out where evidence is still lacking. I suspect that reading this book will cause a lot of people to start avoiding gluten and possibly sugar. I had no idea how damaging high GI foods were to the human body and I'm pretty keen to revise my diet based on what I've learned.
The writing is also very good--it manages to be extremely readable even though it contains some complex chemical and physiological science. Detailed studies are mixed with anecdotes and the author's own theories providing a broad view of the topic. The author is good at pointing out where evidence is still lacking. I suspect that reading this book will cause a lot of people to start avoiding gluten and possibly sugar. I had no idea how damaging high GI foods were to the human body and I'm pretty keen to revise my diet based on what I've learned.