All things are poison, and nothing is without poison, the dosage alone makes it so a thing is not a poison.
-Paracelsus- An anti-nutrient is a natural or synthetic compound that interferes with the absorption of nutrients and the proper functioning of the body. These compounds evolved in numerous life forms as deterrents to ingestion. Anti-nutrients are essentially poisonous to the organism that ingests them. Without technology such as cooking, we would be unable to ingest these compounds at all. Like nutrients, their effects appear to be dose-dependent. Barring individual genetic susceptibility and ingestion of massive quantities, the deleterious effects of anti-nutrients occur via chronic consumption. Examples of this phenomenon include malnutrition, leaky gut and endotoxemia. The most prevalent anti-nutrients in our modern environment are the gluten complex (found in cereals or grains), lectins (found in legumes or beans), glycosides and glycoalkaloids (found in nightshades such as tomatoes, peppers and potatoes) and phytates (found in cereals and legumes). These should look familiar to you. In reality, we can ingest anti-nutrients occasionally without acute toxicity (think birthday cake), although there may be some discomfort (think hot peppers). However, we should avoid the chronic ingestion of these compounds and focus on ingesting high quality nutrients.
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AuthorSeth Clayton is the creator of the Human by Design System. He is a human from Charlotte, NC who is interested in helping you achieve optimal health and wellbeing through the avenues of Zen Buddhism, Functional Movement and Paleolithic Nutrition. Archives
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