The Opioid Crisis – In Your Cupboard

The opioid epidemic of the last 20 years has served to illustrate the powerful addictive properties of anything that binds to opioid receptors of the human brain. Lives are ruined by opioid addiction, more than 100 deaths now occurring every day from overdose as people either take more and more to overcome the partial tolerance or new potent drugs like fentanyl make their way into street versions. Drugs such as oxycodone, hydrocodone, and fentanyl bind to the brain’s opioid receptors provoking a “high” while causing the user to desire more opioids as partial tolerance develops. And make no mistake: Much of the opioid epidemic was the creation of the pharmaceutical industry and the doctors who fell for misleading marketing. Emergency rooms now must stock plentiful naloxone administered urgently to counteract overdose and prevent cardiopulmonary arrest. We also know that foods contain proteins that, upon partial digestion, yield components that exert opioid behavior and even resemble the structure of morphine. The gliadin protein of wheat and related grains yields so-called gliadorphins, while the casein protein of mammary gland products yields casomorphin. (Casomorphin has a lower binding affinity to the opioid receptors and thereby exerts a less potent opioid effect than gliadin-derived opioids.) We also know that the varied effects of gliadin-derived opioids can be blocked by naloxone, consistent with its opioid properties. Food-derived opioids, especially ...
Source: Wheat Belly Blog - Category: Cardiology Authors: Tags: Wheat Belly Lifestyle addiction addictive eating disorder opiates opioids undoctored Source Type: blogs