Dwarf mutant wheat

31. October 2010 William Davis (13)
Here's my 12-year old standing next to dwarf wheat grown near my house. The wheat is full-grown, harvested about 2 weeks after I took this photo.

Wheat is no longer the 4-foot tall "amber waves of grain" of the 20th century. Over 99% of all wheat grown worldwide is now the 18- to 24-inch tall dwarf. New size, new biochemistry, new effects on humans. I call it dwarf "mutant" wheat despite its lack of extra limbs or eyes because of the dramatic transformation required to breed this unique synthetic plant. 

Short-stature means less stalk, faster growing. The stockier stalk also means that the heavy seed head won't cause the plant to "buckle," as 4-foot tall wheat used to. 





The thousand-plus proteins of wheat that have been transformed to generate this dwarf mutant also changed wheat's relationship to consuming humans.
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Comments (13) -

  • Anonymous

    10/31/2010 2:18:44 PM |

    same neurotoxic effects?

  • Marc

    10/31/2010 3:54:29 PM |

    Wheat consumes humans?

  • Anna

    10/31/2010 4:07:28 PM |

    Very funny, Marc.  Now that I think about it, a lot of modern humans do look quite engulfed by doughy wheat.

  • Hans Keer

    11/1/2010 5:32:31 PM |

    And these dwarfs are just like their taller ancestors trying to kill us and prevent us from consuming them: http://bit.ly/cyKHre

  • Dr. William Davis

    11/2/2010 1:38:54 AM |

    Great comments.

    If I were to design an ideal Frankengrain that exerted every conceivable adverse effect imaginable, it would be dwarf wheat.

    Yes, the very same wheat endorsed and encouraged by the USDA, American Heart Association, American Dietetic Association, and others.

  • Anonymous

    11/2/2010 6:05:31 AM |

    Love your son's Justin Bieber hair!

  • Anne

    11/2/2010 3:46:29 PM |

    I am glad I don't live next to a field of Dwarf mutant wheat. I am very gluten sensitive and I have heard of other gluten sensitive people having problems when the wheat is harvested. I have had problems with the dust from wild bird seed that contained wheat.

  • Anonymous

    11/3/2010 2:27:08 PM |

    Another problem of using grains as a feed source for us and animals is the potential for the growth of mould in stored grains.  This can result in contamination from mycotoxins like aflatoxin in wheat and corn.

  • Anonymous

    11/3/2010 9:08:49 PM |

    I am fascinated and grateful I found your blog completely by chance when researching things to do with my supplements, but....

    I'm also at a bit of a loss (LOL).  I have been eating whole grains and rarely whole wheat at the advice of my doctors for a well rounded diet for sometime now.  I finally brought my triglycerides (astronomically high before) down to the low mid level (in prefect range), my glucose to normal levels (I was borderline type 2 diabetic), and my liver enzymes (6 times to high before) down to normal levels for the first time in two or so years since my very early menopause happened.  I have fatty liver disease and metabolic syndrome.  Though I have not been able to lose the weight (I've had 7 failed back surgeries, where I can finally gratefully walk again (I am still unable to exercise or walk for any length of time due to nerve and back pain-I do not take pain meds any longer) and my blood tests are healthy and awesome.  

    I also have been taking many supplements which include the Lovaza (yes, I know how you feel about it LOL), trans-resveratrol, milk thistle, L-Carnosine, Alpha Lipoic Acid (menopause brain fog), Flax Seeds, B-12, Acidophillus, Vitamin C, Vitamin D3, Calcium, Magnesium, and a Multi, so I am sure they also caused the dramatic change in my blood tests along with my diet rich in fruit, soy, leafy vegetables and whole grains, too.  

    I'm primarily a vegetarian now (except for the Lovaza and an extremely rare piece of chicken or sashimi/fish), but I still have the fat around my stomach from the metabolic syndrome (very early menopause-2 years post menopausal) and the muffin top you speak of.  I again just attributed it to not being able to exercise (which I LOVE especially Karate) due to my disability, but now I read your blog, so I was wondering what should I do?  Should I now cut out the whole grains too?

    My cholesterol is still 54 points too high, but it is 100 pts. lower than it was.  Due to the liver, my doctor wants me to keep doing it with diet, which I am also happy to do.  I don't really consider Lovaza a statin, but I do take it as I explained.  My mom and brother take Lipitor (my brother is in perfect condition and works out 4 days a week, high cholesterol and heart attack/stroke just run in our family), but they still don't want me taking it again because of my liver.

    There is more (quit smoking a year and a half ago and some other now under control health problems), but really I want to know what you think I should do about the whole grains and rare whole wheat in my diet.  I also want to know what you think about me adding CoQ10 and how to finally get my bad cholesterol in perfect range as I did so well with my other blood tests. Do you agree on the supplements I am taking too?

  • Anonymous

    11/3/2010 9:10:35 PM |

    I am fascinated and grateful I found your blog completely by chance when researching things to do with my supplements, but....

    I'm also at a bit of a loss (LOL).  I have been eating whole grains and rarely whole wheat at the advice of my doctors for a well rounded diet for sometime now.  I finally brought my triglycerides (astronomically high before) down to the low mid level (in prefect range), my glucose to normal levels (I was borderline type 2 diabetic), and my liver enzymes (6 times to high before) down to normal levels for the first time in two or so years since my very early menopause happened.  I have fatty liver disease and metabolic syndrome.  Though I have not been able to lose the weight (I've had 7 failed back surgeries, where I can finally gratefully walk again (I am still unable to exercise or walk for any length of time due to nerve and back pain-I do not take pain meds any longer) and my blood tests are healthy and awesome.

  • Anonymous

    11/3/2010 9:11:35 PM |

    Sorry, it said my comment was too long, so I am putting it in two comments.  Please forgive the length.  

    I also have been taking many supplements which include the Lovaza (yes, I know how you feel about it LOL), trans-resveratrol, milk thistle, L-Carnosine, Alpha Lipoic Acid (menopause brain fog), Flax Seeds, B-12, Acidophillus, Vitamin C, Vitamin D3, Calcium, Magnesium, and a Multi, so I am sure they also caused the dramatic change in my blood tests along with my diet rich in fruit, soy, leafy vegetables and whole grains, too.  

    I'm primarily a vegetarian now (except for the Lovaza and an extremely rare piece of chicken or sashimi/fish), but I still have the fat around my stomach from the metabolic syndrome (very early menopause-2 years post menopausal) and the muffin top you speak of.  I again just attributed it to not being able to exercise (which I LOVE especially Karate) due to my disability, but now I read your blog, so I was wondering what should I do?  Should I now cut out the whole grains too?

    My cholesterol is still 54 points too high, but it is 100 pts. lower than it was.  Due to the liver, my doctor wants me to keep doing it with diet, which I am also happy to do.  I don't really consider Lovaza a statin, but I do take it as I explained.  My mom and brother take Lipitor (my brother is in perfect condition and works out 4 days a week, high cholesterol and heart attack/stroke just run in our family), but they still don't want me taking it again because of my liver.

    There is more (quit smoking a year and a half ago and some other now under control health problems), but really I want to know what you think I should do about the whole grains and rare whole wheat in my diet.  I also want to know what you think about me adding CoQ10 and how to finally get my bad cholesterol in perfect range as I did so well with my other blood tests. Do you agree on the supplements I am taking too?

  • Wheat Belly – Here It Comes | Critical MAS

    4/18/2012 1:10:17 AM |

    [...] I only had two issues with this book. The first is something that could easily be fixed in a 2nd printing. I think having photos of wheat today side by side with wheat from pre-GMO days would be instructive. Many of the readers in the book are too young to know what wheat looked like prior to the current dwarf mutant wheat. [...]

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Lipoprotein(a)--neglected and unappreciated

Lipoprotein(a)--neglected and unappreciated

16. February 2008 William Davis (2)

Lipoprotein(a), or just Lp(a) to its close friends and neighbors, is among the most underappreciated and neglected of causes of coronary plaque. It's the Rodney Dangerfield of lipoproteins.

Lp(a) rarely gets diagnosed before people come to my office. They've often been through the ringer: doctors have thrown their hands up in frustration because of poor response to "standard" treatment (AKA statin drugs); the patient doesn't understand why they might be thin and active yet have the high blood pressure of someone 70 lbs heavier; they have heart disease despite wonderful cholesterol values.

One blood test and the answer becomes clear: They have Lp(a). It explains all these phenomena.

They why don't more physicians order this simple test? Why don't we hear more about this prevalent (1 in 5 people with coronary plaque have it) genetic pattern that accelerates risk for heart disease?

There are a number of reasons. But I believe the most powerful reason is simply that there is no big revenue-generating drug to treat it. Statins reduce LDL cholesterol to the tune of $27 billion dollars a year (2007 revenue). There's no such blockbuster for Lp(a). Of course, Niaspan represents the relatively anemic attempt to commercialize a pharmaceutical treatment for Lp(a), but side-effects and the lack of FDA trials for the Lp(a)-reducing indication have stalled its commercial success. (Efforts to block the flush with various products, by the way, may re-invigorate niacin as a pharmaceutical agent. The drug companies smell money here.)

Another reason for Lp(a)'s unpopularity: Though there are mounds of data that document--without question--that Lp(a) is an important risk for coronary disease and other forms of atherosclerotic disease, we lack treatment trials. For instance, niacin vs. placebo for 5 years, then count the number of heart attacks and deaths. We have numerous, repetitive, overlapping, redundant trials with statins adhering to this design. We have none for niacin and the treatment of Lp(a).

Niacin is also a pain in the neck for your doctor. He/she rapidly tires of the calls about the crazy and disconcerting flushing with niacin. Most are unaware that proper hydration reduces or eliminates the flush for the majority of people. It takes too much time and energy to educate people. (By the way, prescription Niaspan makes no mention of purposeful hydration. They only suggest the nonsensical "Take with a low-fat snack," i.e., snacks that actually counter the therpaeutic effects of niacin. What they should be saying is "take with a high-fat snack" like raw almonds, foods that facilatate the benefits of niacin.)

Should someone concoct a successful pharmaceutical treatment for Lp(a), it will make the news, headlines in health magazines and health sections of the newspaper will blare about how important Lp(a) is. Yet it has been there all along, frustrating people and their physicians.

In the Track Your Plaque experience, Lp(a) clearly 1) correlates with heart scan scores, 2) correlates with progression of heart scan scores without treatment, and 3) poses special challenges for treatment. Interestingly, some of our biggest failures have been with Lp(a), as well as some of our biggest successes. (Our current record holder for the largest percentage reduction in heart scan score has Lp(a).)

If you have coronary plaque, or if there is family risk of heart disease, then Lp(a), in my view, is an absolutely essential factor to test for. Yes, treatment poses challenges. But once you know who your enemy is, then you can focus your efforts on it. Not knowing whether or not you have it leaves your efforts unfocused and generally flawed.

Track Your Plaque Members, be sure to read our in-depth Special Report, Unique Treatments for Lipoprotein(a) Reduction.



Copyright 2008 William Davvis, MD
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Comments (2) -

  • Anonymous

    3/9/2008 6:36:00 PM |

    Alka-Seltzer [325 ASA, aqeous] after applesauce [3 TBS].
    High-Fiber snack plus an ASA that won`t be forgotten: It`s in the water you need to wash down the niacin, and the funny taste helps remind you:
    90% compliance if adhered to.
    Not usually required chronically,.. most flushing is "tachyphylactic".
    castelli et al An Interview with the Editor, Am J Cardiol 2005

  • buy jeans

    11/2/2010 8:53:49 PM |

    Should someone concoct a successful pharmaceutical treatment for Lp(a), it will make the news, headlines in health magazines and health sections of the newspaper will blare about how important Lp(a) is. Yet it has been there all along, frustrating people and their physicians.

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The processed food battlefield

The processed food battlefield

31. July 2007 William Davis (4)
If you have any remaining doubts that the processed food industry is a cutthroat, go-for-the-jugular, organized effort to extract every possible penny from your pocket, even at the expense of health, take a gander at a quote from Marion Nestle's wonderful book, Food Politics.

In Nestle's description on how food conglomerate, Archer Daniels Midland (ADM), conspired to fix prices on some basic agricultural compounds, she quotes an ADM executive captured on videotape and presented in court:

"We have a saying at this company . . . our competitors are our friends and our customers are our enemies."

In other words, ADM's competitors help establish what prices should be charged for basic foodstuffs, while its customers are the ones to do battle with.

Food is a necessary commodity. You and I only need so much of it. So how does a 40 billion dollar food manufacturer extract greater and greater profits and grow their market? Motivate people to eat more. It's that simple.

Eat less? Are you kidding? Eat spinach, green peppers, beets, and other low-margin products? Get real.

Why not take 8 cents worth of wheat flour, add some sugar, food coloring, and some other enticing flavorings like high fructose corn syrup? Put it all in a cleverly illustrated package, maybe even develop an entire story line about the product, complete with clever slogans and songs and . . . ouila! You now have a food that sells for many, many times its intrinsic value.

How to make the health nuts happy? Easy: Add some fiber. Now it's healthy! And it's now part of a "balanced diet".

What if it's full of corn starch, wheat flour, and sugar of the sort that make HDL cholesterols plummet, fan the flames of small LDL, increase inflammatory measures like C-reactive protein, push people closer and closer to diabetes, and make them fat? Then be sure it's low in saturated fat! It might even qualify as "Heart Healthy" by the American Heart Association!

Processed foods have no role in the Track Your Plaque program. If you want to see your CT heart scan score skyrocket, go to your grocery store and stray into the aisles outside of the produce aisle.

But stick to the produce aisle and watch your wallet grow, your health improve, your appetite shrink, all while food processor profits plummet.
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Comments (4) -

  • JT

    7/31/2007 12:02:00 PM |

    Personally, I'd like for sugar & starch to be burned as fuel for cars!  

    Oh, I remember the ADM investigations.  That was a strange case.  Mark Whitaker I believe was the name of the executive that provided information to the FBI.  What was so odd is that Mark was also in on the bribery and I guess later he committed a fake suicide.  Many called him psychotic and even the FBI kept an arms length from him even though he was their prime informant.  Mark ended up serving time in jail, I believe.      

    Dr. Davis, you have mentioned that you enjoy reading the "inside" scoop on the health business.  At one time Mark was considered the darling of ADM.  I believe he was the youngest executive to ever work at the company.  One of his larger accomplishments at ADM was to start the natural vitamin E/ sterol production plant.  Months leading up to the formal announcement that ADM was entering the natural E market - 2 or 3 nation wide scientific reports came out in the press highlighting how much better natural E was compared to synthetic E.  As I was told, that wasn't a coincidence.

  • Dr. Davis

    7/31/2007 12:55:00 PM |

    Hi, JT--

    Interesting.

    It often seems that the most benign things on the commercial side of health have a dark side.

    I'm currently working on a book that details the dark side of healthcare, though not the food manufacturing industry. No shortage of material here!

  • Stan

    7/31/2007 4:21:00 PM |

    You are right!  But I think, there is a lot more to food marketing disinformation than just fiber, corn and starch.   Just at the time when the American and European food industry learned how to make cheap abundant vegetable oils sometime between the 1930-ties to 60-ties, articles begun appear in the popular press as if by magic, denouncing animal fat and saturated fats as supposedly unhealthy.  Not only that turned out to be a marketing masterstroke getting rid of the main competitors, that is farmer's butter and lard, but it permitted a ban on imported tropical oils as saturated.  

    It's amazing that most people including probably a majority of medical doctors fell for this deception and did not notice that there was and still is absolutely zero scientific evidence behind all that scare!  The media "fact" became the medical "fact".

    Regards,
    Stan (Heretic)

  • JT

    7/31/2007 8:55:00 PM |

    So you just couldn't be satisfied with revolutionizing the cardiac industry?  Now you're after the whole apple cart! : )

    Best of luck with the new book.  Hope you become the Upton Sinclair of the medical care business.  

    as a side note, I hear Hollywood is in the process of making a movie about Mark Whitacre and ADM.  I'm looking forward to seeing it.

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