Antinutrients
Phytate - antinutrient / malabsorption agent
Phytic Acid - "Malabsorption Agent"
4 conclusions on consuming phytate: Moderation, gut population, preparation, nutrientation
4 conclusions on phytate consumption
Moderation, gut population, preparation, nutrientation
Yeah ok - so I made up that last word :)
Consuming phytate has both beneficial and harmful effects
on the body, and as with most things, balance is the key. However, high-phytate
foods have become a staple, not only in developing countries, where cost is the
driving factor, but also in the developed ones, which choose to put grains at the
bottom of the food pyramid.
A moderate intake of phytate from occasional higher
phytate whole foods is NOTot a problem for anyone in good health on a traditional,
balanced diet
This includes animal fats containing
vitamin A and
vitamin D (which mitigate effects of phytic acid) and a little fruit.
It is important to note that healthy gut microbiota will degrade
some of your dietary phytate, actually increasing phytase enzyme production when you
consume higher levels of phytate! Phytase enzymes degrade
phytate, but at best, only about half of the intestinal dietary phytate is
broken down. (Schlemmer et al 2009) . This
may be because phytate has both negative and positive roles to play in the body. We probably don't need to go
overboard with food preparation methods to reduce phytates unless our diet is "loaded"
with them.
L.H. Markiewicz
, J. Honke , M. Haros, D. Swiaztecka, B. Wroblewsk. Diet shapes the ability of human
intestinal microbiota to degrade phytate -in vitro studies (2013) J. Appl. Microbiology
SSchlemmer, U., Frølich, W., Prieto, R.F. and Grases,
F. (2009) Phytate in foods and significance for humans: food sources, intake, processing,
bioavailability, protective role and analysis. Mol Nutr Food Res 53, S330-S375.
However, If high phytate foods comprise the main food source of two or more meals
per day (usually true of today's typical Western diet or a vegetarian diet), then
to avoid a mineral deficiency or malabsorption of protein and carbohydrates, you
should:
(1) Reduce consumption of grains, legumes, nuts and
other edible seeds
In particular, think about removing or minimizing
wheat from your diet. Wheat has its own set of problems
aside from phytate;
Wheat
- Ain't what it used to be
(2) Attend to the health of your beneficial gut flora
Gut microflora produce phytase enzymes
to degrade phytate
Supplement a good
probiotic
supplement. Improve the health of the microbiome encouraging production of phytase enzymes by
beneficial bacteria and also provide lactic-acid producing Lactobacilli,
which create a lower pH environment more conducive to phytase activity. Look for
a quality supplement with a minimum 30 billion CFU/day including multiple acid-resistant
species/strains to survive the journey through the stomach acid.
Probiotics -"For Life"
Consume fermented products.
Traditionally made sauerkraut, kimchi, good probiotic-rich
yogurt and kefir.Consume fiber-rich prebiotics to feed the probiotics.
Includes tubers, rutabagas, parsnips, sweet potatoes,
mushrooms, Jerusalem artichokes, stevia, radicchio, chicory and Belgian endive;Don't take antibiotics.
Unless of course it is absolutely necessary; also don't
eat inorganic chicken, beef, or pork, since in the U.S., antibiotics are used to
make the sources of these meats fatter and larger.
(3) Soak plus ferment or sprout phytate-containing
foods before consumption
Appropriate preparation of whole grains, seeds, nuts and
legumes has the following benefits:
(a) Makes their chelated minerals bioavailable;
(b) Prevents their phytic acid from leaching digested minerals
from the GI tract;
(c) Mitigates phytic acid's ability to reduce protein and starch
digesting enzymes;
(d) Removes other antinutrients, such as lectins and protease
inhibitors
Several traditional household food preparation methods
can be used to enhance the bioavailability of nutrients in high phytate content
foods:
Heat treatment (cooking/roasting
until heat destroys phytase enzymes)
Mechanical processing (E.g.
grinding)
Soaking (partial germination),
Germination (sprouting), Fermentation
(souring) - to activate naturally present
(or added) phytase enzymes to break
down the phytic acid.
Grains
- How to prepare for healthy consumption
Legumes - How to prepare
for healthy consumption
(4) Mitigate phytate's mineral-blocking effect by ensuring
certain dietary nutrients
Vitamin A and
Vitamin D from animal fat(lard, grass-fed butter and cream, fish liver oil, organ
meats). Aid absorption of vitamins and minerals contained in grains
(calcium, phosphorus, iron, B vitamins,
etc.) and any others you have eaten
Beta-carotene in your daily diet to counteract
phytic acid's reduction of iron absorption.
Found
in brightly colored fruits and vegetables.
Consume vitamin
C with phytate-rich meals .
Counters iron loss Obtain absorbable calcium.
From raw
milk, raw cheese, yogurt, kefir, bone broths, supplements; Obtain vitamin
D - Get out in the sun, consume animal fats or
supplement vitamin D. Shown to mitigate mineral-blocking effects
of phytic acid
Vitamin D -"The
Sunshine Vitamin"
