Should I avoid eating wheat?

FOOD FOR THOUGHT

Women’s Health Magazine

Each month, nutritionist Sarah Macklin challenges one big healthy-eating misconception. This time: wheat

By Sarah Ann Macklin

For me, the word ‘wheat’ evokes the glorious scent of freshly baked bread. Yet many have more negative associations, blaming the grain for everything from post-dinner energy slumps and bloating to ‘foggy brain’ and weight gain. But why does it have such a bad rep? Anti-wheat rhetoric has grown in recent years, but wheat has been a staple part of our diet for centuries – is it really plausible that something our ancestors survived on has suddenly become bad for us? And were the 16% of Brits who bought wheat-free food last year actually justified in doing so?