For those of you who think going "gluten free" is an awesome idea..(Miley)

Cutting gluten won't help you drop pounds - and could even cause weight GAIN: Experts' backlash over Miley Cyrus's endorsement of restrictive diet

By Kristie Lau

After proclaiming on Twitter that the reason behind her skinny new frame is a gluten and lactose-free eating plan, Miley Cyrus has come under criticism for her endorsement of the heavily restrictive diet.

The 19-year-old pop star tweeted to her 5.4million followers yesterday: 'Everyone should try no gluten for a week! The change in your skin, physical and mental health is amazing. You won’t go back!'

But dietitians and nutritionists have warned that a gluten-free diet, which omits grains such as wheat, rye, barley and triticale is said to be detrimental to a person’s health if they are not genuinely allergic to gluten.

Then and now: Miley Cyrus, 19, has claimed that a gluten-free diet is the cause of her thin new frame

Karen Ansel, a registered dietician and spokesperson for the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, told Today.com: 'A gluten-free diet can result in a diet that's low in iron, zinc and B vitamins such as folate and niacin.'

And Dr David Katz, director of the Yale University Prevention Research Center, told ABC: 'Cutting gluten… it is advisable only for those with genuine sensitivities.'

 

Rachel Begun, a food industry consultant who has Coeliac disease which is an extreme intolerance to gluten, explained that gluten-free products can even make a person put on weight.

She told Today.com: 'People who go gluten-free may gain weight if they rely mostly on highly-processed gluten free foods, many of which tend to be higher in fat, calories and sugar than their gluten-containing counterparts.

Twit: The singer tweeted earlier in the week about how she had ditched gluten

'Gluten-free foods also tend to lack fiber that fills us up and can help us manage our weight.'Gluten and lactose-free diets have been glamourized in recent times by the endorsement of celebrities like Zooey Deschanel, who is sensitive to dairy products, eggs and wheat and Elisabeth Hasselbeck, a host on The View who has Celiac disease.

Dr Peter Green, director of Columbia University's Celiac Disease Center in New York, told ABC that 'the trendiest thing in the food industry right now is gluten-free.'

He added that almost 90per cent of dieters omit gluten products as a food fad, or a 'weight reduction thing.'

So unless you have celiac disease, there's really no need to be gluten free. YOOUUUURRRRRR AN IDIOT, THANK YOU MILEY.

Dina Manzo recently tweeted "I'm now gluten free, meat free, and dairy free, so basically I'm a huge pain in the ass to go out to eat with"

No Dina, you're a fucking idiot and have no idea what your talking about.

My mom is reading a ridiculous book called "Wheat Belly," which also credits gluten found in wheat products to obesity. Might as well call it "the next new fad." The author (who unfortunately is a cardiologist and should know better), claims that America's obesity epidemic is directly related to how much wheat we eat. Dr. Davis is about as smart as Dina Manzo. Apparently too much "wheat" is the reason for diabetes, cardiovascular disease, and obesity. TOO MUCH EVERYTHING is the reason we are obese. This guy actually had the balls to test the blood sugar of people after eating "wheat" (pretty vague) compared to a candy bar and found that the subjects who had wheat, also had blood sugar that was twice as high. My personal favorite was my parents' reaction to that study "SIGH, TWICE as HIGH?!!" THAT'S CRAZYYYYYY. Why don't we actually compare apples to apples. Simple carbs vs. complex carbs, instead of "wheat" with sugar and fat. See, here's the difference when you eat a potato vs. a sweet potato; a complex carb vs. simple carb. Or white bread vs. wheat bread for that matter.

Starch takes two main forms in plants: amylose and amylopectin. Amylose is made up of long, unbranched chains of glucose molecules, where- as amylopectin is made up of branched chains of glucose molecules. Wheat flour contains a higher proportion of amylose, whereas cornstarch contains a higher proportion of amylopectin. In the body, amylopectin is digested more rapidly than amylose. Although the body easily digests most starches, a small portion of the starch in plants may remain enclosed in cell structures and escape digestion in the small intestine. Starch that is not digested is called resistant starch. It will hang around if needed for energy, but eventually be stored in fat cells if not used. So a starchy potato, or white bread, gets broken down much quicker, spikes blood sugar, and rapidly gets stored as fat if it does not get used. The sweet potato or wheat bread takes a lot of time to get broken down. The body needs more work to break down slower because these carbs are designed for sustainable energy with their high fiber content, leaving you fuller longer and able to use those carbs for energy. The sweet potato or wheat bread will be used for energy longer, because the process of digestion is much longer, leaving blood sugar more regulated. If we compared the blood sugars for those who ate a potato vs. a sweet potato the numbers would be much different. However, the length of time after eating is crucial, since a white potato would have a blood sugar spike, then drop quickly after. The sweet potato will keep the blood sugar sustained for longer without having a dip. Diabetes is caused when too many blood sugar spikes leaves the body unable to control its own insulin, so it needs insulin from an outside source. The pancreas needs to work overtime to allow insulin to regular blood sugar, and the pancreas does not get stronger as it sees continued stress like the heart does. Eventually, insulin is needed in people who are pre-diabetic or full blown. Who's to blame? The white bread and potato or wheat bread and sweet potato? Hmmmm...tough one.

Better yet, to further disprove Dr. Davis' argument, let's look at how a candy bar get's broken down also. A candy bar is comprised of sugar and fat, possibly other artificial ingredients. Saturated fat has many functions in the body, but it will not be used for energy unless there's an absence of carbs and amino acids. When we eat fat, our bodies almost immediately store those fat with other fat cells in the body. Fatty acids are composed of triglycerides and phospholipids which often get attached to cholesterol. These long and short chains of fatty acids immediately act as transports and have no place providing the same type of function as carbohydrates. Carbohydrates are essential for energy. You are what you eat. You eat fat, you get fat. Simple as that. To compare apples to oranges in the way Dr. Davis did, just simply doesn't prove anything. Using terms like "Lose the wheat, lose the weight!" He's obviously just in this to sell books, and doesn't care at all about nutrition. A fad is a fad, and illuminating one food group is not only unrealistic, it's UNHEALTHY! This is the adkins diet with a different name. Dr. Davis should know better, than to take advantage of desperate people who just want to lose their belly weight fast. He should be ashamed of himself.

We all need balance, our diets should consist of healthy bountiful nutrients, with all the fun stuff in moderation. This goes back to what I've been saying. Dr.'s should prescribe medicine, nutritionists should prescribe diets. Both parties need to just stick with what they know.

Now, if you think you can eat wheat bagels, whole wheat pasta, sweet potatoes, and brown rice all day long and think you won't gain weight think again. Overeating will contribute to weight gain, NO MATTER WHAT YOUR SOURCES COME FROM. Calories in/calories out. This also doesn't mean that you can eat 500 calories of pizza, and 500 calories of grilled chicken, brown rice, and leafy greens, and expect to SEE the same results. The scale doesn't lie, but the way your clothes fit is the best indicator.

If you think you should be losing weight, and you're not, keep a food diary. This way you can track all of your calorie sources and be mindful of portions. Don't let these fads, celebrities, even Dr.'s fool you with their books, and their bullshit "secrets." Be fit. Be healthy. It's not rocket science.