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ARTICLE
The Truth About Lectins
By Sue Becker
Today, I want to address yet another myth that has flooded social media, the internet and other healthy eating outlets for the past few years.
If you regularly scroll through Facebook, you have undoubtably seen the advertisements promoted by Dr. Steven Gundry, author of the book, “The Plant Paradox”. This book is probably the primary reason for the anti-lectin containing food controversy we have today. Dr. Gundry and others make some very bold claims about lectins.
He claims that lectins adversely impact your good gut organisms, compromise digestion, promote inflammation and even boldly claims that lectins are the biggest dietary danger to our health and may even be killing us. Really?
He then goes on to boldly promise that eliminating these foods from the diet will result in improved digestion, more energy, less gas and bloating after eating, improved mood and clearer thinking, and even weight loss control.
Which should cause us all to ask - Is there any scientific basis for these claims?
And the answer is - absolutely none.
In fact, the very lectin containing foods he wants everyone to eliminate are the very foods that the healthiest and longest living people of the world have consumed throughout history and consume even in abundance still today.
What are these foods?
Plant based foods such as beans, grains, nuts, seeds and most fruits and vegetables. The very foods we should be eating more of not less.
There are certain phytochemicals found in most all plant foods that are often considered by some to be anti-nutrients. These alleged anti-nutrients include such compounds as phytates, oxalates and lectins and in reality, are not always what they seem.
So, what is the truth about lectins and what are they doing in our foods?
First, it is important to know what lectins are.
Lectins are a group of proteins that bind with specific carbohydrates to provide protective and defensive benefits to the growing plant and the food that plant produces. There are thousands of kinds of lectins, and while they don’t appear to have any specific nutritional value themselves, they are found in foods of great nutritional benefit. In fact, about 30% of the foods we eat on a daily basis contain lectins.
The foods that have the highest lectin content are legumes, such as most beans, lentils, and peanuts, grains, such as wheat, rice, and barley and night shade vegetables such as tomatoes, potatoes, and eggplant. Most of these foods are the mainstay of a healthy diet – particularly the Mediterranean diet which is often declared as the healthiest diet of all.
So, what is the basis for these anti-lectin accusations?
It all seems to be based on studies using RAW bean flour and isolated lectin extracts which resulted in damage to the lining of the gastrointestinal tract of the animals in the study.
Notice the key words – RAW bean flour and lectin extracts. Both of which would never be eaten by the average human. And once again, problems seem to arise when you extract a plant component and consume these isolated parts away from the other supporting compounds and nutrients in its naturally occurring food.
Most foods containing lectins, such as grains and beans, are never eaten raw.
The truth is lectins are virtually destroyed in the preparation of these foods such as with soaking and boiling as well as germination and fermentation.
While there is potential danger if raw or undercooked beans are consumed in large quantities, the truth is that if soaked and cooked properly, such as boiling or pressure cooking for at least 10 minutes, there is really no potential danger. Beans are usually soaked and then cooked for an extended time before consuming which is perfectly adequate to remove most of the lectins.
Grains are typically boiled and eaten or ground into flour for bread and baked. The yeast fermentation of bread dough as well as baking, even in non-yeasted bread, is sufficient to breakdown the lectins.
Foods which ARE often eaten raw such as tomatoes would have to be consumed in a massive quantity to pose any sort of threat.
One final truth that I want to share today about lectins is that in reality intense investigation and studies are being done on the potential use of lectins in a therapeutic role. Studies are revealing that specific lectins isolated from various foods are showing significant anti-fungal, anti-tumor, anti-pathogenic, anti-HIV mechanisms and other immunological properties.
These findings are once again proving that with God there are no mistakes. And what some often consider anti-nutrients in foods that God created, in reality, play a critical role in promoting our good health and protecting us from various potential health threats.
The very foods that contain lectins that are being vilified by Dr. Gundry and others provide critical nutrients and are actually recommended as part of a healthy, well-balanced diet. There is a well-established body of scientific evidence that clearly supports the benefits of a diet rich in whole grains, beans, nuts, seeds and fresh fruits and vegetables. Foods created by God to nourish our bodies and to be eaten and enjoyed. The health benefits you receive from including these real foods in your diet outweigh any perceived and alleged detrimental health risk of consuming foods with lectins.
The truth is that steering clear of foods that contain lectins is absolutely unnecessary and could actually lead to significant nutritional deficiencies.
I hope that The Truth About Lectins, has helped to dispel any concerns or even fears you may have about consuming foods that contain lectins. And that you can once again enjoy, with confidence, the foods that God has created and have nourished some of the healthiest people groups in the world.
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