Eating fibre may NOT be so good for your tummy
This was an extraordinary article in the Daily Mail - by Jane Feinmann.
It started so positively – a major study, soon to be published in the British Medical Journal “shows conclusively” that eating extra bran and other fibre is not good for IBS (Irritable Bowel Syndrome) - in fact it will make it worse. An estimated 9m Britons suffer from IBS, so this is a key study. Professor Peter Whorwell, the lead researcher, said “the worst thing for a significant number of IBS patients is fibre, particularly bran.“
I was so excited – the connection between carbs, especially wheat, must have been found and patients must be on the verge of being advised to avoid wheat. But the next bit of the article was staggering…
Professor Whorwell’s advice is to replace high fibre food with white bread, white pasta, biscuits, cakes and cream crackers – anything as long as it is made from refined white flour. Swap anything brown for anything white says the Professor. Has the world gone mad?!
People who try Phase 1 of The Harcombe Diet not only lose weight but feel better and this is in huge part to coming off sugar and white flour – the key things in the junk that Professor Whorwell thinks we should be eating.
My alternative recommendation would be to eat food in the form that nature delivers it – I don’t suppose cave men and women were troubled by IBS! Eat meat, fish, eggs, vegetables, salads, NLY and brown rice and I would be astonished if your tummy gave you any grief.
5 Responses to “Eating fibre may NOT be so good for your tummy”
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HI Zoe
This is a request for information really but linked to the above. i started your diet about five weeks ago and have made slow but steady progress – lost 7.5 lbs and have about another 5 to go. I think wheat is my big problem, probably all carbs though. This weekend we were away and i wasnt really able to avoid white flour ingredients – i had a very small piece of my hosts ginger cake on saturday and i had a small white fruit scone yesterday, both of which probably had some white sugar in too. These were my first real cheats in five weeks ( apart from the odd small glass of wine). To my horror this morning i discover i have put on 4 pounds over the weekend :(. Could those two very small mistakes really have such a drastic effect? it certainly had nothing to do with calories as they were probably no more than 250 each. and if it was the wheat/sugar how can they make you so much heavier so quickly? does that mean i will never be abel to cheat again? Very depressing!
Hi Debbie – I think you are right to suspect wheat as I have not yet worked with a client who can tolerate wheat when they first come to see me. The good news is that it will get better in time, but it is one of those foods that I don’t think is ever a good idea to go back to every day. As an example, when I discovered all this I had dairy and wheat intolerance. I can now have dairy products several times a day with no problems. I still don’t have wheat more than once a week or so (I could risk more, but I have got used to brown rice, rice pasta, porridge oats, baked potatoes, quinoa, couscous etc as my grains).
Wheat absolutely could explain the sudden weight gain – especially white flour and sugar (and scones are very ‘floury’). this is going back many years now, but I recall my record gain was 6lbs once ‘overnight’ after a bread binge. Come off the wheat and it will fall away again quickly! The good news is you have so little to lose – so stick with the principles of Phase 2 until you know your immune system can cope with some more cheats. I recommend cheating with 85% cocoa dark chocolate!
Very best wishes – Zoe
p.s. forgot to say why this happens – food intolerance causes significant and immediate water retention. Hence how it can go on and come off so quickly
thanks zoe – appreciate the reply and you are so right….no wheat yesterday and 3.5lbs lighter overnight!!!!!
interestingly also on sunday my eyelids swelled up drastically too – GP now testing me for caeliac…….really hope it isnt that drastic but clearly wheat is a significant intolerance…weird it’s taken over 40 years to become this obvious.
i am really pleased i have come across your eating plan…wish i had had the info years ago though! could i give you a little constructive feedback re the recipe book – if you do a rewrite i think it could do with a much better index so that you can search for recipes by main ingredient. Also a list of fat and carb meals eg y breakfast, lunch, snack would be much more user friendly than the table in the book.
sorry to give you that “publicly” but couldnt work out how to send you a personal email.
best wishes
debbie
I have to say too that i agree whole heartedly with Debbie re the recipe book. regards kathy
Hi all. I’ve just discovered the Harcombe Diet (should that be ‘Holy Grail of food’?!) and am very pleased with how I feel after one week. Just a comment to Debbie – don’t worry if you are diagnosed as a Coeliac, I was just over 10 years ago and felt sooooo much better within 2 weeks of coming off wheat and gluten products. I am lucky in that I can tolerate oats, so am now enjoying oats again in the morning! Actually, one advantage of being a Coeliac is that a lot of processed food is off the menu anyway. I haven’t had a significant weight loss yet, but I am happy that I am feeling more alert, less sluggish and generally healthier already! Thanks Zoe – this has all been a revelation!