4/28/2017 0 Comments 123 Diet Plan Terri Ann 123Another reason you shouldn't go nuts on nutsi. Stock. com/Svetl. The AXS Cookie Policy. This website, like most others, uses cookies in order to give you a great online experience. By continuing to use our website you accept to our. In a previous article. I suggested that nut consumption should be limited or moderated because of the high levels of omega- 6 fat many of them contain. But there’s another reason you shouldn’t make nuts a staple of your diet. One of the main principles of the Paleo diet is to avoid eating grains and legumes because of the food toxins they contain. One of those toxins, phytic acid (a. In fact, nuts decrease iron absorption even more than wheat bread. This is ironic because a lot of people on the Paleo diet – who go to great lengths to avoid food toxins – are chowing down nut like they’re going out of style. What is phytic acid and why should we care? Phytic acid is the storage form of phosphorus found in many plants, especially in the bran or hull of grains and in nuts and seeds.
Although herbivores like cows and sheep can digest phytic acid, humans can. This is bad news because phytic acid binds to minerals (especially iron and zinc) in food and prevents us from absorbing them. It’s important to note that phytic acid does not leach minerals that are already stored in the body; it only inhibits the absorption of minerals from food in which phytic acid is present. Phytic acid interferes with enzymes we need to digest our food, including pepsin, which is needed for the breakdown of proteins in the stomach, and amylase, which is required for the breakdown of starch. Phytic acid also inhibits the enzyme trypsin, which is needed for protein digestion in the small intestine. As most people following a Paleo diet will probably have heard by now, diets high in phytate cause mineral deficiencies. For example, rickets and osteoporosis are common in societies where cereal grains are a staple part of the diet. How much phytic acid should you eat? Before you go out and try to remove every last scrap of phytic acid from your diet, keep in mind that it’s likely humans can tolerate a small to moderate amount of phytic acid – in the range of 1. Every now and then, with all the yummy recipes I make for this blog, one recipe stand out more than the othersAccording to Ramiel Nagel in his article “Living With Phytic Acid”6, the average phytate intake in the U. S. But if you’re eating a lot of nuts and seeds – which a lot of Paleo folks do – you still might be exceeding the safe amount of phytic acid. As you can see from the table below, 1. The Nature of Adverse Events in Hospitalized Patients . Leape, M.D., Troyen A. That’s equal to a large handful. A handful of hazelnuts, which is further down on the list, would still exceed the recommended daily intake – and that’s assuming you’re not eating any other foods with phytic acid, which is not likely. Even the Paleo- beloved coconut has almost 4. Processed chocolate may also contain significant levels. However, we know that most traditional cultures often go to great lengths prior to consuming them. According to Nagel. It is instructive to look at Native American preparation techniques for the hickory nut, which they used for oils. To extract the oil they parched the nuts until they cracked to pieces and then pounded them until they were as fine as coffee grounds. They were then put into boiling water and boiled for an hour or longer, until they cooked down to a kind of soup from which the oil was strained out through a cloth. The rest was thrown away. The oil could be used at once or poured into a vessel where it would keep a long time. By contrast, the Indians of California consumed acorn meal after a long period of soaking and rinsing, then pounding and cooking. Nuts and seeds in Central America were prepared by salt water soaking and dehydration in the sun, after which they were ground and cooked. Modern evidence also suggests that at least some of the phytate can be broken down by soaking and roasting. The majority of this data indicates that soaking nuts for eighteen hours, dehydrating at very low temperatures (either in a food dehydrator or a low temperature oven), and then roasting or cooking the nuts would likely eliminate a large portion of the phytic acid. Elanne and I have been preparing nuts like this for a few years, and I personally notice a huge difference in how I digest them. I used to have a heavy sensation in my stomach after eating nuts, but I don’t get that at all when I eat them after they’ve been prepared this way. Another important thing to be aware of is that phytic acid levels are much higher in foods grown using modern high- phosphate fertilizers than those grown in natural compost. So how many nuts should you eat? The answer to that question depends on several factors: Your overall health and mineral status. Your weight and metabolic health. Whether you are soaking, dehydrating and roasting them nuts before consuming them. One of the biggest problems I see is with people following the GAPS or Specific Carbohydrate Diets, which are gut- healing protocols for people with serious digestive issues. Most GAPS and SCD recipe books emphasize using nut flour to make pancakes and baked goods. This is presumably because many people who adopt these diets find it hard to live without grains, legumes and any starch. While nut flours don’t tend to contain much phytic acid (because nut flour is made from blanched nuts, and the phytic acid is found mostly in the skin of the nuts), they can be difficult to digest in large amounts . I’ve found that limiting nut flour consumption is necessary for most of my patients that are on GAPS or SCD. However, some health food stores do carry brands of “raw, sprouted” nut butters that would presumably be safer to eat. All of that said, in the context of a diet that is low in phytic acid overall, and high in micronutrients like iron and calcium, a handful of nuts that have been properly prepared each day should not be a problem for most people. Like what you’ve read? Sign up for FREE updates delivered to your inbox. I hate spam too. Your email is safe with me.
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