Wheat Belly

Lose the Wheat, Lose the Weight, and Find Your Path Back to Health

By: William David MD

Narrated by: Tom Weiner

Length: 7 hrs and 33 mins

Publisher's summary

A provocative look at how eliminating wheat from our diets can help us lose weight, shrink unsightly bulges, and reverse a broad spectrum of health problems—from acne to diabetes to serious digestive disorders.

Since the introduction of dietary guidelines calling for reduced fat intake in the 1970s, a strange phenomenon has occurred: Americans have steadily, inexorably become heavier, less healthy, and more prone to diabetes than ever before. After putting more than 2,000 of his at-risk patients on a wheat-free regimen and seeing extraordinary results, cardiologist William Davis has come to the disturbing conclusion that it is not fat, not sugar, not our sedentary lifestyle that is causing America’s obesity epidemic—it is wheat. How this once-benign grain—now genetically modified almost beyond recognition and found in virtually every course of every meal—has come to have such a profound and deleterious effect on our collective well-being is one of the great untold health stories of our generation.

In Wheat Belly, Dr. Davis exposes the truth about modern-day wheat, deconstructing its historical role in the human diet and the agricultural evolutions that have created a hybrid grain that has a greater impact on blood sugar levels than pure cane sugar and many of the addictive characteristics of a narcotic. He sheds light on wheat’s connection to weight gain as well as to a host of other adverse effects from diabetes to heart disease to immunologic and neurologic disorders like celiac disease, rheumatoid arthritis, and dementia. Finally, to help listeners dependent on wheat products make the move to a wheat-free diet, he presents a clear-cut action plan packed with food and lifestyle tips, meal plans, and recipes.

Informed by decades of clinical research and backed by case studies of men and women who have experienced life-changing transformations in their health after waving good-bye to wheat, Wheat Belly is an illuminating look at a familiar food as well as an affirmative life plan for regaining health and losing unwanted pounds.

PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying reference material will be available in your My Library section along with the audio.

©2011 William Davis, MD (P)2011 Blackstone Audio, Inc.

A bit slow but worth the listen

This book is a must listen for anyone...not just those of us that struggle with excess pounds and dont know why. It can be a bit boring at times but the information is good to hear regardless.
I have struggled with crazy weight fluctuations of up to 40 lbs regularly in the past decade, I travel out of North America frequently and always lose weight when I do. I could not figure out why, I actually exercise more at home when I have a set schedule, and I do not over eat. And yet, within weeks of coming back I pack on 10 lbs, and it doesn't stop there.
The only thing I eat at home that is different is the wheat. Cereal, sandwiches (always high on the "healthy" grains) oat bars and the like. Nothing over the top and yet my appetite gains control of my life. I can eat a full meal and before putting the last spoon into my mouth be thinking about the next. This Never happens when I am in a situation where I don't eat wheat. Now I know why, and this book gave me the knowledge to understand how this product is poisonous to my body and my mind. Which of course bring depression and lethargy.....god if I only knew this 15 years back, how different my life would have been.
I am officially off wheat for good, and this book helped in pushing me to make that major commitment. Its been a week and already I feel clearer, more energetic and slightly thinner.
I recommend it for anyone...regardless of weight the info here could potentially save, or at least change, your life.

Changed my life

Well written well researched and, I believe, relevant.
I reduced wheat consumption approximately 90%, hard to cease wheat 100%, after reading Wheat Belly.
I was impressed with Dr. Davis case and wanted to loose 4 or 5 pounds.
I lost the pounds.
However what was not expected was the cure of my chronic stomach acid problems.
For years I had been taking various acid medications at an increasing rate and had discussed upper gi with my doctor. Since going off wheat about 5 mounts ago I have had no acid problems. This was the only change in diet and lifestyle. I can now eat any types of non wheat foods and have no acid reflux.
Life changing!! Thank you Dr. Davis.

Disturbingly Good

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

Yes. It's disturbing, but incredibly interesting.

If you’ve listened to books by William Davis before, how does this one compare?

n/a

What about Tom Weiner’s performance did you like?

Enjoyable voice to listen to.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

No. I actually had to stop mid book and go to something else. There's so much information that I noticed my thoughts drifting elsewhere and not paying attention to the book.

Any additional comments?

This is an excellent yet disturbing book. But toward the end, I feel like the Dr may have gotten a little carried away toward the end of the book with the examples he posed. They seemed to be a little bit extreme cases, and may not connect with a majority of the readers.
Towards the end, I also felt that the disturbing aspect started to fall off and lose my attention. It's moving enough to make me want to stop my gluten consumption, but also take this information with a grain of salt.

Informative but scary.

This book is frightening. Are we actually being "poisoned" to the degree indicated? Impressive in detail. The research is very high level but mind-numbing. Glad I read it but left with a sense of "what next?"

One of the most effective weight loss books!

This book resolved my confusion about choosing between whole and processed wheat products - they're not much different! Once I took its advice and left out wheat from the menu altogether, I saw my weight gain stop and reverse soon afterwards. It's incredible!! Don't just read the book, try it for a couple of months and see for yourself.

Life Changing

Where does Wheat Belly rank among all the audiobooks you???ve listened to so far?

This is the best health related book I've listened to since Jillian Michaels' Master Your Metabolism. There is far more information here than just weight loss advice, so read it even if you have nothing to lose!

What other book might you compare Wheat Belly to and why?

The Gluten Free Diet has additional useful information on this subject.

Have you listened to any of Tom Weiner???s other performances before? How does this one compare?

Sorry, no, but this was well read and easy to understand even at 3x speed.

If you were to make a film of this book, what would be the tag line be?

Wheat is the junk food of the grain family. Did you know diabetes does not even exist in civilizations that do not eat wheat?

Any additional comments?

Amazing, life changing book. Thanks for years of extra life!

If you care about your health you need to read or listen to this book!

If you care about your health and your families health you need to read or listen to this book! It is loaded with information about why you should eliminate wheat from your diet and will inform you of conditions caused or aggravated by consumption of wheat, even organic!

Great - very technical in some areas

Great read. Very technical here and there. Last two hours are home run hit with less eggheaded narration, which may be of value to some. I do not have celiac disease but choose to follow a 95% gf diet, occasionally eating breaded fish. Have lost 60 lbs since gf begun.

Ubiquitous poison, worse than sugar

Not as thick on the science/history as Good Calories, Bad Calories by Gary Taubes (which I loved), but very helpful to focus on the unique dangers of wheat (those two authors should talk to one another!). Some of the language and reading was annoying (he repeatedly mentioned man-breasts, which probably would be uncomfortable for some people to hear) but worth ignoring for the education. For me, it came down to wheat=worse than sugar in its effect on blood sugar, disease and aging. Since wheat seems to be in nearly EVERYTHING we eat, drink, or slather on our bodies, I realize I'll be best off to remove wheat from my intentional diet. (I don't have celiac disease, so I'm not going to worry about every envelope I lick or the hand cream I depend on in the winter.)

Wheat Belly

Enjoyed the audio book. will listen again! Many good facts and a lot of information!