What is the Whole30?
Educational Content Disclaimer: This article provides educational information only and is not intended as medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. The content discusses general health topics and should not replace consultation with your licensed healthcare provider. Always consult with your doctor before making changes to your diet, supplements, or medications. Dr. JJ Gregor is a Doctor of Chiropractic licensed in Texas and practices within the scope of chiropractic care.
The Whole30: Why I Actually Support This One
Generally I can't stand the latest vogue diet. The Potato Diet, the Alkaline Diet, the Cookie Diet, The Master Cleanse, or the myriad of other oddball diets that try to get you to eat anything but real, unprocessed food.
However, my natural skepticism of fad diets got thrown out the window when the Whole30 started catching on. I find it rather sad that eating whole, unprocessed foods in their natural state gets called a "fad" in the first place. A lot of people think Paleo is a fad diet too, but it's a fad as old as humanity.
I stand wholeheartedly behind the Whole30, which is a 30-day dietary reset. As most of you know, I'm a proponent of a modern ancestral approach to diet, which is pretty close to what the Whole30 purports. When a patient comes into the office I'm adamant that they change their diet and that the first month is the key. The Whole30 made my life significantly easier by giving people a clear framework for those first 30 days.
The beauty of what the Hartwigs put together is that it makes you stick 100% to whole food: no sugar, no dairy, no corn, no soy, no paleo-ized modern foods (muffins, scones, pies, cakes, etc.). Over 30 days you will have a life-changing experience.
The Whole30 Rules
Do's
Eat moderate portions of meat, seafood, and eggs; lots of vegetables; some fruit; plenty of natural fats; and herbs, spices, and seasonings. Eat foods with very few ingredients, all pronounceable ingredients, or better yet no ingredients listed at all because they're whole and unprocessed.
Don'ts
No added sugar, real or artificial. No agave, coconut sugar, honey, maple syrup, date syrup, stevia, Splenda, Equal, Nutrasweet, xylitol, etc. Read your labels. Companies sneak sugar into products in ways you won't recognize.
No alcohol, in any form, not even for cooking.
No grains. Including but not limited to wheat, rye, barley, oats, corn, rice, millet, bulgur, sorghum, sprouted grains, and all gluten-free pseudo-cereals like quinoa, amaranth, and buckwheat. Also includes all the ways wheat, corn, and rice get added to processed foods in the form of bran, germ, starch, and so on. Read your labels.
No legumes. Including beans of all kinds (black, red, pinto, navy, white, kidney, lima, fava, etc.), peas, chickpeas, lentils, and peanuts. No peanut butter. This also includes all forms of soy: soy sauce, miso, tofu, tempeh, edamame, and all the ways soy sneaks into foods (like lecithin).
No dairy. Including cow, goat, or sheep's milk products: milk, cream, cheese, kefir, yogurt, sour cream, ice cream, or frozen yogurt. I'll add butter here too, though ghee or clarified butter is acceptable.
No carrageenan, MSG, or sulfites. If these appear on any label, it's out.
No baked goods, junk foods, or treats with "approved" ingredients. Recreating sweets and treats with technically compliant ingredients misses the point. These are the same foods that got you into trouble in the first place. A pancake is still a pancake, even if it's made with coconut flour. This includes pancakes, waffles, bread, tortillas, biscuits, muffins, cupcakes, cookies, brownies, pizza crust, cereal, ice cream, and commercially prepared chips or French fries.
When in doubt, leave it out. It's only 30 days.
That's the 10,000-foot view of the Whole30 reset. My advice is to give it a try. Check out whole30.com for full details and program rules.
For a deeper understanding of why grains, corn, and soy are on the elimination list and what they're actually doing to your gut and immune system, start here: What Causes a Food Allergy and What Is IBS.
For comprehensive guidance on anti-inflammatory eating beyond the 30-day reset, visit the Eating Right: Nutrition Primer.
If you're in Frisco, Texas and looking for support through a dietary reset or want to identify specifically which foods are driving your symptoms, Applied Kinesiology can take the guesswork out of it.
Call or text: (972) 989-4683
Email: [email protected]
Stay connected with news and updates!
Join our mailing list to receive the latest news and updates from our team.
Don't worry, your information will not be shared.
Stay connected with news and updates!
Recent Posts
Recent Posts
