# Wheat Free?



## chuckha62 (Jul 11, 2006)

I recently decided to try going wheat free, due to an inflammatory bowel disease which I have been fighting for the last 22 years. I have tested for Celiacs and the results were negative, so it supposedly wasn't gluten contributing to my issue.

I differentiate because I'm wondering if the issue isn't necessarily gluten specifically, but instead additives and processing which MAY be contaminating our wheat. I've now been _mostly_ wheat free for about three months and I feel better. My issues are at bay, I have actually lost a little weight (down to 163 from 170-ish) as an aside.

Here's the thing that's funny though... I went for my annual physical yesterday and my normally spot-on 120/80 blood pressure, was at 110/60. Now, my blood pressure has been 120/80 for years with no variation to speak of for at least ten years. Would cutting out wheat cause my blood pressure to drop?

Anybody have an opinion? Just curious.


----------



## mabrodis (Oct 19, 2005)

I know others who have tested negative for Celiac disease but will be either throwing up or on the toilet minutes after eating any wheat...but the Celiac test always comes back negative...so I don't place a lot of faith in Celiac as being the only wheat issue that some people have. Maybe it's from the contaminated processed wheat, maybe GMO wheat, maybe an allergy that some will outgrow, who knows, but the symptoms are not subtle.

That said, if what you were eating before was causing inflammation that certainly could raise your blood pressure...and therefore changing your diet to something that creates less inflammation in your body could certainly lower blood pressure a bit. That doesn't seem that much of a stretch to me. 

I would expect a similar reaction (lowering of BP) from someone who eats a lot of sugar, fat, meat, dairy then changes to eating very 'clean' foods which digest with no added stress/inflammation on the body. If you lookup a list of what foods create inflammation in the body it's basically a who's who of what most of us love to eat...sugar, fat, refined flour, dairy, meat, bread...which is rather frustrating


----------



## dave54 (Jul 1, 2003)

What other dietary and activity changes have you made besides reducing wheat?

My blood pressure varies somewhat anyway. And the skill and experience level of the person taking the pressure will vary the numbers by 10 or more.

Also. bread and baked goods tend to be high in salt (Salt regulates the yeast rising). So by cutting out anything baked you are also reducing your sodium intake.


----------



## Cornfield (Apr 15, 2012)

I've basically cut out wheat and any processed foods that I could for about two months now, and I feel much better without it! Kinda sucks 'cus I love burgers and pizza. I still do indulge every once in a while.

I used to get what I think was acid indigestion, whatever it was it'd be a burning sensation coming up my esophagus from my stomach an hour or so after eating bread, and that's all gone now!


----------



## Choice Cut Nutrition (Nov 9, 2016)

Maybe you don't have Celiac disease. Maybe just a wheat allergy. And yes, inflammation can definitely raise blood pressure. As others have said, inflammation could be due to a number of different reasons. Especially for IBS, you have to identify particular foods that cause flair ups. Everyone with IBS will react differently to different foods. 

The take home message is that you have found out that eliminating wheat has made you feel better. So there you go.


----------



## richj8990 (Apr 4, 2017)

chuckha62 said:


> I recently decided to try going wheat free, due to an inflammatory bowel disease which I have been fighting for the last 22 years. I have tested for Celiacs and the results were negative, so it supposedly wasn't gluten contributing to my issue.
> 
> I differentiate because I'm wondering if the issue isn't necessarily gluten specifically, but instead additives and processing which MAY be contaminating our wheat. I've now been _mostly_ wheat free for about three months and I feel better. My issues are at bay, I have actually lost a little weight (down to 163 from 170-ish) as an aside.
> 
> ...


People who are allergic to wheat have naturally low blood pressure. So if you ate wheat it may raise your blood pressure a bit by activating a type II immune response, which comes from the sympathetic side of your nervous system, and that's associated with adrenaline and similar molecules, which led to a modest rise in BP. When you take wheat away, that immune response goes down and you go to your 'normal' blood pressure. I cut out wheat 10 years ago and it's been great, and although meals are boring, it's still way better than feeling sluggish throughout the day.


----------



## BeanMan (Jul 6, 2006)

It should be noted that there are no GMO wheats being grown for public consumption. GMO’s are not part of the equation.


----------



## Chukwithak (May 4, 2012)

I didn’t read all of the replies. As for your question, if there’s an inflammatory response that you lived with at a bp of 120/80 and you cut that inflammation down with any method, your bp will decrease. It could also be what you ate that day, your hydration levels, your sleep, aka many other things. 110/80 is nothing to worry about as long as you feel ok. Like asking why is my resting heart rate 43, when the American average is 72? I’m healthy and average America is not. Don’t let numbers get you.

I’m glad you’re looking into your stomach issue. I’ve been paleo for 5-6 years and cut out things I never thought I could cut out. It took time but what it has done is amazing. I always tell people, “you never know your stomach is inflamed and distended if that’s how you live life every day. Until you cut something out for 3 weeks and feel what life is like without it, you’ll never know what healthy may actually feel like.” I grew up on a classic “runners” eating habits. When I cut milk and bread out, it changed me forever. I can feel the difference almost immediately now,” when I reintroduce a inflammatory food group.

As for your continuous issues I had an ex with similar problems. While gluten did create an issue, come to find out corn (in everything) was the biggest issue. Do some reading on corn and you’ll find a lot about how our body can’t break it down and how it’s being used to fill in so much of the crap we eat. Might be an issue as well.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Pro


----------

