Kleenex® is to facial tissue, what wheat flour is to flour.  Both words have become interchangeable with its category.  When a recipe calls for flour, it’s implied that it’s wheat flour.

Flour is defined as a fine powder or meal made from ground grains, roots, nuts and vegetables.  There are alternatives to the ubiquitous wheat flour.  And before we go there, let’s understand why you need a routine of No Grains.

Empty Calories

Refined grains are extremely unhealthy.  In the process of making grain flour, the fiber and nutrients get stripped out.  They essentially are empty calories; they will supply energy, but provide almost no other value.  Calories are a measure of energy.  When you eat, you should go for the fuel that has the most efficient, beneficial calories.

Quickly Absorbed

Grains are a carbohydrate, or sugar.  Glycemic index (GI) isn’t just for ‘sugars’, all food has a GI.  White wheat bread has a GI of 74. Table sugar has a GI of 63.  Both of these high-glycemic foods digest and absorb into the bloodstream quickly, which causes large, rapid changes in blood sugar levels.

Store It For A Rainy Day

The world consumption of wheat flour in 2022 was 874 billion pounds!  That equates to each person on the planet consuming 109 pounds per year; or every two weeks individuals consume almost 5 pounds of wheat flour—loaded with calories.  Unused, excess calories gets stored as fat in your liver, muscles and fat cells.  It’s stored to be used for energy at a later time. 

Two Proteins, One Problem

Grains contain both lectin and gluten proteins.  Lectins are proteins that plants have that are thought to protect the plants from animals.  Gluten proteins bind and hold food together.  These proteins may cause inflammation, damaging the lining of your small intestine.  Nutrients and water pass into the blood vessels through the lining of the intestine and are then delivered to your cells.  If cracks occur in your gut lining, it could let other substances and toxins leak into your bloodstream.

Remix Ingredients

Nuts and seeds are good sources of protein, healthy fats, fiber and vitamins. Root vegetables are packed with antioxidants, fiber and vitamins.  Choosing alternative flours can keep the GI low, the nutrients high and can provide fat as fuel for you and for the good bacteria in your gut.

Check out Remixology’s Top 10 flour recommendations and discover how to remix recipes for a whole, better you.