{"id":1813,"date":"2024-01-28T19:50:01","date_gmt":"2024-01-29T03:50:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/revitalizemetabolichealth.com\/?p=1813"},"modified":"2024-01-28T20:15:03","modified_gmt":"2024-01-29T04:15:03","slug":"antinutrients-should-you-be-avoiding-them","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/revitalizemetabolichealth.com\/antinutrients-should-you-be-avoiding-them\/","title":{"rendered":"Antinutrients – Should You Be Avoiding Them?"},"content":{"rendered":"

Should You Be Avoiding Antinutrients?<\/strong><\/h1>\n

The discussion around antinutrients<\/a> is just as polarized as the nutrition world (vegan vs. carnivore), because antinutrients are present only in plant sources.\u00a0 The animal-based camps highlight the downsides of antinutrients, while the plant-based camps claim that antinutrients have beneficial effects that outweigh their potential harm.<\/p>\n

Who\u2019s right?\u00a0 How does one handle the various claims on antinutrients?\u00a0 Are there foods we should avoid?\u00a0 Or is it just certain food combinations? \u00a0Are antinutrients even relevant?<\/p>\n

\"\"I don\u2019t have all the answers, but it\u2019s clear that antinutrients are relevant.\u00a0 After all, what\u2019s the point of nutrition?\u00a0 To provide essential nutrients<\/em> to our bodies.<\/p>\n

If there are compounds that interfere with our bodies obtaining nutrients, then there is clearly a tug-of-war at play.\u00a0 Understanding how nutrients interact with one another may be more relevant than anyone appreciates, especially considering that nutrient deficiencies are still present in the developed countries despite the amount of enriched and fortified food products.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Nutrient deficiencies<\/strong><\/h3>\n

There are numerous syndromes caused by vitamin deficiencies and nutrient deficiencies.\u00a0 Nutrient requirements change throughout one\u2019s lifetime.\u00a0 For example: as we age, we need more vitamin D, but less iron.<\/p>\n

In the developing world, nutrient deficiencies remain prevalent, especially iron<\/a>, vitamin A, zinc<\/a>, iodine, and folate (ref<\/a>).\u00a0 They contribute to increased infections, illness, and death.\u00a0 In developed countries, common micronutrient deficiencies include calcium, iron, magnesium, potassium, vitamin A, vitamin C, and vitamin D.<\/p>\n

Benefits of Antinutrients?<\/strong><\/h3>\n

Supporters of plants argue that, despite the downside of impairing nutrient absorption, there are other health benefits to antinutrients.\u00a0 There are reported benefits to some antinutrients, specifically some antioxidant properties or the ability to bind to heavy metals.<\/p>\n

For most people, however, large amounts of antinutrients may have negative effects.\u00a0 There is a general consensus advising against consuming large amounts of these antinutrients at one time, due to their potential toxic effects. \u00a0There may be individuals who are particularly susceptible to the effects of antinutrients, as well.<\/p>\n

The jury’s out
\n<\/strong><\/h3>\n

Antinutrients are generally not consumed in isolation, but rather with a mix of other food compounds.\u00a0 There may be complex interactions between these different compounds, ultimately resulting in some antinutrients being rendered inactive and some perhaps being amplified.<\/p>\n

The general advice is to limit the amount of antinutrients consumed, eat a wider variety of foods, and to prepare foods with various techniques that allegedly reduce the quantity or activity of these antinutrients, such as soaking\/sprouting\/fermenting seeds.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Who should avoid antinutrients?<\/strong><\/h3>\n

As is typical in the world of nutrition, there are no absolutes, as human physiology is infinitely complex and cannot be studied in a vacuum.\u00a0 Thus, we must rely on the best data available and make educated guesses about what is best for our health, while acknowledging how little we understand about the complex interplay of many factors.<\/p>\n

Given what we know about antinutrients, individuals with the following conditions may want to be mindful of their consumption of antinutrients.<\/p>\n

Iron deficiency <\/strong><\/h4>\n

Iron deficiency is the most prevalent nutritional deficiency worldwide, with young children and menstruating women being at the highest risk.<\/p>\n

Avoid: tannins, phytates<\/p>\n

Low calcium; Osteopenia\/Osteoporosis<\/strong><\/h4>\n

Bone health is typically considered a problem of calcium, however protein is just as important.\u00a0 Note that Vitamin D is important for increasing the absorption of calcium from the gut.<\/p>\n

Avoid: phytates, oxalates<\/p>\n

Thyroid disease<\/strong><\/h4>\n

Iodine is critical for proper thyroid function.\u00a0 There is also evidence that glucosinolate intake is correlated with thyroid cancer risk in women. \u00a0If taking thyroid medication (e.g. levothyroxine, liothyronine, desiccated thyroid extract), avoid consuming calcium or iron for a few hours before and after each dose.\"\"<\/p>\n

Avoid: goitrogens\/glucosinolates.<\/p>\n

Kidney Stones<\/strong><\/h4>\n

Calcium oxalate is responsible for an estimated 75% of all kidney stones.<\/p>\n

Avoid: oxalates<\/p>\n

Infertility; Low testosterone; Estrogen-sensitive cancers<\/strong><\/h4>\n

Infants fed soy formula vs. cow milk formula demonstrated increased uterine size and changes to the vaginal cells.\u00a0 There is mixed data on phytoestrogens and cancer.\u00a0 Phytoestrogens do, however, appear to increase estrogen and lower testosterone.<\/p>\n

Avoid: phytoestrogens<\/p>\n

Micronutrient deficiency; Gastrointestinal malabsorption<\/strong><\/h4>\n

Anyone with borderline nutritional status should be focused on obtaining the highest quality and most bioavailable nutrients.\u00a0 Many illnesses put individuals at risk of decreased nutrient absorption, including celiac disease, inflammatory bowel disease, history of bariatric surgery, etc.<\/p>\n

Avoid: all antinutrients<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

The dose makes the poison<\/strong><\/h3>\n

Just as antinutrients are usually not consumed in large enough amounts to cause noticeable toxic effects, so too are they not consumed in large enough amounts to exert noticeable beneficial effects.\u00a0 The amount required for a beneficial effect is often not discussed and may well be much greater than the amount that causes harm.<\/p>\n

For example, vegetarians may consume 100 mg per day of saponins (from legumes), an amount that may inhibit iron status in individuals who have relatively low iron intake.\u00a0 That amount, however, is likely not enough to cause any beneficial effects.\u00a0 It\u2019s argued that saponins have a cholesterol-lowering effect, however intakes up to 500 mg per day have not had significant effects on cholesterol levels (ref<\/a>).<\/p>\n

Thus, the alleged benefits of antinutrients may be outweighed by their negative effects, depending on the individual.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Should You Be Avoiding Antinutrients? The discussion around antinutrients is just as polarized as the nutrition world (vegan vs. carnivore), because antinutrients are present only in plant sources.\u00a0 The animal-based camps highlight the downsides of antinutrients, while the plant-based camps claim that antinutrients have beneficial effects that outweigh their potential harm. Who\u2019s right?\u00a0 How does one handle the various claims on antinutrients?\u00a0 Are there foods we should avoid?\u00a0 Or is it just certain food combinations? \u00a0Are antinutrients even relevant? I don\u2019t have all the answers, but it\u2019s clear that antinutrients are relevant.\u00a0 After all, what\u2019s the point of nutrition?\u00a0 To\u2026<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":1822,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[13,28],"tags":[165,164,29],"blocksy_meta":"","aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/revitalizemetabolichealth.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1813"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/revitalizemetabolichealth.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/revitalizemetabolichealth.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/revitalizemetabolichealth.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/revitalizemetabolichealth.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1813"}],"version-history":[{"count":6,"href":"https:\/\/revitalizemetabolichealth.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1813\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1823,"href":"https:\/\/revitalizemetabolichealth.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1813\/revisions\/1823"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/revitalizemetabolichealth.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1822"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/revitalizemetabolichealth.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1813"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/revitalizemetabolichealth.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1813"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/revitalizemetabolichealth.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1813"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}