Grains, Seeds, Beans - their lectins & our leaky guts.
Which beans might be better for gut health? Round ones like black eyed peas, moong dal & red lentils, adzuki, lima beans, and garbanzos, also lupini.
Cross referencing the table of Saponin content in the book The Paleo Answer by Loren Cordain, (Thrift Books), with the list of beans that are higher in worse lectins, we arrive at Moong beans and black-eyed peas as clear winners. And tofu is far superior to soybeans which don't make it into the use-at-all list. Avoid non-fermented soybean products including edamame.
Many of the special diets used with autism don’t recommend any use of soy - if gluten and casein/dairy are problematic then soy probably is too because the same enzyme, DPP-IV is needed. I haven’t tried it but that enzyme is in the product Digest Spectrum by Enzymedica. (Enzymedica.com) Vegetable capsule, looks good ingredients, price seems low (under $15) but it is a 30-capsule bottle and 1-2 capsules per meal or more are recommended. Using some enzyme to make a somewhat restricted diet better digested might work better than trying to use enough to eat standard amounts of dairy, gluten/wheat, or soy.
Using extra firm tofu in a vegan diet does make it easier to get protein rich foods with less work for me in the kitchen. At the end of this post I have a list of the bean soup batches that I’ve made since mid-March. I average ~ 2 pounds of dried beans five times a month, to feed two people, one or two servings per day.
Saponins
Saponins can have health benefits in moderation but excessive amounts may add to leaky gut issues. The chemicals can be used as emulsifiers and are described as cholesterol lowering but also cytotoxic - saponins can kill cells. (Timilsena, et al., 2023)
Lima beans and lentils are lower in saponins than garbanzo beans and most other dry beans. Limas, lentils and garbanzo have less harmful lectins than other dry beans that have the kidney shape 🫘, and Adzuki beans are different too (small, round & reddish beans, healthline). Adzuki beans made into a spicy stir-fried Chinese dish with dried shiitake and red pepper. Chinese Stir-fried Adzuki Beans with Shiitake - Vegan Vegetarian Recipe, Vegan International, (Youtube)
Saponins are soap like in the way they can cause membrane damage and a leaky gut. Of the beans without the PHA lectin, (see below), garbanzo beans have the most saponins. Extended boiling does not break down saponins but fermentation does. Tofu is greatly reduced (590 mg/kg) from the original soybean (10,600 mg/kg).
Moderate or small amounts would be more tolerable to the body than large amounts or daily use.
Lectins - phytohemagglutinin (PHA)
All beans of the Phaseolus vulgaris species have the kidney bean shape but they have different colors and sizes, and also include green beans.
The Phaseolus vulgaris species of beans contains a lectin called phytohemagglutinin (PHA) which is very effective at penetrating our gut lining, leaving it more “leaky”, and also the lectin causes damage in the body after entering the bloodstream. It can puncture the membranes of red blood cells causing clumping of cells or even cell death.
*This helps explain why a vegan diet for someone with pyroluria, like me, might be bad - more red blood cell breakdown means more loss of vitamin B6 and zinc and that would be a quicker route to a deficiency if I forget to take my high dose supplements. More B6 is needed than is feasible from diet alone and zinc would need the really rich sources like shellfish, which I can’t have due to previous autoimmune antibodies.
Lectins can bind with a receptor, blocking receptor function.
Soybean’s agglutinin lectin (SBA) also can be a cause of leaky gut. Peanut lectin (PMA) also can puncture the gut lining and has been measured in the bloodstream less than hour after eating it.
Lectins in peas (PSA) and lentils (LCA) are less toxic but may have some negative effects too.
Peas are so high in salicylates that they are more troublesome for me than other legumes.
It could seem like you were having variety if you rotated use of black beans, cannellini beans, Great Northern beans, green beans, kidney beans, navy beans, pinto beans, and white kidney beans. BUT you wouldn't be, they are all Phaseolus vulgaris in multi-colored beany costumes.
Oh.
Info from the book The Paleo Answer by Loren Cordain, (Thrift Books).
Loren Cordain also mentions oxalate as another reason to avoid or be careful about eating beans. Black beans are quite high in oxalate but also are a good source of delphinidin. Brown garbanzo beans are high in delphinidin (an Nrf2 promoting anthocyanidin) but low in oxalate. Chana dal, brown chickpeas with a spicy onion and tomato sauce, is a dish frequently served in Indian restaurants. (cookwithmanali.com)
I learned of a high protein low carbohydrate seed which is lower than others in lectins and saponins - Lupin beans, also called lupini, are used in the Mediterranean and Middle East areas and India more than in the US, but they are gaining in popularity here. They are higher protein than other beans which vary from 7-9 grams of protein per 1/2 cup serving of cooked beans (about 1/4 cup dry).
Some varieties of lupini beans are bitter from alkaloid content, other varieties have been bred to be less bitter. The beans are fairly rich in magnesium and calcium but do have quite a bit of phosphorus. Unfortunately for me, I can’t eat them because part of the excellent protein content, is plant albumin. That means it would have some of all the essential amino acids, like hemp kernels, and for the same reason. I found I couldn’t eat hemp kernels or I would get my autoimmune symptoms.
“A ½-cup serving of cooked lupini beans contains about 100 calories, 13 grams of protein and 2 grams of dietary fiber and is a good source of zinc and magnesium. A higher protein content and increased interest in plant-based proteins may be to thank for their recent rise in popularity in the United States.”
“A traditional Italian Christmas holiday dish combines lupini beans with green or black olives.”
“Dried bitter lupini beans should soak for several days. The “sweet” variety need to soak only for a few hours. Cook per package instructions. Lupini beans have thick skins, which are edible but are often removed before eating.” (foodandnutrition.com)
A pound of dry beans is about 2-2 1/2 cups which makes 8-10 half cups of cooked beans, or about 4 entree servings with roughly 14-18 grams of protein, or ~ 2 ounces of meat equivalent. While beans do provide a decent amount of protein, it is a lot of carbohydrates and fiber, therefore limiting other starchy vegetables and grains in the meal can help to not overeat carbs and skimp on the protein rich beans.
One and half cups of beans would be a more generous protein serving for an entree, but would be adding even more carbs and fiber. Having some nuts or seeds that are lower in starch can help provide more balanced macronutrients in a vegan meal. Vegan diets are really too high in fiber for fast growing children with their smaller stomachs. Removing the skins on lupini beans is often part of the preparation as the peels are more fibrous than typical, although edible. A vegan diet can be a lot of chewing if you are avoiding processed meat-alternative foods or cheese-alternatives (other than traditionally fermented tofu).
Seeds are a very good source of phospholipids which helps with endocannabinoid formation:
…and with energy production - Magnesium-Adenosine Triphosphate.
Our ATP molecules are Adenosine triphosphate and they need magnesium too. Or magnesium needs ATP molecules to be carried in a non-electrically active form - non-active until the energy is ready to be used. Mg-ATP is another name for ATP.
However, excessive intake of phosphorus in ratio to calcium and magnesium intake may lead to demineralization of teeth and bones (osteoporosis).
The following post has a Table that ranks beans, nuts, seeds and some grain/flours for their phosphorus intake, and calcium, magnesium and protein amounts.
Bean soup menu planning - and puree texture.
I need to cook a two to two and half pound batch of bean soup about every 4-5 days to feed myself and my mother, one or two servings per day. It gets to be a lot of cooking over the course of time. She needs pureed texture, and has improved again in appetite, so I am now pureeing about 3/4 of the batch for her and make some other stuff for me to eat too.
The veggies I choose are easily pureed, onion, leeks, celery, parsnip or celeriac, sometimes a turnip or beet, and I try to add some greens - flat leaf Italian parsley, cilantro, or dandelion greens, occasionally beet greens but those are higher oxalate. Yucca root and beets are high oxalate, so I boil those separately, drain and then add to the soup. Other veggies, like fennel bulb and asparagus puree well and I make those as an extra vegetable on the side. Broccoli doesn’t puree that well, it leaves stem bits. Yes, I can also strain the puree, but that is yet another step. Sweet potato and carrot puree also is a side dish puree for my mother. (I have to avoid concentrated vitamin A or beta carotene sources). Scrambled eggs still work for her.
We are on a low histamine diet and her Alzheimer’s symptoms have improved a lot as I’ve figured out what makes her worse. Canned foods are a real problem - anything aged tends to have more histamine.
I used to stick a dated label on each glass jar of soup, but it might be 8 jars every batch, so I started keeping a dated list on the fridge instead. Five batches per month is the average. I have reduced use of Phaseolus vulgaris species as I learned more, and black beans were such an oxalate problem that I had already stopped using those very often.
3/16 - White bean soup with parsley - *Phaseolus vulgaris
3/21 - Red lentil soup
3/25 - Black-eyed peas with leeks
3/30 - Split pea soup
4/4 - White bean soup * Phaseolus vulgaris
4/9 - Red lentil and golden beets
4/15 - Split pea soup
4/20 - Black eyed peas
4/49 - Red Lentil soup
5/4 - White bean & cilantro *Phaseolus vulgaris
5/12/13 - Red lentil
5/17 - Black-eyed peas
5/23 - Red lentil
5/30 - Split pea soup
6/6 - Red lentil
6/11 - Split pea soup
6/17 - Red lentil & dandelion greens
6/24 - Garbanzo & lima bean & parsnip, pom peel & parsley
6/26 - Red lentil, golden beet & parsnip
*The split pea and red lentil soup don’t need the lengthy soak time, so when I need a quicker batch, (it’s morning, and I forgot to presoak beans last night) they get made instead of black-eyed peas, limas, garbanzos or a Phaseolus vulgaris type.
Today’s batch is presoaked, waiting to be cooked, and it will be black-eyed peas with garbanzo beans.
I need to buy some more dried beans, I am running low again. The list above represents almost 25 pounds of dried red lentils.
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This is a mistitled post, so I am adding grains and seeds info.
This article says sorghum, millet, teff and fonio are lectin free and gluten free grains. However, millet and sorghum are goitrogenic so it isn't a complete win.
Raw wheat germ and whole grain wheat is high in wheat lectins. Presoaking, sprouting, fermenting (sourdough), baking, and broiling were mentioned elsewhere as methods that reduce lectins.
Buckwheat is gluten free but has other lectins, (and it is quite high in oxalates). Pressure cooking can reduce lectins.
This article provides more information on each of the listed gluten free, lectin free flours. Chickpea flour is not lectin free sonit was not in the list but is discussed in the article as it is gluten free and is commonly used now. .
https://creativeinmykitchen.com/quick-guide-to-lectin-free-gluten-free-flours/#:~:text=The%20root%20flours%3A%20cassava%2C%20tapioca,sorghum%2C%20millet%2C%20teff%2C%20fonio
Disclaimer: This information is being provided for educational purposes within the guidelines of Fair Use and is not intended to provide individual health care guidance.
(Timilsena, et al., 2023) Timilsena YP, Phosanam A, Stockmann R. Perspectives on Saponins: Food Functionality and Applications. Int J Mol Sci. 2023 Aug 31;24(17):13538. doi: 10.3390/ijms241713538. PMID: 37686341; PMCID: PMC10487995. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10487995/
Liked the info on Black eyed peas. I have microscopic colitin and I never have a problem with black eyed peas. No problem whatsoever. So go figure. Have a problem with almost every other beans.
JD - Excellent work on lectins. I do love me some lupini beans, pop em out of the skin and chase with a beer.