Discussion Board

Hi, I am new here but so desperate for a new life from the terrible world of sickening myself with processed foods and lots of meat. I am so interested in a plant based diet and have even gotten a little bit of coaching on it, and read some books. From what I have learned a lot of plant based food diets suggest that you don't eat anything with wheat/glutten either. Just wondering if this is a good idea. I do not have glutten allergy either. Thanks so much, I appreciate any help!!

Unless you've been tested and the test shows you are sensitive or intolerant, there is no reason to go gluten free. It's trendy right now so people think it's a cure all, which is not true. If you're not having any problems, don't worry about it. There is no need to make things more complicated.

The McDougall way of eating incorporates whole grains including those with gluten. The only reason to avoid gluten is if it bothers you. If you have health issues, I would suggest that you start with the MWL plan (no processed food or flours). If you haven't seen a marked improvement in a month, you might want to try eliminating wheat and/or corn (I believe Dr. McDougall suggests this in one of his writings), or you could try an "elimination diet" which you can find info on by doing a search on this site. Many of us have food sensitivities to different foods and the BEST way to find out what they are (imo) is through an elimination diet!