Dementia: Is Gluten The Culprit? Ran the headline on Medscape, Part of WebMD. It was an interview with Dr. Perlmutter, the author of Grain Brain.  I bought his book when it first came out. I wanted to read it, as I had a very hard time believing that all grains could be classified as bad and as causing inflammation, especially inflammation of the brain and Alzheimer's.

Controversy sells, and that's what Dr. Perlmutter the author is out to do, sell his book. The first thing I did, was look in the index for brown rice, spelt and kamut.

Not surprisingly, there was no mention of them. Why not? In order to prove his one sided view.

His main point is that high blood sugar causes inflammation.

I agree that white refined carbs are detrimental to our health and that wheat has been modified, manipulated and transformed and is no longer good for us. However, there are many good quality whole grains that are very beneficial to our health and no, they do not cause dementia or inflammation or so called grain brain.

These are good quality carbs that are not fattening, that fill you up, that keep you satisfied. When eaten with protein and vegetables, you will feel full, so you will be less inclined to eat unhealthy snacks in between meals.

A recent article in Nutrition Action Health Letter, proved what I believed to be true. The article discussed how his findings portrayed only one side of the picture. Lower carb, lower-fat And Mediterranean diets all reduce blood sugar levels. His advice is to replace nearly all carbs with fat, including saturated fat. Not a god plan for the arteries.

Gluten causes problems for those with celiac disease, and may people are intolerant to wheat, but other whole grains and good quality carbs are beneficial to your health. Enjoy them!

The lesson is, beware of sensationalistic headlines and if you question the validity of a book or an article, feel free to drop me a line. Investigating health issues has been my passion for over 25 years!