In response to the Heart Scan Blog post, Post-Traumatic Grain Disorder, Anne commented:
While on the American Heart Association diet my lipids peaked in 2003. I even tried the Ornish diet for a short time, but found it impossible.
Total Cholesterol: 201
Triglycerides: 263
HDL: 62
LDL: 86
After I stopped eating gluten (I am very sensitive), my lipid panel improved slightly. This past year I started eating to keep my blood sugar under control by eliminating sugars and other grains. Now this is my most recent lab:
Total Cholesterol: 162
Triglycerides: 80
HDL: 71
LDL: 75
Isn't that great? This is precisely what I see in practice: Elimination of wheat and sugars yields dramatic effects on basic lipids, especially reductions in triglycerides of up to several hundred milligrams, increased HDL, reduced LDL.
Beneath the surface, the effects are even more dramatic: reductions or elimination of small LDL particles, reduction or elimination of triglyceride-containing lipoproteins, elimination of the marker for abnormal post-prandial (after-eating) lipoproteins, IDL, reduced c-reactive protein. Add weight loss from abdominal fat stores and reduced blood pressure.
In fact, I would go so far as to speculate that, if the entire nation were to follow Anne's lead and eliminate wheat and sugars, "need" for 30% of all prescription medications would disappear . The incidence of diabetes would be slashed, the U.S. would no longer lead the world in obesity.
Anne and I are not the first to make this observation. It has also been made in several studies, such as:
The Duke University study of low-carbohydrate diets in type II diabetics. In this study, 50% of low-carb participants became non-diabetic: They were cured .
One of the many studies conducted by University of Connecticut's Dr. Jeff Volek, demonstrating dramatic improvement in glucose, insulin (reduced 50%) and insulin responses, and lipids.
Dr. Ron Krauss' early studies that hinted at this effect, even though the "high-fat" diet wasn't really low-carbohydrate.
If wheat and sugar elimination has been shown to achieve all these fabulous benefits, why hasn't the American Heart Association spoken in favor of this dietary approach and other- low-carbohydrate diets ? Why does the American Heart Association maintain its "Check-Mark" stamp of approval on Cocoa Puffs and Count Chocula cereals�?