I managed to find this graph of wheat consumption in a set of countries
(as the print doesn't show up clearly, they are in order:
China,India ,USA ,Russia ,France,Canada,Germany,Turkey,Pakistan ,Australia,Ukraine, UK,Iran ,Argentina ,Kazakhstan,Poland ,Egypt ,Italy,Romania ,Uzbekistan .
I used data from the WHO to show the obesity levels in those countries
I really can't see any correlation at all.
I can't see any correlation, either. What bothers me about Dr. Davis' theory is that there is no study that I know of that differentiates between those who eat a lot of wheat and those who don't -- seems to me that very nearly ALL Americans eat a good portion of wheat, but especially among women, there are those who carry their weight in the bellies, and those who carry their weight in their hips, butts and thighs. If wheat were the culprit he says it is, we should all be carrying our weight in our bellies. I believe it is genetic, and probably related to hereditary insulin-resistance, and not to wheat at all.
ReplyDeleteHi there!
ReplyDeleteGee, it couldn't be that the Pakistanis eat a whole lot less overall that they are less overweight?
Could be. It would be interesting though to look at the differences between rural and urban communities though.
ReplyDeleteThe type of wheat may differ in gluten content from country to country ie French bread uses softer wheat, Italian pasta harder . Nevertheless, I gather almost all varieties grown commercially, contain the Japanese dwarf wheat genes.
Thanks, these graphs are always interesting to me. I'm surprised that China has 3000/day. I wonder if that's accurate. But it must vary a lot between city/rural.
ReplyDeleteHere's a list of calories from ~1980:
http://www.trivia-library.com/b/daily-calorie-intake-of-the-average-person-in-20-countries.htm
China 2,170
U.S. 3,330
@Natalie, I believe the reason that women tend to mostly carry the extra weight on their lower half is due to hormonal differences from men. at the onset of menopause, the hormones change and the weight begins to be accumulated in the mid-section as well. To be confirmed....
ReplyDeleteWith regards to obesity, I believe that the differing opinions such as those of Taubes or even Dr. Davis are reductive. Both are right and wrong at the same time. IMHO, I believe that it's a combination of all these factors, coupled with excess calories (accumulated over time) and a lack of physical activity.
That said, beyond the possible implication of wheat's cause to obesity, I do believe that the impact it has to overall health (coeliac for example) is vast (& unresearched) Eliminating it from one's diet (and replacing it with other sources of carbs) is probably the best thing that one could do improve one's health
Now two years later and since there is still no conclusive evidence that any of (quoting you):
ReplyDelete"That said, beyond the possible implication of wheat's cause to obesity, I do believe that the impact it has to overall health (coeliac for example) is vast (& unresearched)"
is true (i.e. wheat causes obesity or coeliac or is unresearched) then the conclusion that "Eliminating it from one's diet...is probably the best thing that one could do improve one's health" is also untrue or as with most things people do on an unsubstantiated whim (or do you still believe that love apples aka tomatoes are poisonous) actually can be harmful. Dr. Davis is not "both right and wrong at the same time," rather he has taken (not maliciously I am sure) an ounce of truth and extracted a pound of misinformation. Conclusions drawn on faulty premises and data interpretation are almost invariably faulty as well.