The principles of eating so-called alkaline-producing foods were first made clear by French biologist Claude Bernard, a giant of science who made many important discoveries, including that the liver stores and releases glycogen and the pancreas releases digestive juices.

It was Bernard’s word on what was later called “homeostasis” that led to the evolution of the alkaline diet. Bernard believed that among the factors that promoted or disturbed a healthy internal environment was the pH of the body and blood. He theorized that an acidic environment, in particular, is a breeding ground for chronic disease — and that what you eat can impact your bodily pH.

Variations of this acid-alkaline dietary pattern have existed since the beginning of the 20th century. But its popularity skyrocketed again in the last few decades via early health influencers like Robert Young, author of The pH Miracle, and the Honduran herbalist Dr. Sebi (who inspired many people to adopt a vegan alkaline diet).

But is there any truth to these theories that the pH of food impacts blood pH, and, therefore, susceptibility to disease? And is the alkaline diet inherently a healthy dietary pattern?

In this article, we’ll take a look at the alkaline diet, comparing its claims to the available scientific evidence.

Understanding pH

In order to understand the alkaline diet and its claims, we need to at least have a basic understanding of pH. Potential of hydrogen or pH is a measurement of the acidity or alkalinity of a liquid. The pH scale goes from 0.0 (highly acidic) to 14.0 (highly alkaline or “basic”) with a neutral point of 7.0.

Our stomachs are very acidic environments with a normal pH of 1.5–3.5. We secrete hydrochloric acid to help us digest our food, activate enzymes, and break down proteins into amino acids. Maintaining those stomach acids also helps protect us from pathogens in the digestive system.

On the other hand, blood is slightly basic or alkaline, with a pH of 7.35–7.45. The body’s acid-base balance is mainly controlled by the respiratory system and the renal system (kidneys). Maintaining this equilibrium is important for the functioning of basic bodily systems, and any disturbance in this pH can be a serious (and even life-threatening) problem.

So What Does the Alkaline Diet Claim?

The central claim of the alkaline diet is that what you eat can alter the pH level of your blood and cells. And that a more alkaline body pH (achieved from the food you eat) can prevent many diseases, including cancer and osteoporosis, while also providing increased energy and well-being.

When it comes to cancer, the theory is that cancer cells thrive in an acidic environment, so ingesting more alkalizing foods will create a more alkaline and anticancer environment. In this view, eating too many acid-forming foods can put your body into a state of acidosis and result in a decrease in blood pH, with serious metabolic and respiratory consequences in the body.

The bone health theory goes like this: Your body works diligently to keep your blood pH at a healthy level in your arteries and slightly lower in your veins. If you acidify your blood (by eating acid-forming foods, among other things), your body will do whatever it can to achieve equilibrium, including pulling calcium, an alkalizing mineral, from your bones.

To sum it up, the standard Western diet, according to this theory, degrades health and increases the risk of chronic diseases because it promotes an acidic body environment. And an alkaline diet alkalizes the body and blood, staving off chronic disease.

The Alkaline Diet: Foods to Eat vs Avoid

So what foods are supposed to contribute to this alkalizing effect in the body, and which foods don’t?

Most alkaline diet protocols encourage you to eat more alkaline foods that, when metabolized, also leave an alkaline “residue” in your body. Eating this way doesn’t necessarily mean removing all acidic foods from your diet, but instead prioritizing alkaline foods (75–80% of your diet) over acidic ones (20–25% of your diet).

Alkaline foods include many, but not all, vegetables, as well as some fruits, legumes, whole grains, nuts, seeds, herbs and spices, and cold-pressed oils. Neutral and low-acidic foods are also okay in moderation, the majority of which are fruit. Most of the high-alkaline foods are green in color, with leafy greens, green vegetables, and sprouts topping the list.

On the other hand, the foods to avoid on an alkaline diet are those believed to produce an acidic effect. Meat and poultry, dairy, eggs, bread, sweets, and condiments; processed, canned, and fast foods; and beverages like coffee, alcohol, and tea are all off-limits on an alkaline diet.

What the Alkaline Diet Gets Right

Ultimately, there’s a lot of focus on the consumption of whole, plant-based foods and the elimination of most animal products and processed foods on the alkaline diet. So whether or not the underlying theory of the alkaline diet is accurate, there’s no question that eating the preferred foods — whole plants — confers many nutritional benefits.

Conventional Western-style diets are notoriously low in fiber, which is one of the most severely lacking nutrients in industrialized societies. But because the alkaline diet prioritizes whole, plant-based foods, it can make it much more likely you’ll achieve the 25–35 grams of recommended fiber per day.

Eating more fruits and vegetables also means that you’ll be ingesting lots of vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants. And choosing whole foods over processed or fast foods improves your sodium-to-potassium ratio, which can benefit bone health, reduce muscle wasting, and mitigate other chronic diseases such as hypertension and strokes.

The diet may also be helpful for people with chronic kidney disease because it tends to be relatively low in protein. One systematic review showed evidence that the inclusion of alkaline-producing fruits and vegetables or a vegetarian diet low in acid-producing protein (animal products) can slow kidney disease by reducing metabolic acidosis.

In effect, the alkaline diet can be a perfectly healthy eating pattern for many people because it’s predominantly a plant-based one.

What the Alkaline Diet Gets Wrong

Food Affecting Blood pH

The big problem with the claims made by alkaline diet proponents is that they’re based on a misunderstanding of pH and how the body regulates blood pH. The relative alkalinity of the foods you eat doesn’t generally affect the alkalinity or acidity of your blood.

Acids are continuously being produced in the body during normal metabolic processes, but they don’t influence overall bodily pH in healthy individuals. Your body works hard to keep that 7.35–7.45 blood pH range, which is slightly on the alkaline side. If there’s too much acid or base in your system, built-in physiological buffers get rid of it through your urine.

Changing your diet might change the pH of your saliva or urine, but it’s practically impossible to affect the pH of your blood by what you eat. The only times that blood pH is affected is in the case of an acid-base disorder such as advanced stages of shock, diabetic ketoacidosis, or kidney failure — all of which are medical emergencies and not the result of not eating enough alkaline foods.

Focusing on the Wrong Benefits

Not only does the alkaline diet theory misunderstand the mechanisms through which your body regulates its pH, but the narrow focus on this one attribute of plant-based foods ignores the many benefits of plant-based eating that are actually backed up by science. A whole food, plant-based diet supplies an abundance of powerful antioxidants, fiber, and a rainbow of health-promoting phytochemicals. In short, the alkaline diet’s health benefits are real, but they likely have little to do with pH.

Confusing and Restrictive

With a focus mostly on pH and choosing the most alkaline foods, there’s a risk of dietary restriction to the point of nutrient deficiency. It’s easy to get confused about what you are and aren’t supposed to eat, as there’s a lack of consistency in the recommendations, which vary widely. Some lists, for example, say that mushrooms are highly acidic, while others tell us that they are alkalizing.

Little to No Scientific Backing

And most problematic of all, there’s minimal scientific evidence to support the alkaline diet’s biggest claims around diet alkalinity protecting against chronic disease or affecting blood pH.

One 2010 study found that low urine pH predicted neither low bone density nor bone fractures, while another from the same year discovered no correlation between dietary acid load and bone mineral density in older women. A 2011 study found no correlation between dietary acid load and lower bone density, except possibly in older men.

And a 2016 review of over 8,000 published articles relating to dietary pH and cancer found a single clinical trial on the topic. This trial found no relationship between the acid load of the diet and bladder cancer. The researchers concluded, “Despite the promotion of the alkaline diet and alkaline water by the media and salespeople, there is almost no actual research to either support or disprove these ideas.”

The Bottom Line

The alkaline diet, which focuses on pH balance, is a popular diet with many adherents and proponents. It is inherently whole food, plant-based, which can be great, and it’s been shown to be helpful for chronic kidney disease. But beyond that, there’s little to no scientific evidence to support its other health claims. In fact, it’s likely that its benefits have more to do with all of the known advantages that come with a whole food, plant-based diet that steers clear of added sugars, highly processed foods, and animal products.

Tell us in the comments:

• Were you already familiar with the alkaline diet? Have you ever tried it?
• What do you think of the alkaline diet approach?
• What other dietary patterns do you have questions about?

Featured Image: iStock.com/vaaseenaa

Read Next:

• Does Science Support the Blood Type Diet?
• A Guide to Going Plant-Based: What to Eat, Benefits, and How to Succeed

The post The Alkaline Diet: Separating Fact from Fiction appeared first on Food Revolution Network.

But it’s not just water that your body needs in those moments. In fact, drinking plain water when you’re perspiring profusely can actually make things worse. That’s because the sweat you’re losing isn’t just water — it also contains groovy and crucial substances called electrolytes. And without them, many of your body’s functions can get compromised, or even shut down.

That’s why electrolyte sports drinks are so popular in the gym and during sporting events. But what are electrolytes exactly? What do they do? And why are they important?

And are athletes sweating like wrung-out sponges the only people who have to maintain adequate levels of electrolytes? Or do the rest of us also need to pay attention to our electrolyte balance? And if so, must we gulp bright green beverages in order to get enough of them, or are there foods or natural drinks that provide us with what we need?

What Are Electrolytes?

Electrolytes are essential minerals that carry an electric charge and play crucial roles in maintaining a bunch of critical bodily functions. Basically, wherever there’s liquid inside your body, there are electrolytes present. This includes blood, urine, and the fluid inside and outside cells.

Your body is about 60% water, distributed unevenly throughout. Organs and other squishy bits (that’s medical jargon for soft tissue) are very watery, but even your bones are 31% H2O. And that water is constantly recycling itself, to the point where novelist Tom Robbins surmised that human beings “were invented by water as a device for transporting itself from one place to another.”

What allows that water to flow in, through, and out of your body are electrolytes. Through billions of precise messages and measurements, they help distribute and move water through just about every cell in your body, each of which requires water to survive and function.

The main electrolytes found outside your cells are sodium and chloride, while the most common within-cell electrolyte is potassium. Other crucial electrolytes include magnesium, calcium, phosphorus, and bicarbonate.

The fancy term for what electrolytes do in the body is homeostasis, or maintaining a stable internal environment even when dealing with changes externally. But it’s not just about containing enough electrolytes — you also need them in the right ratios to one another. When your electrolyte levels or ratios become unbalanced, your body may experience a number of different health issues, some of which are actually life-threatening if left untreated.

What Do Electrolytes Do in the Body?

So let’s get specific. What functions do electrolytes perform, and what happens when your levels are low, or the ratios are off?

There are three primary things that electrolytes do in your body: maintaining proper hydration, supporting nerve function, and enabling muscle contractions. Let’s look at each of them.

Electrolytes and Hydration

Electrolytes help maintain healthy water pressure and volume inside and outside each cell. This ensures that cells can function properly, with a balance of fluids that prevents both dehydration and overhydration.

In our bodies, dehydration can have serious health impacts, including impaired cognitive function, reduced physical performance, cardiovascular strain, and decreased immune function, among many other unpleasant and potentially dangerous effects.

Overhydration can be a problem, too. It happens when there’s too much water in relation to electrolyte levels, effectively diluting their concentrations. It can lead to cellular swelling and an imbalance of essential electrolytes, potentially causing neurological symptoms, seizures, and organ dysfunction.

Electrolytes and the Nervous System

Electrolytes also play a crucial role in the functioning of your nervous system. They maintain electrical balance in cells and facilitate and generate nerve impulses throughout your body.

The homeostatic function of electrolytes in the central nervous system is also essential for proper brain function since your brain uses electrical signals to send your entire body messages through your nervous system. And the tissues and cells of your body use those same electrical pathways to communicate back to the brain.

Electrolytes and Muscle Function

As anyone who has ever had a charley horse might guess, you need sufficient and balanced electrolytes for the proper contraction and relaxation of the three types of muscle in your body. The first kind, skeletal muscle, is what we typically think of when we think of muscles. These muscles are attached to bone and carry out all your voluntary movements: sitting and walking, nodding your head yes and no, and wrinkling your nose at unpleasant odors.

Electrolytes also regulate the function of your smooth muscles, layers of which form the walls of many organs and blood vessels. And they’re also needed for the cardiac muscle that’s responsible for the lub-dubs that pump blood throughout your body.

Essential Electrolytes and How to Prevent Imbalances

You can experience electrolyte imbalances when you don’t have enough — or have too much — of various electrolyte minerals in your body. Let’s look at the specific electrolytes, their functions, recommended intake, and how to ensure sufficient amounts and ratios.

Sodium

Sodium plays a crucial role in maintaining fluid balance, transmitting nerve impulses, and muscle contraction and relaxation. One potential sodium problem is hyponatremia, which is too little sodium in the blood. There are several conditions that can cause this, like certain medications (including diuretics, some antidepressants, and antipsychotics), heart failure, and drinking too much water without replenishing lost electrolytes (as seen in exercise-induced hyponatremia).

However, most people, especially those in the industrialized world, are at greater risk of the opposite problem: too much sodium in the blood, caused by too much sodium in their diet. The US Dietary Guideline’s Daily Value for sodium is 2,300 mg per day (which is a lot higher than the American Heart Association’s more conservative ideal limit of 1,500 mg per day). But most people are consuming between 3,000 and 5,000 mg of sodium per day.

Excess sodium in the blood, known as hypernatremia, is mostly caused by high-sodium diets. Hypernatremia is a major contributor to high blood pressure, which itself contributes to heart disease (the world’s #1 killer), as well as type 2 diabetes and kidney disease.

Preventing Sodium Imbalances

There are three complementary strategies to prevent a sodium imbalance in your body. The first is to moderate your sodium intake (which, for most of us, involves both eating less salt and reducing consumption of highly processed foods that tend to be very high in sodium).

The second strategy is to make sure you get plenty of potassium, which is kind of like sodium’s seesaw buddy. They work in harmony and help regulate each other. Too much sodium and not enough potassium, which is the more common imbalance, has heavy sodium sitting on the ground at one end of the seesaw, and potassium with its feet dangling in the air on the other end. The ideal sodium-to-potassium ratio is about 1:2. (We’ll discuss potassium more soon, but this is the sodium section, so potassium has to wait its turn.)

And the third strategy is to keep your sodium levels from getting too low — plummeting into the hyponatremic range. This is more likely to happen if you sweat a lot (ever noticed that sweat is salty?) and drink a lot of water without replenishing sodium or other electrolytes. To address this, you may want to drink a hydrating beverage that contains electrolytes or accompany your water drinking with a snack that’s rich in sodium and other minerals, such as nut butter and celery.

Of course, that’s what sports drinks are for — at least according to their marketing. The issue is many of them are high in sugar as well as natural and artificial flavors that can create a whole new set of problems for your body.

Remember: Sugar is not an electrolyte. Although it does help increase electrolyte absorption, it causes more than enough problems to make up for it. Fortunately, there are plenty of ways to meet your body’s need for sodium and other electrolytes without consuming any kind of sweetener.

If you’re worried about your sodium levels, you may want to get testing done or see if you’re taking any medications that may impact your sodium levels.

For more on sodium, see our article here.

Potassium

Potassium is also essential for nerve signaling, muscle contraction, and the maintenance of a regular heartbeat. Too little potassium is called hypokalemia and can lead to muscle and heart problems. Most cases of hypokalemia produce mild symptoms (which is a good thing because severe cases can lead to heart arrhythmias and eventual paralysis). And when it does occur, it’s typically a side effect of some medications (including antibiotics, diuretics, insulin overdoses, and others) or adrenal problems.

On average, the potassium needs for men are 3,400 mg and 2,600 mg for women. In the US, adults tend to not get enough potassium, but the discrepancy may not be enough to cause noticeable symptoms. (On average, men consume a little over 3,000 mg a day, and women get around 2,300 mg).

Excess potassium, or hyperkalemia, is less common but may be caused by certain medications or kidney disease.

The best way to prevent a potassium imbalance is to include potassium-rich foods in your diet. Some of the healthiest sources of potassium include bananas, avocados, potatoes, leafy greens, and legumes.

As with sodium, if you have concerns about your potassium levels, you may want to get your levels tested or check with a health care professional.

For more on potassium, see our article here.

Calcium

Another electrolyte, calcium, is necessary for bone health, muscle contractions, blood clotting, and nerve function. Too little calcium (as measured in blood, not bone) is called hypocalcemia and may result from insufficient dietary calcium, certain drugs, or problems with the kidneys. Most commonly, though, hypocalcemia is caused by either vitamin D deficiency or diseases of the parathyroid glands.

Mild hypocalcemia is quite common and rarely shows up as symptoms.

Too much calcium in the blood, called hypercalcemia, is usually a result of overactive parathyroid glands. Less common causes included cancer, certain other medical disorders, some medications, and taking too much calcium and vitamin D in supplemental form.

The Recommended Dietary Allowance for adults 18 years and older is 1,000–1,200 mg of calcium per day. But the best way to prevent a calcium imbalance is by getting healthy sources of calcium from food, treating medical conditions that may affect your calcium levels, and getting enough vitamin D.

Contrary to popular belief (stoked by dairy industry marketing), you don’t need to consume dairy to maintain your calcium levels. Healthier and more sustainable sources of calcium include: seeds, beans, nuts, leafy greens, and organic soy.

For more on calcium, see our article here.

Magnesium

Magnesium is essential for nerve function, muscle contraction, enzyme activity, and maintaining a healthy heartbeat. Having a low magnesium level is called hypomagnesemia (which, it turns out, is not the medical term for a deficiency of magazine subscriptions — and yes, I did “Google it” to make sure).

The Recommended Dietary Allowance of magnesium for men 19 years or older is 400–420 mg and 310–320 mg for women.

If a person’s magnesium level is low, it’s usually because they are not eating enough of it or because their intestines are not absorbing it properly. Sometimes, though, hypomagnesemia develops because the kidneys or intestines excrete too much magnesium (usually due to medications). Hypomagnesemia may also occur in tandem with low levels of calcium and potassium.

Some people deem magnesium deficiency a public health crisis due to how common and widespread it is. An estimated half of the US population is consuming a magnesium-deficient diet.

Symptoms of early magnesium deficiency can include constipation, fatigue, loss of appetite, and weakness, which can eventually lead to more severe complications if untreated.

Too much magnesium in the blood is called hypermagnesemia. However, it’s very rare, and can be caused by extremely high doses of supplemental magnesium as well as kidney failure.

A key strategy for preventing a magnesium imbalance is to get enough from your food while keeping your other electrolytes in balance. Some of the best dietary sources of magnesium are nuts and seeds, spinach, fortified plant-based milks, legumes, dark chocolate, and avocado.

And, at the risk of sounding like a broken record (I’m so glad vinyl is making a comeback, so I can keep using that metaphor), it might be a good idea to check with a health care professional about any medications, supplements, or medical conditions that may interfere with your magnesium levels.

For more on magnesium, see our article here.

Other Electrolytes to Know

Three other electrolytes get less press, largely because deficiencies are far less common. Bicarbonate, chloride, and phosphorus are also electrolytes. However, you will typically see imbalances of these electrolytes in conjunction with kidney disorders or as downstream effects of another, more primary electrolyte imbalance.

What All This Means

So, to summarize, when it comes to electrolytes, there are three main concerns to watch out for.

1. 1. Sodium and potassium imbalance. Most people in the modern world are getting too much sodium and too little potassium, creating a problematic imbalance. Eating less sodium and more potassium-rich foods is good advice for most of us.
   2. Lack of specific electrolytes. In addition to the lack of potassium in the modern diet, up to half of us are also deficient in magnesium. And for some, calcium can be a concern, too — although vitamin D can be very helpful in supporting calcium absorption. For our article on vitamin D, click here.
   3. Water/electrolyte balance. When we sweat, and especially when engaging in intense physical activity such as hiking, tennis, or running, it’s important to replenish lost moisture. As a rule of thumb, you need about a quart of liquid for every hour in the sun or during strenuous exercise.

But when you perspire, you’re not just losing water; you’re also losing minerals — so it’s important to replenish your electrolytes as well. You can do this with the aid of an electrolyte powder mixed with water, a drink that naturally includes some electrolytes (such as fruit juice or coconut water), or some mineral-rich snacks.

For our article on best practices for safe, healthy, and sustainable hiking, click here.

Electrolyte Balancing Recipes

For most people, a diverse diet based around whole plant foods will deliver plenty of sodium, potassium, calcium, magnesium, and all the other electrolytes — thus helping to ensure a healthy electrolyte balance. So, in general, there’s no need for highly marketed sports drinks in plastic bottles to replenish electrolytes lost during exercise or extended time outdoors.

In fact, you can save money, reduce plastic waste, and eliminate unwanted ingredients like artificial colorings and refined sugar, which are commonly found in many sports drinks. Instead, opt for fresh-from-your-kitchen ingredients to help your body function at its best with these simple and wholesome electrolyte-containing recipes!

1. Beet Carrot Turmeric Juice

Beet Carrot Turmeric Juice may be the DIY electrolyte recovery drink that can do it all! It provides a refreshing combination of antioxidants, anti-inflammatory properties, and essential electrolytes, making it a nourishing option for hydration and an active lifestyle. What’s more, it’s a healthier alternative to many commercially available sports drinks that often contain added sugars and artificial ingredients. Don’t have a juicer? No problem! Blender instructions for this power-packed juice are provided as well.

2. Pumpkin Seed Poppers

Pumpkin Seed Poppers come with plenty of fiber, magnesium, potassium, zinc, and iron. This mineral-rich and absolutely delicious bite-sized appetizer results in quick, easy, and efficient nutrition to encourage healthy electrolyte balance — no neon-colored drinks required! Take a few ounces on the trail, and enjoy a handful alongside a swig of water for a hydrating and electrolyte-replenishing break.

3. Bibimbap

Bibim — meaning “mixed” in Korean — is the perfect way to describe this nourishing plant-based Bibimbap, thanks to the wide variety of nutrient-dense ingredients, including mineral-rich tofu and vegetables like spinach, bean sprouts, and mushrooms. This mix of nourishing plant-based ingredients is a fun, lively, and nutritious meal to include often in your recipe rotation, especially if your goal is to consume an abundance of electrolyte-rich minerals!

The Bottom Line About Electrolytes

Electrolytes are minerals that carry an electrical charge when dissolved in water and include sodium, potassium, calcium, magnesium, bicarbonate, chloride, and phosphorus. They’re essential for hydration, nerve function, and muscle contractions in the body.

Imbalances in electrolytes can lead to health issues like irregular heart rhythms, muscle weakness, seizures, and even death if left untreated. So, to avoid an electrolyte imbalance, you don’t need to reach for sugary sports drinks. Instead, stay hydrated, maintain a diverse diet with electrolyte-rich foods, moderate your salt intake, and check with your healthcare team about any medications or health conditions that may affect your electrolyte levels.

Tell us in the comments:

• What are your favorite ways to replenish your electrolytes after sweating (or, if you prefer, perspiring)?
• What potassium, magnesium, and calcium-rich foods do you include in your diet?
• Which electrolyte-containing recipe will you try next?

Featured Image: iStock.com/KTStock

Read Next:

• The Benefits of Potassium: Why and How You Should Get Enough
• The Best and Worst Summer Foods + 5 Healthy Picnic Recipes to Enjoy
• Building Muscle on a Plant-Based Diet: The Best Foods & Nutrients to Eat

The post Guide to Electrolytes: Essential Nutrients for Hydration and Beyond appeared first on Food Revolution Network.

OK, let me try to be mature about this weird feature of asparagus because it’s very much related to asparagus’ health benefits. When you eat asparagus, one of the compounds that your body metabolizes is called asparagusic acid. (I give whoever named it an A for accuracy and a C for creativity.)

Inside your body, asparagusic acid turns into several different by-products, one of which is called methanethiol. This substance is what gives post-asparagus urine its distinct odor. Now, not everyone experiences aromatic pee. Some people may produce far more methanethiol than others, due to genetic differences in their metabolism. And some (lucky? unlucky?) folks simply lack the olfactory ability to detect the odor, and so may wrongly believe that they don’t produce it or that it doesn’t even exist.

Although the smell is not everyone’s cup of tea (if it is your cup of tea, I may decline an invitation to your tea party), the compounds responsible for it are part of what makes asparagus so healthy.

In this article, we’ll look at some of the ways asparagus can support your health. We’ll explore its nutritional profile, check out the research on asparagus health benefits, and share how to choose and store asparagus to maintain its health benefits. Plus, if you stay all the way to the end, you’ll find a link to our companion article with seven delicious asparagus recipes.

Asparagus Nutrition

On paper, asparagus is a nutritional powerhouse. Calorically speaking, it’s mostly carbohydrates with a small but not insignificant amount of protein: 2.4 grams of protein per 100-gram serving of asparagus. That same serving also delivers two grams of fiber, which sounds a bit low since asparagus is sometimes extremely chewy (especially if you don’t cook it or neglect to cut off the tough, fibrous stems).

Asparagus is also an excellent source of both fat-soluble and water-soluble vitamins, especially vitamins A, C, E, K, and most of the B vitamins. Plus, it’s no slouch when it comes to minerals, including copper, manganese, selenium, and potassium. Most of the nutrients in asparagus increase slightly in concentration when it’s cooked rather than eaten raw, although you can get a heap of benefits either way.

Asparagus also delivers “specialty nutrients” that pack huge nutritional punches, including potent antioxidants like lutein and zeaxanthin, which are important to eye health; glutathione, which is a multi-disease-fighting powerhouse; and quercetin, which has anti-inflammatory properties.

And, as we’ve seen (or smelled), asparagus also contains the sulfur-containing compound asparagusic acid that makes your pee smell weird. While the smell of sulfur may conjure mental images of fire and brimstone, its presence in vegetables generally signals nutritional superpowers. Other veggies high in sulfur include allium (such as onions and garlic) and cruciferous (such as cabbage, broccoli, and kale) vegetables, two of the top superfood categories.

These sulfur-rich foods play a significant role in preventing various diseases, including chronic inflammation, cancer, diabetes, obesity, and neural dysfunction. They’re also being studied for their ability to enhance the effects of chemotherapy and support neurological function.

And we’re just scratching the surface in understanding asparagus’ rich cocktail of phytonutrients and their ability to promote health and fight disease across a wide spectrum of organs, systems, and conditions. Purple asparagus, in particular, deserves a Lifetime Achievement Award for its high concentrations of anthocyanins.

Top 6 Health Benefits of Asparagus

While there’s much yet to discover about how asparagus can help us thrive, there are six areas, in particular, where research is beginning to make serious inroads: gut health, cancer treatment, cardiac health, liver and kidney function, eye health, and skin health (aka antiaging).

You’ll notice that much of this research is in its early stages, which unfortunately means researchers are often testing extracted compounds on rodents rather than simply feeding asparagus to humans and seeing what happens. (Our view on the use of animals in medical research is here.)

That said, there’s good reason to expect that at least some of the health benefits transfer across species — especially since whole foods typically deliver more nutritional benefits than individual nutrients extracted from those foods.

Asparagus and Gut Health

In 2020, researchers from China fed asparagus extracts to mice who had been on a high-fat diet and discovered that the compounds found in asparagus increased the diversity of the rodents’ gut bacteria in ways that could theoretically treat the elevated cholesterol caused by their diet. A comparison group received cholesterol-lowering medication instead of asparagus and didn’t show the same increase in gut biodiversity.

The following year, another Chinese research lab showed that the fiber from asparagus not only altered the ratios of gut bacteria in mice who had been on a high-fat diet but also lowered total cholesterol, LDL cholesterol, and triglycerides in the serum of mice who had been on a high-fat diet.

Expanding on those previous studies, researchers from Spain also looked for the specific compounds in asparagus that enable it to so significantly improve microbial diversity. And they flagged several, including xylose, inulin, flavonoids, and saponins, for future study.

Asparagus and Cancer

One promising avenue for the treatment of cancer is the search for metabolic interventions that starve cancer cells but leave healthy cells unharmed. A compound in asparagus, asparagine, appears to do just that to leukemia cells. And scientists are looking for ways to harness this power in the fight against other cancers.

A 2021 study by an international group of researchers showed that asparagus slowed ovarian cancer progression in mice, both fighting the growth of tumors and preventing their metastasis into other organs and parts of their bodies.

And in the same year, a team of Italian scientists also found that asparagus compounds given in conjunction with chemotherapy for breast cancer improved the specificity of the treatment. That is, asparagus appears to allow the chemotherapeutic agents to target cancer cells more specifically and effectively, and leave healthy cells alone.

Asparagus and Heart Health

The gut bacteria changes that asparagus can bring about appear to favor heart health by lowering levels of circulating fats in the blood, at least in test-tube studies.

Food scientists in Japan discovered in 2013 that asparagus extract lowered blood pressure in hypertensive mice. In a randomized controlled trial, the extract dropped the average mouse’s systolic blood pressure significantly (to 160, a full 30 points lower than the control group), and appeared to do so via the same mechanism as a major class of hypertensive drugs, the ACE inhibitors.

As a result, there’s hope that asparagus compounds (or even raw or cooked asparagus!) could help people reduce their hypertension without the side effects of these drugs.

Asparagus and Liver and Kidney Disease

Asparagus is also a possible friend to your liver and kidneys. A 2015 study out of China identified a bunch of compounds in asparagus that appear to be protective against chemical changes associated with liver scarring (the process that leads to cirrhosis) in test-tube samples.

In 2018, an Iranian team extended this line of inquiry, this time with a controlled study of live mice. They found that asparagus extract protected against oxidative stress as well as liver and kidney damage in mice who were exposed to the endocrine disruptor BPA.

Asparagus and Eye Health

Many of the compounds in food that can help prevent eye-related disorders, including macular degeneration, are in asparagus. Purple asparagus, in particular, appears ready to walk the eye-health red carpet, thanks to its high concentration of anthocyanins.

In a 2020 study, an Iranian research team showed that asparagus extract helped to prevent cataract formation in baby rats.

Asparagus and Skin Health

One of the chemicals in your body that protects your skin from ultraviolet (UV) radiation damage is called Heat Shock Protein 70 (HSP70), which sounds like an expensive shampoo that was named by a 1950s doo-wop band.

But in 2018, Japanese researchers took normal human dermal fibroblasts (the cells that repair damaged skin) and exposed them to UV-B radiation in test tubes. Researchers added asparagus stem extract to some tubes, while others served as controls. After 24 hours, the tubes with asparagus extract contained significantly more HSP70, suggesting that the vegetable was able to protect the fibroblasts from radiation damage.

And a 2021 study out of Thailand also investigated the effects of asparagus on wrinkle development. Researchers tested different parts of the asparagus and found that the spear contained the most potent anti-wrinkle compounds. They concluded that asparagus could be an effective natural ingredient in anti-wrinkle products.

How to Choose Asparagus

Now that you’re thoroughly impressed with the comprehensive medicine cabinet that is asparagus, I hope you’re thinking about ways to incorporate this wonder veggie into your diet.

The first step is knowing how to select the best-tasting and most nutritious spears.

You can buy fresh asparagus when in season (late spring through summer) at many grocery stores and farmers markets. It’s one of the first spring vegetables to appear in many parts of the world.

You can also grow it yourself, with less effort than many other garden veggies. That’s because asparagus is a perennial. Plant it once, and within 2–3 years you’ll have feathery tips popping out of the garden bed every spring. All you’ve got to do is take care of the soil, weed out anything that isn’t asparagus, water if needed, remember where you planted them so you don’t rototill that bed by accident — and of course, harvest.

Whether you purchase asparagus or grow it yourself, fresh green asparagus spears should be bright green and firm, with tightly closed tips. The purple and green varieties should have vibrantly colored tips as well.

You’ll also want to avoid slimy or wilted stems. Give a little sniff (don’t worry, no one’s looking) to check that the stalks emit a clean, slightly sweet aroma (so unlike how they leave the body!).

How to Store Asparagus

Store your asparagus in the refrigerator until you’re ready to prepare it. For maximal freshness, you’ll want to keep the bottoms of the stems moist. And there are a couple of easy ways to do this, depending on how much vertical space you have in your fridge.

If there’s room, you can stand the green, purple, or white spears upright in a container with an inch or two of water in the bottom. One trick for getting more headroom is to trim the bottom inch or so of the stems, which also makes it easier for the asparagus to absorb water and stay fresh.

Alternatively, wrap the bottom of the stems in a damp paper towel and put them in a zip-top produce bag.

Don’t wash asparagus until you’re ready to use it because moisture will cause the tips to become mushy. In any case, try to use asparagus within a few days of purchase. Like many veggies, asparagus begins to lose nutrients as soon as it’s harvested.

If you have a bumper crop that you can’t eat all at once, or you accidentally buy 20 bunches at the store, you can also freeze asparagus spears for later use. Blanch them in boiling water for a couple of minutes, then plunge them into ice water, dry them, and freeze them in airtight bags or containers.

You can also pickle or can asparagus, but you will lose some nutritional value in the process.

Now — ready for that collection of amazing asparagus recipes? Here’s your link: How to Cook & Use Asparagus: 7 Simple and Tasty Recipe Ideas

Hooray for Asparagus’ Health Benefits!

Asparagus may be a weird-looking vegetable that makes your pee smell funny, but it’s so much more. In those pointy spears lies a nutritional powerhouse that provides a variety of health benefits, including supporting gut health, helping to fight cancer, protecting the heart, and promoting eye and skin health.

Asparagus is an excellent source of vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants, making it a valuable addition to any diet. And to get the most nutritional benefit, it’s important to choose and store asparagus correctly. With its unique flavor and numerous health benefits, asparagus is a versatile vegetable that will add value and color to your spring and summer menus.

Tell us in the comments:

• What are your favorite ways to prepare and enjoy asparagus?

• If you garden, have you tried growing asparagus?

• What health benefit of asparagus is most interesting to you?

Featured Image: iStock.com/BreakingTheWalls

Read Next:

• Top 10 Healthy Veggies and Fruits to Eat in Spring

The post The Health Benefits of Asparagus: 6 Reasons It’s Good for You appeared first on Food Revolution Network.

Table of Contents

Due to an extreme shortage of auto parts in the Soviet era, Russians often couldn’t just get a new pair of windshield wipers at the store when the old ones wore out. It was common for someone to return to their car to discover that someone had nicked their wipers. The afflicted party might then grab a pair from a nearby car to replace their own. And so on, until large segments of the motoring population became engaged in a never-ending game of musical chairs (or rather wipers), grabbing them wherever they could.

This chain reaction became so widespread during the Soviet Union that almost no parked cars had visible windshield wipers. Instead, drivers would remove them with a screwdriver, and only put them back in case of heavy rain.

Bear with me, but there’s something similar going on in your body all the time: a process known as lipid peroxidation. Basically, the thief here is a free radical, and the stolen object is an electron taken from a lipid molecule in the membrane of a cell. That lipid molecule then becomes unstable, and in turn, grabs an electron from a neighboring cell, and so on and so on.

This process can really damage your health, affecting most chronic diseases, including type 2 diabetes, Alzheimer’s, atherosclerotic plaque (which itself can lead to heart disease and stroke), and cancer.

Fortunately, your body also contains crime-fighting compounds called antioxidants that fight free radicals and protect against oxidative damage. And one of the most powerful and ubiquitous antioxidants is glutathione.

First discovered in 1888 by J. de Rey-Paihade, a French doctor, glutathione was found in high concentrations in most of the cells of the human body, especially in the liver. These days, many health influencers talk about its benefits for a number of conditions, and also tout its potential to slow the aging process.

But what exactly is glutathione? What claims for its benefits are valid, and what’s currently just speculation or hype? How do you make sure you have enough in your body? And can you make it all yourself, do you need to get it from food, or do you need to supplement?

What Is Glutathione?

First things first: pronunciation. Since you’ll be saying “glutathione” to yourself a lot as you read this article, you might want to make sure you’re saying it right. The word is pronounced “gloo-tuh-thigh-own.” Or, for an image you might not be able to get out of your head, just picture gluing tuh’ your own thigh. (Or not. There’s a reason I’m not a linguistics professor.)

Glutathione is one of the most potent antioxidants in the body. It binds to fat-soluble toxins — the electron thieves that we just met — as well as heavy metals that make their way into the body. As such, it supports the liver and kidneys as they work to detoxify harmful compounds, both organic and inorganic. Glutathione also helps make proteins in the body and regulates the function of the immune system.

Your body naturally produces glutathione in your cells. The largest producer is the liver, which creates it from three amino acids: cysteine, glutamate, and glycine. That’s why glutathione is characterized as a tripeptide (“three peptides”).

Since glutathione serves to fight the free radicals that cause oxidative damage, we want our bodies to increase the concentration of glutathione in cells in response to oxidation. And one of the safest and most effective ways to raise resting levels of glutathione appears to be exercise. Just as lifting weights can grow your muscles and cardio can strengthen your heart, temporarily raising free radical levels through physical activity creates adaptations that increase glutathione activity throughout the body.

Benefits of Glutathione

Due to its key roles in detoxification, fighting free radicals, and making essential proteins, glutathione is indispensable for health. Low levels of glutathione are associated with a number of diseases and conditions. In some cases, clinical trials have revealed a causal relationship (that is, raising glutathione levels makes things better). And in others, it’s still unclear if low glutathione is a cause of a symptom, or if the condition itself has suppressed glutathione synthesis.

Glutathione and the Liver

Since the liver is ground zero for glutathione production, it makes sense that glutathione levels are lower in people with a variety of liver disorders and diseases.

Medical research has found that glutathione supplementation can help mitigate the effects of liver disease. A small 2017 clinical trial found that people with nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) had their liver function improve when given supplemental glutathione. This is good news, as NAFLD is associated with the development of insulin resistance (a root cause of type 2 diabetes), obesity, and high blood pressure.

Glutathione also appears to restore some liver function in those with alcoholic liver disease.

Glutathione and the Immune System

When your glutathione stores are low, your body is less able to fight off viral infections. And glutathione also participates in the development of trained immunity, whereby your immune system gets better at defeating pathogens through exposure. A 2021 study showed that high concentrations of glutathione in plasma cells were associated with some immune cells’ ability to “remember” past infections and deal with new ones more effectively.

One way glutathione supports the immune system is by inducing a phenomenon called macrophage polarization, in which macrophages (the immune cells that gobble up pathogens; their name is Greek for “big eaters”) can adjust their programming based on environmental signals. A 2022 microbiology paper argued that glutathione deficiency could even be a risk factor in life-threatening cases of COVID-19.

Glutathione and the Brain

One of glutathione’s impressive list of feats is its ability to regulate brain metabolism. It turns out that when glutathione function is impaired, the brain loses more neurons — a process that’s associated with cognitive decline, Alzheimer’s, and increased risk of depression and anxiety. It’s also clear that insufficient glutathione may contribute to Parkinson’s disease.

One of the challenges in glutathione research is knowing how to measure it accurately. Researchers are still debating the best way to determine brain concentrations of glutathione. Doing so is important because there’s evidence that too little and too much glutathione may contribute to mood disorders like depression and schizophrenia.

Glutathione and Cancer

As one of the “master conductors” of cellular behavior, glutathione can tell cells to do a bunch of different things, including divide, grow, protect themselves, and self-destruct. All these processes are involved in cancer. And glutathione appears to be a double-edged sword in this case. It can tell damaged cells to die, either through apoptosis (programmed cell death) or a recently discovered type of cell death called ferroptosis, which relies on iron and reactive oxygen species (ROS) to basically blow up a cell’s mitochondria from the inside.

But glutathione can also become a cheerleader for cancer; elevated levels in tumor cells can trigger the progression of tumors and increase resistance to anticancer drugs. It appears to be a matter of timing: Glutathione removes and detoxifies carcinogens, which prevents the initiation of cancer, but it also promotes the growth and metastasis of already-formed tumors.

It appears that glutathione isn’t a “more is always better” molecule when it comes to cancer. Good health depends on a homeostatic balance between oxidation and its chemical opposite, reduction. Too much glutathione appears to tilt the balance, and not necessarily in the right direction. So rather than simply giving someone a glutathione supplement, novel cancer treatments are looking at closely modulating glutathione levels and strategically “interfering” with different steps in the glutathione metabolic cycle to improve existing cancer therapies.

Glutathione and Type 2 Diabetes

There’s definitely a link between glutathione deficiency and the presence of type 2 diabetes. But it’s not entirely clear yet which one causes the other (or whether both are caused by an as-yet-unknown initial factor).

A 2018 study of just 24 people (16 with type 2 diabetes and 8 matched controls who did not have the disease) found that the people with type 2 diabetes had lower glutathione concentrations, suggesting that something about the disease might cause less tripeptide production. Additionally, it appears that there’s something about excess blood sugar that requires more glutathione, leaving less for other critical functions.

For someone with type 2 diabetes, the question of causality may be less important than finding out if glutathione supplementation can improve symptoms and mitigate progression.

A 2021 controlled trial out of Denmark sought to answer that question, studying the effects of three weeks of oral glutathione supplementation in 20 obese males — 10 with type 2 diabetes, and 10 without. The 20 were randomized to receive either 1,000 mg GSH (a common form of glutathione present in the body) or a placebo.

The results were promising: the group receiving glutathione improved their whole-body insulin sensitivity, meaning that it became easier for them to move glucose from the bloodstream into the cells. And the glutathione had apparently been absorbed and sent to where it was needed; a muscle biopsy confirmed that GSH concentrations increased by 19% in skeletal muscles. These findings occurred in subjects both with and without type 2 diabetes, suggesting that oral glutathione could help prevent prediabetes from developing into full-blown diabetes.

Ways to Boost Glutathione Levels

For most people, the best way to boost glutathione levels is to eat foods that contain glutathione or its precursors. (More on that coming soon.) A few of the nutrients that appear especially important to helping your body make and synthesize it effectively include:

Vitamin C: A group of researchers discovered that consumption of vitamin C supplements resulted in a rise in glutathione levels in the white blood cells of healthy adults. One particular study found that consuming 500mg of vitamin C daily led to a 47% hike in glutathione levels in red blood cells. For more on vitamin C, see our article here.

Selenium: One investigation analyzed the impact of selenium supplementation on 45 adults suffering from chronic kidney disease. The participants got a daily dose of 200mcg of selenium for a period of three months. The results revealed a significant increase in the levels of glutathione peroxidase in all of the participants. Another study demonstrated that the consumption of selenium supplements led to an elevation in glutathione peroxidase levels among patients undergoing hemodialysis. Perhaps the best way to ensure an adequate supply of selenium is to eat 1–2 Brazil nuts per day.

Turmeric: Turmeric is a brightly colored herb with vast therapeutic and anti-inflammatory properties. Several animal and laboratory studies have demonstrated that turmeric and its extract, curcumin, have the potential to raise glutathione levels. Researchers believe that the curcumin found in turmeric can enhance the functioning of glutathione enzymes. For more on turmeric and curcumin, see our article here.

Food Sources of Glutathione

Some nutrients are essential, meaning that your body can’t manufacture them and you have to get them from food (vitamin C, for example). But glutathione isn’t like that; you can manufacture it in your liver and increase its production by creating appropriate amounts of oxidative stress through exercise.

But that doesn’t mean nutrition isn’t important here. You still need to consume the building blocks of glutathione. And many plant foods provide those building blocks, either in the form of amino acids, precursor molecules, or in some cases, glutathione itself. The following are some of the best food sources of glutathione and glutathione precursors.

1. Alliums

Onions and garlic were both found to increase concentrations of a few forms of glutathione in rats. Both alliums raised GSH levels in the animals’ livers and kidneys. (Our view on the use of animals in medical research is here.) This may be one of the many mechanisms by which onions and garlic can prevent cancer.

Check out our full article on alliums for much more good news about onions and garlic.

2. Avocados

Avocados contain glutathione, along with many other health-promoting compounds. A 2021 animal study compared avocado oil to a common hypertensive drug, prazosin, and found that, while both treatments decreased high blood pressure in hypertensive rats, only the avocado oil improved the mitochondrial function in the rats’ kidney cells. The avocado oil, the researchers found, improved the ability of glutathione to neutralize free radicals and thereby prevent the damage often caused by high blood pressure.

Read all about the health benefits of avocados (with recipes) in our comprehensive article.

3. Asparagus

If you’ve ever eaten asparagus and then noticed a funny smell when you urinate, the culprits are sulfur-containing compounds that form when asparagusic acid breaks down. Sulfur is one of the main ingredients in glutamate, which as you may recall is one of the three amino acids that form glutathione. Sulfur is also critical for the synthesis of glutathione. For the highest concentrations of these beneficial compounds, choose brightly colored green asparagus spears rather than pale or white ones.

Other plant-based foods that are high in sulfur, and that are associated with increased glutathione levels, include cruciferous vegetables like cauliflower, broccoli, broccoli sprouts, kale, brussels sprouts, and mustard greens.

We don’t yet have a comprehensive article on asparagus, but until we write it, you can enjoy this Creamy Asparagus Risotto recipe.

4. Watermelon

Watermelon is rich in many compounds, among them lycopene and vitamin C. Both of these may lower biomarkers of oxidative stress and inflammation, partially through increased glutathione production.

For a deep dive into watermelon nutrition, here’s our comprehensive article.

5. Pomegranate

Pomegranates are another red fruit that can boost glutathione levels. A 2014 study fed pomegranate juice to 14 healthy volunteers for 15 days and found that their GSH levels had risen by almost 23% by the last day of the trial. And a 2017 study gave pomegranate juice or a placebo to 9 elite weightlifters right after a strenuous workout. Among many other positive effects, the pomegranate juice increased the antioxidant power of glutathione by about 7%.

For more information on the fabulous pomegranate (including an appropriately scholarly discussion of how many seeds are in each fruit), check out our full article here.

6. Mushrooms

Some mushroom species are high in glutathione itself. One of them, Agaricus bisporus, may sound exotic — but fortunately, that’s just the fancy botanical term for the common white button mushroom! A long-term study of over 15,000 participants found that the more mushrooms people reported eating, the lower their chances of dying. So whether it’s the glutathione or the full symphony of nutrients found in edible fungi, mushrooms can be a great addition to most diets.

Here’s our big article all about mushrooms.

Glutathione Deficiency

Because glutathione is so important across so many systems and functions, if you’re in good health, you’re probably not deficient. But it is possible to develop a deficiency, due to either aging, certain medical conditions, or a combination of the two.

You can test for glutathione levels via a blood test. Optimal glutathione levels are between 177 and 323 μg/ml (which you say as “micrograms per milliliter”).

The tests can measure glutathione levels in both red blood cells and plasma. And another biomarker for glutathione levels is an enzyme called gamma glutamyltransferase, or GGT. When it’s high, glutathione is often low.

If you need to check your numbers, talk with your health care provider about which measure is more appropriate for you.

Do Glutathione Supplements Work?

Some studies show that supplementing with oral glutathione is effective for deficiency, while others show glutathione is poorly absorbed orally. While it may depend on the person and the condition, there’s some recent research suggesting that two forms of oral glutathione might be more bioavailable and therefore more effective in raising systemic glutathione levels.

The two forms of glutathione supplements that show the most promise are liposomal and sublingual. Liposomal glutathione supplements are prepackaged in a packet of fat cells, made to mimic the structure of our own cells. This can protect the glutathione from being broken down by digestive enzymes during the digestive process. Sublingual (under the tongue) glutathione gets absorbed into the mucous membranes of the mouth, which also increases transit time and bioavailability.

Another option is intravenous glutathione supplementation, which may also be more effective in raising blood levels than oral intake. (That kind of makes sense, since you might imagine that when you inject something into your blood, doing so would increase your blood levels of it.)

A different supplement, N-acetylcysteine (NAC), is currently being studied as a supplement for glutathione support. Again, the research is not conclusive — results differ from disease to disease. But it appears people who supplement with NAC in conjunction with cysteine and glycine may experience a boost in glutathione levels, especially among those who may not have adequate quantities of the amino acids or who need higher levels of glutathione.

Who May Want to Supplement With Glutathione?

As we’ve seen, glutathione does a lot of things. Two of its most urgent and therefore prioritized jobs are dealing with oxidative stress — basically, protecting cells from ROS and other free radicals — and detoxifying heavy metals and other contaminants. When that job becomes overwhelming, your body may not be able to produce enough glutathione to take care of other, less immediate concerns.

So if someone is dealing with lots of stress, which can also include malnutrition or exposure to environmental contaminants, they may need to supplement with glutathione just to keep up with demand.

For example, smokers and those with alcohol abuse problems tend to have decreased glutathione levels and may benefit from supplementation. And people with AIDS or cystic fibrosis may benefit from (or may need to take) glutathione supplements as well.

The elderly may also experience decreased glutathione levels as their natural supplies of the amino acids glycine and cysteine diminish.

And there’s some research showing that glutathione supplementation may aid in recovery from extended aerobic exercise, and so may become a helpful part of the regimen for endurance athletes.

A word of caution: for cancer patients undergoing chemotherapy, it’s important not to get too much, as glutathione can increase their resistance to chemo drugs.

How Much Glutathione Should You Take?

The recommended dose for adults who are choosing to supplement is generally going to be 500–1,000 mg/day of liposomal glutathione.

For glycine, the standard dosage is 3 grams per day, and it’s considered safe up to 6 grams. And for NAC, a standard dose is 600–1,200 mg (that is, 0.6–1.2 grams). And it’s safe up to 3 grams, while 7 grams or more may be toxic.

Recipes with Glutathione-Rich Foods

As we have learned, glutathione is a powerful antioxidant that’s essential for our overall health. While for some people supplementation may be beneficial, these scrumptious recipes are a whole foods way to support your natural production of glutathione. Whether you try these recipes as is, or swap out a few ingredients with others on our glutathione-rich foods list, these antioxidant-rich combinations will not disappoint.

1. Breakfast Chanterelle Avocado Toast

We couldn’t think of a tastier way to support your glutathione needs than with this delicious Breakfast Chanterelle Avocado Toast! Mushrooms are a great source of dietary glutathione, coupled with other nutrients like vitamin D, B vitamins, and fiber. This yummy toast gives you plenty of plant power to keep your glutathione levels healthy.

2. Nutty and Seedy Kale Salad with Pomegranate Vinaigrette

With so many flavorful and nutrient-rich ingredients, it’s no surprise this delicious Nutty and Seedy Kale Salad with Pomegranate Vinaigrette made it to our glutathione-supportive recipes list. Pomegranate and kale offer plenty of antioxidant plant power. Loaded with vitamin C, glucosinolates, and isothiocyanates, this superfood combo increases the antioxidant power of glutathione naturally, making it a great go-to recipe to support your natural glutathione production!

3. Air Fryer Chickpea Cauliflower Tacos

Crunchy air fryer tacos that can help support your immunity and improve your glutathione capacity? Sign us up! Enjoy these savory, crispy, and absolutely delicious cauliflower tacos at your next Taco Tuesday gathering (or any time of the week!), and feel the joy that comes with tasty plant-based antioxidant-rich meals. Cauliflower, kale, silky avocado cream, and green onions help to give a natural boost to your own glutathione production, making it a tasty weeknight meal your whole family will love.

Get to Know Glutathione!

Glutathione is a potent antioxidant that is vital for cellular function and immunity, among many other benefits. It protects against free radicals and oxidative stress that is responsible for a number of chronic diseases, especially those often associated with aging. For most healthy people, supplementation isn’t necessary, as our bodies can make glutathione naturally or source it from the foods we eat. But age, fitness level, and certain medical conditions may warrant supplementation, especially if a deficiency is present. You may want to consult with your healthcare provider about getting your levels checked – and if they’re low, then it’s possible you could benefit from a glutathione supplement.

Tell us in the comments:

• What was the most surprising thing you found out from this article?
• What are your favorite high-glutathione foods?
• What recipe from this article will you make next?

Featured image: iStock.com/Zerbor

Read Next:

• What Are Antioxidants? And Why Are They So Good For You?

The post The Benefits of Glutathione & How to Ensure You’re Getting Enough of This Vital Antioxidant appeared first on Food Revolution Network.

It turns out that, starting centuries ago, the English had a habit of sprinkling wood ashes on their garden beds, and seeing the plants grow faster and healthier as a result.

Over time, they learned that when they soaked wood ash in iron pots, they could create what came to be called “potash.”

Then, in 1807, a British chemist by the name of Sir Humphry Davy isolated potassium from potash. He called the result “kalium,” which is the Latin word for potassium — and the periodic table had its “K.”

Even though the English later named potassium after the potash that led to its discovery, the “K” stuck, which turned out to be a very good thing for phosphorus fans, who to this day claim the sole periodic-table rights to the letter “P.”

In this article, we’ll explore potassium’s role in the body, how much you need, and its benefits for human health. And we’ll look at the best sources of potassium, so you can make sure to include them in your diet.

What Is Potassium?

Plants require significant amounts of potassium to run critical biological functions. That’s why we often find plenty of this important, healthful mineral in fresh, plant-based foods.

In addition to being critical to the growth of healthy plants, potassium also plays a profoundly important role in the human body. It is one of several vital nutrients that make up the electrolyte family, which includes sodium, magnesium, calcium, and others. Potassium, like all electrolytes, plays an essential role in maintaining your body’s fluid balance and facilitating nerve signaling due to its exceptional capacity for ionic charge.

Potassium plays a vital role in many critical functions throughout the body, especially in the heart and kidneys.

The roles of potassium include:

• regulating fluid levels in cells
• sending nerve signals
• contracting and relaxing muscles
• limiting calcium loss through urine
• balancing the body’s sodium levels

Potassium Benefits

Given the number of essential functions of potassium, it’s no wonder it’s considered an important nutrient. But what are the specific health benefits of potassium? Here are a few reasons why it’s worthwhile to optimize your intake.

Potassium and Blood Pressure

When you eat too much sodium — usually from table salt or salty foods — your body releases more water to dilute the excess sodium in your blood. The increased fluid presses on your blood vessels, increasing the pressure, like too much water moving through a garden hose. High blood pressure is also called hypertension, and is a significant factor in the development of cardiovascular disease, stroke, and kidney disease.

But it turns out that potassium can help to mitigate some of this impact — which is good news for your heart. In fact, a 2016 study in the journal Nutrients found that higher levels of potassium lower the overall risk of hypertension. And in the Framingham Offspring Study, published in 2021, researchers concluded that higher intakes of potassium are strongly associated with a lower risk of cardiovascular disease.

Potassium and Strokes

Potassium is increasingly understood to be significant in the management and prevention of cardiovascular disease and related incidents. A 2014 meta-analysis of more than 333,250 people and 10,659 stroke events saw a “significant association between K intake and stroke.” The more potassium people consumed, the less likely they were to suffer a stroke.

Potassium and Diabetes

According to the CDC, there were more than 1.4 million new cases of diabetes in the US in 2019. Preventing diabetes is far easier than reversing the condition, and on that front, there is hope. While low levels of potassium in the blood are correlated with an increased risk of type 2 diabetes, a 2016 article in Nutrients explains that increased dietary potassium may help maintain healthy blood glucose control and limit the risk of developing diabetes. And even if you’re already diagnosed with prediabetes, research shows that increased potassium can stabilize fasting glucose levels.

Potassium and Kidney Health

Potassium is also healthful for your kidneys. Not only can adequate potassium help prevent kidney stones, but it’s a powerhouse for the prevention and management of chronic kidney disease (CKD). Many patients with CKD are advised to limit their potassium in order to lower the risk of developing hyperkalemia (excessive potassium in the body). However, a 2020 meta-analysis found that a higher intake of potassium in the early stages of the disease was actually protective and slowed progression. Results are more mixed for higher potassium diets during the later stages of CKD. (Make sure to check with your health care provider before loading up with potassium if you have kidney disease.) If you’re struggling with CKD, you can learn more about the ideal foods for kidney health in our comprehensive article.

Is Potassium Good for Your Bones?

When we think of bone health, most of us don’t think first about potassium. But maybe we should! Research shows that potassium is strongly linked to higher bone mass density. And many studies tell us that positive effects on bone health are seen even with a minimum of just 2,300 mg of potassium per day, although some studies recommend aiming for a daily intake of around 4,700 mg.

How Much Potassium Do You Need?

The National Institute of Health’s recommendations for daily potassium intake are:

• Children up to 13 years have varying needs over time
• Teens 14–18: 2,300 mg for girls and 3,000 mg for boys
• Women 19+: 2,600 mg (Pregnant or lactating women: 2,600 mg – 2,800 mg)
• Men 19+: 3,400 mg

Importantly, these recommendations may not actually be enough for many people. The Food and Nutrition Board encourages adults to get 4,700 mg per day — more than twice the NIH recommendation for adult women.

Perhaps even more critically, a 2013 research review on potassium and health explains that the ratio of potassium to sodium in the diet significantly influences many health markers, even more than potassium alone. In other words, the more sodium you eat, the more potassium you need.

Potassium and Sodium Balance

Potassium and sodium are two important electrolytes that work together to achieve some fantastic things. They both help to regulate nerve function — supporting muscle contraction and heart function. And they work in tandem to maintain fluid equilibrium across cell walls. Having a healthy balance of these minerals is vital to their proper function.

Harvard Health explains that early Paleolithic people probably got about 16 times more potassium than sodium, and that the typical modern industrial diet supplies a potassium-sodium ratio of just 0.74 to 1. Meanwhile, the ideal potassium-to-sodium proportion, according to the NIH, seems to be about 2:1. So most of us are getting less than half the potassium we need, at least in relation to the sodium in our diets. And when the balance is off, problems ensue.

What Happens if Your Potassium Level Is Too Low or Too High?

Sometimes, potassium levels in the body can fall outside the ideal range, being either too high or too low. Having potassium levels that are too low is more common than levels that are too high.

Hypokalemia

Not having enough potassium in your body is called hypokalemia. Though many people who develop potassium deficiency may not have any symptoms, the effects of low potassium can be debilitating and even deadly. It’s a serious concern that can lead to muscle weakness or paralysis and abnormal heart rhythms (arrhythmias). Hypokalemia is also associated with increased blood pressure, kidney stones, and osteoporosis.

Despite being more common than excessive potassium levels, cases of low potassium are usually mild and are often the result of another condition or a side effect of medication.

Hyperkalemia

In contrast, potassium toxicity and the risks from too much potassium, hyperkalemia, are rare in healthy people because kidneys efficiently excrete excess potassium in the urine. However, people with certain conditions should be aware of the risks of consuming too much potassium. Mild hyperkalemia is usually asymptomatic, but high levels of potassium can cause life-threatening cardiac arrhythmias, muscle weakness, or paralysis. Most cases of hospitalization for excessive potassium are due to medications and renal insufficiency.

Risk factors for potassium toxicity include:

• Kidney issues, advanced kidney disease, or kidney failure
• Prolonged NSAID-use
• Insulin deficiency
• Tissue or cellular damage

Dietary causes of hyperkalemia are very rare, particularly in people not at risk. If you’re in a high-risk group, consult with your healthcare provider to ensure you’re consuming safe potassium levels.

Where Should You Get Your Potassium?

Plants are incredibly effective at drawing minerals from the soil, including potassium which is promptly taken up by plant roots. In most conventional land practices, potassium is added to the soil as a fertilizer to help plants grow. In more traditional practices, potassium is returned to the soil when plants die or through composting or animal manure during grazing.

Potassium is found in many whole plant foods — including many of our favorite comfort foods, like potatoes! Beans and other legumes, nuts, vegetables, and fruit (including dried fruit) are also good food sources of potassium. However, dried fruits will have even higher amounts of potassium because the water has been removed and all the nutrients are concentrated (although they also have an increased sugar content for the same reason).

Here are some examples of the most potassium-rich foods. (Remember, the NIH’s recommended minimum is at least 2,600 mg per day for women, and at least 3,400 mg per day for men — and you don’t have to get it all in one place.)

Potassium foods:

• Cooked beet greens, 1 cup — 1,309 mg (more than a quarter of the optimal recommended potassium intake for a whole day!)
• Medium baked potato with skin — 926 mg
• Cooked acorn squash, 1 cup — 896 mg
• Cooked spinach, 1 cup — 839 mg
• Cooked pinto beans, 1 cup — 746 mg
• Jackfruit, 1 cup — 739 mg
• 100% prune juice, 1 cup — 707 mg
• Kiwi, 1 cup — 562 mg
• Cooked broccoli raab, 1 cup — 550 mg
• 100% orange juice, 1 cup — 496 mg
• Medium avocado — 487 mg
• Medium banana — 451 mg
• Unsweetened coconut water, 1 cup — 396 mg
• Pumpkin seeds, 1 oz — 261 mg
• Cooked lentils, 1 cup — 230 mg

This list could be pages long, in fact. Many different fruits and vegetables include potassium — even more so when they come from healthy, potassium-rich soil. These kinds of foods are also:

• Naturally abundant in some important micronutrients, like folate, vitamin C, and magnesium
• Rich in colorful phytonutrients that work as powerful antioxidants to help prevent cancer and lower the risk of heart disease, stroke, and Alzheimer’s
• Great sources of prebiotic fiber to keep your gut healthy

Potassium is also found in abundance in dairy products and in some fish, although these come with other health and ethical considerations. (For more on dairy, see our article here, and for more on fish, see our article here.)

Don’t Pass on Potassium!

Potassium is an essential mineral necessary for the vital functioning of your entire body. The research overwhelmingly shows that diets rich in whole foods, especially fruits and vegetables, significantly impact potassium levels and help lower the risk of cardiovascular disease, type 2 diabetes, kidney stones, and osteoporosis. Plus, potassium helps counteract the negative consequences of excess sodium, which is one of the main dietary risk factors for high blood pressure.

Some of the best sources of potassium include leafy greens, beans, nuts, dried fruits, bananas, avocados, and starchy vegetables like potatoes and winter squash.

Tell us in the comments:

• Do you try to get more potassium in your diet? Why or why not?
• What are some naturally potassium-rich foods you enjoy?
• What are a few new high-potassium foods you could try?

Featured Image: iStock.com/yulka3ice

Read Next:

• Are Bananas Good for You?
• Is Salt Good for You? Sodium Facts You Need To Know About

The post The Benefits of Potassium: Why and How You Should Get Enough appeared first on Food Revolution Network.

You might be thinking there must be some pretty bad genes in play there. But thanks to the geopolitical factors that created the US-Mexico border, the real story is very different.

After US surveyors drew their maps following the Mexican-American War of 1849, part of that same US-based Pima tribe ended up in the highlands of Mexico. Genetically, the two groups are extremely similar, which is what you’d expect since they’ve been separated only for a couple of centuries. But here’s the kicker — the Mexican Pima experience just one-fifth the incidence of diabetes of their American counterparts.

If it’s not the genes, then what is it? According to researchers, the answer lies in the two communities’ very different lifestyles. And topping the list of lifestyle factors were physical activity and diet. The Mexican Pima, similar to their non-Pima neighbors, got a lot more exercise and ate a much less processed diet — far lower in fat and higher in fiber — than the Pima in Arizona.

Whether you are trying to avoid developing type 2 diabetes, or you’ve already got it and are trying to manage it effectively, living more like the Mexican Pima and less like the American Pima is a useful strategy.

In this article, we’ll explore what to eat for type 2 diabetes, including nine foods that are exceptionally powerful in helping maintain healthy blood sugar levels.

The Diabetes Epidemic

Type 2 diabetes is defined by excess glucose in the blood, and is typically diagnosed when a person’s A1c (a 3-month average blood sugar level) is 6.5% or higher, or when their fasting blood plasma glucose reaches 126 mg/dl or higher.

Rates of type 2 diabetes have been steadily rising for several decades. In the US, the prevalence of type 2 diabetes among US adults increased from 10% in 2001 to almost 15% in 2020. It wasn’t one particular cohort that was affected — similar trends emerged from all categories examined, including age, sex, racial and ethnic group, and education level.

Globally, an estimated 462 million people are affected by type 2 diabetes, making up more than 6% of the world’s population. And many more people worldwide suffer from prediabetes, which indicates an impaired glucose tolerance (and is diagnosed when A1c is between 5.7% and 6.4% or fasting plasma glucose is between 100 and 125 mg/dl). The incidence of prediabetes was estimated at an additional 7.3% of the world adult population in 2017, equivalent to over 350 million people.

What Causes Type 2 Diabetes?

While you have a better chance of developing type 2 diabetes if a parent or sibling also has it, your genes are not the main predictor, as we saw with the Pima. Even if you have genes that predispose you to diabetes, it’s your diet and lifestyle that tend to turn those genes on or off. Type 2 diabetes is therefore defined as a lifestyle disease, primarily caused by underactivity and being overweight or obese.

Since type 2 diabetes often (but not always) corresponds with being overweight or obese, two of the most powerful factors that determine your risk are energy intake and expenditure — how many calories you consume, and how many you burn. Which means that diet plays a major part in the development and maintenance of the disease (as well as its precursor, prediabetes).

The thing that determines how well your body transports glucose from your blood into the tissues where it’s needed (like your muscles, liver, and fat cells) is called insulin tolerance. Insulin is the hormone that acts like a key, opening your cells to let in glucose. If your tissues become resistant to insulin’s “key,” and stay shut even in the presence of high levels of blood glucose, that’s known as insulin resistance.

Insulin resistance can develop due to a number of factors, including being overweight, underactive, or eating a diet rich in sugars and fats. That is to say, the standard American diet — high in processed foods, refined sugar, and animal products — contributes to the incidence of type 2 diabetes. Which begs the question: If the way many people are eating is causing or progressing the disease, how do you know what to eat for type 2 diabetes? What diet is best? And what are the specific foods that are best for helping tackle type 2 diabetes?

Is Eating Low-Carb for Diabetes Healthy?

Since diabetes is defined as excessive blood sugar, wouldn’t it make sense to prevent or deal with the condition by eating a low-carb diet? After all, carbohydrates turn into sugar in your body, which is how they’re used for energy. You might think, therefore, that sugar causes type 2 diabetes by triggering spikes in blood sugar.

That was the standard mainstream approach for many years. But we’ve discovered that there’s a lot more to the story than just eliminating carbs and sugar. First of all, not all carbohydrates act the same way in the body. And not all carbohydrates cause type 2 diabetes or make it worse.

Fiber is a type of carbohydrate, but it actually helps slow the absorption of glucose while also regulating blood sugar over time. And there’s a big difference between simple carbs from white sugar and white flour and the complex carbohydrates in many whole, plant-based foods. Complex carbohydrates are generally better for you, often not spiking blood sugar thanks to fiber, water, and other buffering nutrients.

But here’s the crux of what we now understand about type 2 diabetes — high blood sugar is a symptom, not the cause. Which means that just eating sugar can’t be the sole root of the disease. It’s eating sugar in the presence of insulin resistance that creates the condition of type 2 diabetes.

Many things can lead to insulin resistance, including chronic inflammation, oxidative stress, and alterations in circulating lipids or fats. And animal foods can cause and exacerbate all three of these processes.

That’s why low-carb diets aren’t the answer. If you’re eating low-carb, you’re eating high-something else — either fat or protein. And if you’re consuming the standard American diet, either substitution generally means a diet high in animal products — which can cause insulin resistance.

What About the Keto Diet for Type 2 Diabetes?

That’s why keto diets, which may help in the short term with blood glucose levels and weight loss, are not sustainable. Because it’s so difficult to maintain such a severely reduced calorie consumption, keto offers a temporary Band-Aid rather than a true reversal of type 2 diabetes.

[Check out our article on the pros and cons of a keto diet.]

And keto tends to be high in saturated fat, which turns out to be one of the main drivers of insulin resistance. Saturated fat, which we predominantly get from eating animal products and tropical oils such as palm oil, can increase fat accumulation in cells and promote the formation of inflammatory compounds, both of which contribute to insulin resistance and type 2 diabetes.

The Best Diet for Type 2 Diabetes

So if low-carb and keto diets fall short, what is the best diet for preventing or managing type 2 diabetes? Here are some characteristics of such a diet:

• unrefined carbohydrates (vs refined carbohydrates),
• monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats (vs saturated and trans fats),
• and plant protein (vs animal protein).

These dietary factors all play a major role in preventing and managing type 2 diabetes. And plant-based diets have all three of these characteristics.

Plant-based diets are the most effective for preventing and reversing type 2 diabetes and prediabetes. According to studies, the more calories you get from whole plant foods, such as legumes, veggies, fruits, nuts and seeds, and whole grains, and the fewer animal products, the lower your risk of developing type 2 diabetes.

Plant-based diets maximize dietary components that are protective against chronic disease, in general, and type 2 diabetes, in particular. These components include fiber, phytochemicals and antioxidants, and magnesium, all of which are found predominantly, if not exclusively, in plant-based foods. 

Plant-based diets also minimize harmful dietary components that are found in meat and are linked to inflammation and insulin resistance, including TMAO, saturated fat, heme iron, nitrosamines, and AGEs.

A Science-Backed Diet for Diabetes

It’s not just theory, either: “Observational studies and randomized controlled trials support the benefits of plant-based nutrition for diabetes.” Three prospective cohort studies that followed over 200,000 US health professionals for up to several decades found that “plant-based diets, especially when rich in high-quality plant foods, are associated with substantially lower risk” of type 2 diabetes. Another study of almost 40,000 participants in rural China showed the same result. In the words of the researchers, “a higher score of the overall plant-based diet was associated with a lower risk of type 2 diabetes.”

In short, the consumption of whole grains, legumes, fruits, and vegetables in conjunction with the elimination of animal products reduces the risk of developing type 2 diabetes. And in people with type 2 diabetes, a low-fat, plant-based diet has been found to improve body weight, glycemic control, cholesterol, and blood pressure, while reducing the risk of heart disease.

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Foods to Help Improve Insulin Resistance in Type 2 Diabetes

While a whole foods, plant-based diet is the most effective way of eating to prevent and manage type 2 diabetes, there are particular foods that have been shown to be especially effective in normalizing blood sugar. Here are nine of the foods that do the best job of decreasing insulin resistance, with two yummy recipes for each so you can add them to your diet right away.

1. Cinnamon

A 2019 meta-analysis of 16 randomized clinical trials found that cinnamon helps lower fasting blood glucose, although it doesn’t seem to impact the longer-term marker of blood sugar, A1c. The dosages were all over the place, from a single gram per day to as much as 14.4 grams per day, so it’s hard to say what an ideal dose might be. A 2020 study fed the experimental group 3 half-gram servings of cinnamon (which included cinnamon extract and Indonesian cinnamon) per day for 12 weeks and found that compared to controls, the cinnamon group had lower fasting plasma glucose. They also performed better on glucose tolerance tests.

Cinnamon appears to work via several mechanisms, including mimicking insulin and making it easier for your body to transport glucose from your blood to your muscle cells by slowing down the rate at which food leaves your stomach.

[For more on cinnamon and other healthy spices, see our article on healthy spices.]

Try these two cinnamon recipes for diabetes:

• Cinnamon Apple Breakfast Smoothie
• Gingerbread Granola

2. Beans

We know that people who eat beans regularly are less likely to develop prediabetes than bean avoiders. A 2012 study out of Iran found that those who ate three or more servings of legumes per week had one-quarter the risk of metabolic syndrome (a condition closely linked to diabetes and prediabetes) than those who ate the fewest servings. Another study compared bean eating to caloric restriction. It found that when overweight and obese adults added five cups of lentils, chickpeas, split peas, or navy beans per week to their diet for eight weeks, they reduced their risk factors of metabolic syndrome as much as cutting 500 calories per day.

A 2018 prospective study out of Spain also looked at over 3,000 people’s diet and health statuses and found an inverse relationship between legume consumption and type 2 diabetes. That is, the more beans eaten, the lower the risk of diabetes.

What’s in beans that makes them so great for blood sugar control? There are so many beneficial compounds, it’s hard to know where to start. There’s the plant-based protein and soluble fiber, both of which are filling and prevent sugar spikes. There are polyunsaturated fatty acids, vitamins and minerals, as well as phytochemicals that are antioxidant and anti-inflammatory. And even some of the so-called “antinutrients” in beans may actually be nutritional heroes rather than villains, interfering with the metabolism of glucose.

Try these two bean recipes for type 2 diabetes prevention and management: 

• Chickpea and Potato Samosa Burgers
• 5-Minute Smoky Black Bean Dip

3. Apple Cider Vinegar

A 2019 study found that 20 ml (two-thirds of an ounce, or about 4 teaspoons) of apple cider vinegar (ACV) per day for eight weeks significantly lowered fasting blood glucose levels in people with type 2 diabetes.

Apple cider vinegar appears to work on both ends of the blood glucose puzzle: It can delay gastric emptying, which can prevent glucose spikes into the bloodstream. It also helps muscle cells utilize glucose, getting those sugars out of the bloodstream faster.

For more on apple cider and other types of vinegar, see our vinegar article.

Apple cider vinegar recipes to try for blood sugar control:

• Toasted Seed Slaw
• Magical Applesauce Dressing

4. Low-Oxalate Leafy Greens

Some foods fight type 2 diabetes by focusing on a related issue, kidney health. Since your kidneys filter blood and remove waste products and excess fluid, when they aren’t working well, your blood glucose can rise to dangerous levels. And in a vicious cycle, diabetes can tax your kidneys to the point where they lose their ability to do their job — a condition known as chronic kidney disease.

Leafy greens, especially those low in oxalates (which can contribute to kidney stones), are great kidney boosters. These include kale, collards, arugula, lettuce, and many others.

A 2016 meta-analysis of 23 studies found that leafy greens are one of the categories of plant-based food most highly correlated with reduced risk of type 2 diabetes.

See our article on leafy greens for more info on how to source, store, wash, and prepare them.

Try these two leafy greens recipes for diabetes prevention: 

• Vibrant Bulgur, Kale, and Chickpea Salad
• Sweet Potato Kale Bites

5. Berries

Berries, including cranberries, strawberries, blueberries, blackberries, and raspberries, can decrease insulin resistance. And a 2016 meta-analysis found that eating blueberries reduced the risk of developing type 2 diabetes by 25%. Strawberries may also reduce oxidative and inflammatory stresses that can occur after eating.

Berries are rich in antioxidants called polyphenols, which come in different colors and account for the variety and intensity of the colors of the berries themselves. The red and purple hues come from anthocyanins, which are among the healthiest compounds you can get from plants.

Try these two diabetes-friendly berries recipes for breakfast or a snack: 

• Strawberries and Cream Smoothie Bowl
• Berry “Scuffins”

6. Grapefruit

Grapefruit also appears on most lists of foods that combat type 2 diabetes. A 2021 review of large-scale prospective studies found that regular consumption of grapefruit reduced the risk of type 2 by about 10%.

One of the key components of grapefruit responsible for this effect may be the flavonoid naringenin — the average grapefruit contains about 100 mg of it. One study found that obese adults who ate three grapefruit halves a day for two to three months weighed less and had a smaller waist circumference than a control group.

Grapefruit recipes to try for blood sugar control:

• Summer Citrus Salad
• Minty Grapefruit Tea

7. Quinoa

Quinoa appears to earn its reputation as a superfood when it comes to preventing diabetes. A 2022 study out of Spain found that replacing other complex carbohydrates with quinoa reduced sugar spikes in older patients with prediabetes. Interestingly, participants were allowed into the study only if their existing diet was already pretty good and included grains, tubers, and/or legumes. The quinoa group had a better glycemic response to their meals, suggesting that quinoa could be effective in slowing the progression from prediabetes to full-blown diabetes even among relatively healthy eaters.

A 2022 test tube study suggests that it’s the polyphenols in quinoa that delay the digestion of starches. And indeed, when these polyphenols were isolated and fed to mice, the rodents displayed a muted glycemic response. (Our view on the use of animals in medical research is here.)

For more on this pseudocereal, read our in-depth quinoa article, here.

Try these two quinoa recipes for diabetes prevention and control: 

• Lentil and Quinoa Stuffed Peppers
• Warmly Spiced Quinoa Chickpea Stew

8. Nigella Sativa or Black Seeds

Nigella sativa, also known as black seed (and sometimes black cumin seeds, but not to be confused with Bunium bulbocastanum black cumin seeds), has an impressive track record in combating type 2 diabetes. One 2010 study found that 2 grams per day of black seed over 12 weeks reduced fasting glucose as well as A1C in diabetic patients who were already taking antidiabetic meds.

A 2019 literature review identified seven studies confirming this finding, as well as observing an increase in serum insulin and a decrease in insulin resistance. And a 2021 article hypothesized the mechanisms by which black seeds might achieve these outcomes. If you get excited by phrases like “reduction of lipid peroxidation via its antioxidant properties,” “agonist of peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor gamma in adipose tissue,” and “activation of AMP-activated protein kinase,” then you will definitely want to add this article to your beach reading. For the rest of us, the basic takeaway is, “black seeds do a ton of stuff that appears to keep blood sugar under control.”

For more on cumin and black cumin, see our article here.

The benefits of black seed for diabetes can be experienced with these two delicious recipes:

• Black Seed Hummus
• Enchanting Black Seed Dressing

9. Walnuts

While The Sopranos character Paulie Walnuts was dangerous, violent, and unpredictable, actual walnuts are one of the healthiest foods you can eat. And their ability to regulate blood sugar makes them great additions to your diet if you’re looking to prevent, reverse, or manage type 2 diabetes.

US survey data taken over the course of 15 years found that walnut eaters had about half the risk of type 2 diabetes as non-walnut eaters. And the association was dose-dependent, meaning the more walnuts, the lower the risk. A 2021 study from Spain identified 19 metabolites in walnuts that may contribute to the nuts’ ability to fend off type 2 diabetes, as well as heart disease. They include lipids, purines, acylcarnitines, and amino acids.

To see how you can use walnut for diabetes, try these two recipes:

• Omega Baked Oatmeal
• Superfood Pesto

The Best Foods for Type 2 Diabetes Are Plant-Based!

Diet is a major contributing factor in the development and progression of type 2 diabetes. Low-carb diets can keep your blood sugar low, but they may have unintended negative consequences. If you replace carbohydrates from disease-preventing foods — like vegetables, fruits, and whole grains — with animal products, you increase your long-term risk for chronic disease, including type 2 diabetes. And low-carb diets may not be sustainable for many people. Instead, you’ll likely be better off if you focus on eating a diet centered on nutrient-dense plant foods. And for extra protection, add generous portions of these nine plant-based foods that have been studied for their ability to help you tackle type 2 diabetes.

Tell us in the comments:

• Which of these diabetes-fighting foods are already part of your diet?

• Which ones aren’t yet?

• What diabetes-friendly recipe will you try next?

Featured Image: iStock.com/spukkato

Read Next:

• Watch How Brooklyn Borough President Eric Adams Reversed His Type 2 Diabetes Using A Plant-Based Diet
• 6 Important Resources for Diabetes Prevention or Reversal (and 2 Recipes!)

The post The Best Foods (and Diet) to Help You Tackle Type 2 Diabetes appeared first on Food Revolution Network.

CoQ10 also sounds like it could be the name of a Star Wars droid. But, in fact, it’s a critical nutrient for your health. While it doesn’t quite roll off the tongue like R2-D2 or C-3PO, CoQ10 does serve many crucial functions in its universe — in this case, your body — with many more likely to be discovered by future research. ​Many health influencers swear by CoQ10 to combat fatigue, and test-tube science suggests that it can play a role in preventing cancer, heart disease, and Alzheimer’s.

But what’s the truth about CoQ10? How much do we need? Do we need to supplement CoQ10, or eat animal products to get it — or can we get enough from a healthy plant-based diet? And what does its strange droid-like name stand for?

What Is CoQ10?

CoQ10 or coenzyme Q10 is a fat-soluble compound that’s naturally synthesized by the human body. The name describes its function and structure. The “Co” is short for coenzyme, meaning a molecule that helps enzymes do their jobs. (Enzymes are basically proteins that enable and speed up chemical reactions in cells.)

The “Q” represents quinone, which is a class of organic compounds that have a definition that makes my eyes cross: something about double bonds and a cyclic structure. That’s why another name for CoQ10 is ubiquinone, short for “ubiquitous quinone,” since the stuff is found working all over the place. And the 10 denotes the length of the chemical tail attached to the quinone circle. If this is a little confusing, hang in here with me for a moment.

CoQ10 serves two roles in the body: as a coenzyme supporting cell growth and energy, and as an antioxidant that protects cells from damage. As a coenzyme, it works with enzymes that perform a host of essential functions, including turning carbohydrates, fats, and proteins into energy; metabolizing cholesterol; maintaining a healthy pH range in cells; and shuttling inorganic sulfur into amino acids — among many others.

One way to think about CoQ10’s role in metabolism is to view the human body as a big, squishy battery: a storage unit for energy. In the mitochondria, the power plants of your cells, CoQ10 participates in processes that transfer electrons from one molecule to another, which creates an electrical charge that the cell can use to do work.

As an antioxidant, CoQ10 protects cells by tamping down excess inflammation, blocking a process of cell death called ferroptosis (not the same as being nibbled to death by a ferret; I looked it up), and inhibiting the ability of free radicals to “steal” electrons away from lipid molecules in cell membranes. It’s this damage that’s often responsible for disease and premature aging. For this reason, plasma levels of CoQ10 are sometimes used in studies as proxies for levels of oxidative stress.

The highest levels of CoQ10 in your body are found in your heart, liver, kidneys, and pancreas — all organs with high rates of metabolism.

How Much CoQ10 Do You Need?

Because all animals, including you, can make CoQ10, it’s technically not a vitamin, since you don’t need to ingest it. You can also get it from food, and from supplements. The question is, do most people need to pay attention to their CoQ10 levels?

The problem is, we really don’t have strong data to tell us how much a person should have in their blood. There are some rare genetic conditions that undermine endogenous (made in the body) CoQ10 synthesis and create a true deficiency, so we know what extreme lack of CoQ10 looks like: seizures, lack of muscle control, poor balance, intellectual disability, poor muscle tone, vision and hearing loss, and many other neurological disturbances; as well as kidney dysfunction and enlargement and weakening of the heart muscle.

For people with a serious CoQ10 shortfall, it’s clear that supplementation is crucial to their health outcomes. But for the rest of the population, it isn’t that clear. One unanswered research question concerns how much the CoQ10 you consume from food (or supplementation) actually contributes to the concentrations of the nutrient in your tissues. It’s been estimated that consumption contributes to about 25% of plasma CoQ10, but there are currently no specific recommended daily intake benchmarks. It does appear that the CoQ10 we get from food (or supplements) becomes more important with aging, as endogenous production slows down with your advancing years.

Where Can You Get CoQ10?

Given that CoQ10 plays such an important role in two processes crucial for life — energy production and cell defense — and that food containing it delivers a quarter of the total amount in your body, it makes sense to pay some attention to dietary sources.

CoQ10 Foods

The most commonly cited dietary sources of CoQ10 include oily fish (such as salmon and tuna), organ meats (such as liver), red meat (beef or pork), dairy, and eggs. But these sources also serve up large helpings of unwanted health and environmental effects. They may also come from factory farms, which perpetuate cruelty to animals.

And in an ironic twist, these animal-based foods can cause the very inflammation and oxidative stress that CoQ10 combats, thus pretty much negating most of its potential positive effects.

The good news is, there are a number of less-heralded vegan sources of CoQ10 that can deliver plenty for most people. Plant-based foods that contain CoQ10 include whole grains, nuts and seeds, soybeans, and other legumes (and their oils).

CoQ10 Production via Photosynthesis

But there’s a weird new twist to the CoQ10 story, one that turns one of the central tenets of biology on its head. You know how plants can photosynthesize, right? They just hang out in the sun and let their chlorophyll perform this amazing feat of turning rays into food. I’m probably not the only person who’s ever lain on a beach and fantasized about being able to create my own energy while relaxing.

Well, it turns out I can. And so can you.

When you eat greens, that chlorophyll enters your body and travels throughout your bloodstream. And even if you consider yourself an international person of mystery, you’re a lot more transparent than you think. Literally. When you’re exposed to sunlight, it penetrates your skin and activates the chlorophyll you’ve consumed.

So when you go outside on a sunny day, and you have greens coursing through your body, that chlorophyll is still photosynthesizing. And one of the things it synthesizes is — you guessed it — CoQ10. So eating your green veggies and getting sunlight on a regular basis appears to be one of the main ways you can regenerate your CoQ10 supplies.

If you’re looking to absorb more CoQ10 from food, keep in mind that it’s a fat-soluble compound, so it’s better absorbed when eaten with a meal that includes a healthy, whole food source of fat.

What About CoQ10 Supplements?

Many supplement manufacturers and wellness influencers assert that most people are subclinically deficient in CoQ10, and point to symptoms such as poor recovery from exercise and general lethargy as indications that supplementation is necessary to restore full vigor.

Some point out that cholesterol-lowering statins, one of the most commonly prescribed classes of drugs in the world, can interfere with CoQ10 synthesis. Some researchers have gone so far as to theorize that low tissue levels of CoQ10 might be the cause of muscle pain as a statin side effect.

So far, though, science has not borne out these claims for the general population — that is, anyone who does not suffer from a genetically-based inability to synthesize CoQ10.

It’s a toss-up whether statin users get relief from muscle pain by taking CoQ10. A 2018 summary of research noted that the existence of such an effect “remains unclear.” A meta-analysis from the same year was more optimistic; after looking at 12 randomized control trials involving over 500 participants, the researchers found that “CoQ10 supplementation may be a complementary approach” to manage muscle pain caused by statin use.

Evidence is lacking for CoQ10 supplementation for athletes, however; in some studies, cyclists improved their performance more while taking placebos than consuming CoQ10.

Who Might Benefit from CoQ10 Supplementation

There are circumstances when CoQ10 supplementation may be helpful. First, we don’t know if the age-related decrease in CoQ10 contributes to the aging process. The decline in production is very large: most people’s levels drop about 50% from age 25 to 65. Does aging cause the drop, or does the reduction in CoQ10 contribute to aging, or is there some other factor that causes both? Further complicating the issue: it’s not clear how CoQ10 levels in the blood correlate with CoQ10 levels in the tissues where it does its work.

One situation where CoQ10 supplementation might be helpful is for breast cancer patients who are taking a drug called doxorubicin. Studies tell us that doxorubicin may significantly improve breast cancer survival rates. Unfortunately, it can cause serious side effects in up to 20% of patients, including congestive heart failure and liver problems. There’s reason to hope that CoQ10 can prevent some of those side effects. Studies are ongoing, and there’s nothing conclusive yet  — but it looks like CoQ10 might be helpful here.

CoQ10 supplementation may also be a boon for people with certain nutritional deficiencies or absorption disorders. Vitamin B6, for example, is a crucial player in making CoQ10. If someone has trouble absorbing B6 from food, they might want to take some extra CoQ10 to make sure they have enough in their body.

People with certain genetic defects or mutations involving CoQ10 may also want to consider supplementation. Those suffering from MRC enzymatic deficiency will also have low CoQ10 levels. In fact, diagnosis of MRC complex may be the earliest indication of a genetic inability to synthesize or activate CoQ10.

And there may be other conditions — that either impair the creation of CoQ10 or cause its depletion — that may also respond favorably to CoQ10 supplementation.

Potential Side Effects of CoQ10 Supplements

Just because CoQ10 is a hugely important molecule for human health doesn’t mean that there are no risks involved in taking it in supplement form. Like any substance, it may have unintended and unwanted consequences.

CoQ10 may interfere with the anticoagulant (blood thinner) warfarin; there are case reports of patients who stopped responding to warfarin treatments after beginning a CoQ10 regimen. It may have a similar effect on insulin when taken as a diabetes drug, as well as in some cancer treatments.

CoQ10 supplements can trigger side effects in some people, including headaches, nausea, and insomnia. You can minimize the headaches and nausea by breaking up the daily dose into several smaller doses taken hours apart. And you can reduce the insomniac effects by avoiding it in the hours right before bed, and keeping your daily dose under 100 mg.

In most cases, fortunately, CoQ10 supplementation is well tolerated, even up to 1,200 mg/day.

CoQ10 vs Ubiquinol

CoQ10, also called ubiquinone, exists in another, more active form. Known as ubiquinol, it gets absorbed 3–4 times more efficiently than ubiquinone. Both CoQ10 and ubiquinol are typically taken in a dose of 50–200 mg/day by those not suffering from a genetic condition that compromises CoQ10 synthesis or activity. For people with such a defect, or who have low levels of CoQ10 due to mitochondrial dysfunction, higher doses of 1,200–2,400 mg/day may be required to produce improvements in cell function.

Recipes to Naturally Regenerate Your CoQ10 Levels

You can support your body’s natural coenzyme Q10 concentration with these delicious and nutritious CoQ10-filled recipes. Toasted Pistachio and Cherry Overnight Oats features pistachios which are one of the richest plant-based sources of CoQ10 (and also provide a complementary source of healthy fat). These oats are fruity, nutty, creamy, and jam-packed with a ton of antioxidant-rich ingredients, which aid CoQ10 in its oxidative stress-fighting capabilities.

Orange Lentil Soup with Anise and Coriander is a sophisticated dish that will entice your senses, fill you with powerful plant nutrients, and keep your cells thriving.

Sweet Chili Broccoli and Tofu Stir-Fry is a CoQ10 twofer! Crispy tofu and tender broccoli are natural plant-based sources of CoQ10. Spoon over your favorite grain for an energy-rich plant-based meal that is simply delightful.

1. Toasted Pistachio and Cherry Overnight Oats

Pistachios are one of the richest plant sources of CoQ10. These delicious nuts are also a potent source of vitamin E (among other vital nutrients). Together, CoQ10 and vitamin E positively influence one another and are both essential for reducing oxidative stress (inflammation) due to their antioxidant activity. Toasted Pistachio and Cherry Overnight Oats provide a tasty way to get a healthy dose of both nutrients. Oats, cherries, and chia seeds also offer a great deal of fiber, protein, healthy fats, and even more antioxidants from the cherries, making this dish a nourishing breakfast that provides long-lasting energy and supports health.

2. Orange Lentil Soup with Anise and Coriander

Wondering how Orange Lentil Soup with Anise and Coriander fits into the CoQ10 equation? Aside from lentils’ protein and phytonutrient-rich content, they also provide a natural source of CoQ10. When consumed with vitamin C-rich foods, in this instance, orange juice (which also has trace amounts of CoQ10), CoQ10’s antioxidant activity is activated and helps to reduce oxidative stress on the cells. Additionally, this heavenly aromatic soup creates beautiful aromas and unique flavors. Spices like anise and coriander offer tons of flavor, as well as nutrition, to plant-based dishes. Herbs and spices also boost the flavor and nutritional value in combination with fruits and vegetables. Enjoy this soup knowing you’re taking in generous amounts of fiber, vitamins, minerals, and phytonutrients, all while supporting your natural CoQ10 function!

3. Sweet Chili Broccoli and Tofu Stir-Fry

This tasty stir-fry is a CoQ10 twofer! Crispy tofu and tender broccoli are naturally high plant-based sources of CoQ10. Tofu has 1.2 milligrams per 100 grams, while broccoli contains at least 0.6 milligrams per 100 grams. Since CoQ10 is fat-soluble, be sure to add the cashews (or another healthy source of dietary fat — see Chef’s notes for ideas!) in this recipe to help your cells absorb as much as possible. Sweet Chili Broccoli and Tofu Stir-Fry has plenty of additional nutrition thanks to its essential minerals like calcium, iron, and selenium, as well as tons of phytonutrients, antioxidants, fiber, and protein. This CoQ10 recipe is a one-stop shop for eating to fuel cellular health and fight disease.

Natural CoQ10 Is the Best Form

CoQ10 is a naturally occurring chemical that exists in almost every cell of the body and is important for cellular function. The mitochondria in our cells rely upon it for the conversion of calories into a compound that cells use for energy. Its antioxidant activity also makes it vital for disease prevention.

Since we make our own CoQ10, it’s not clear how much we need to take in via food. It’s currently believed that most people can get enough CoQ10 from food to support the body’s endogenous production, although the amount needed has not been defined. And unless you take certain medications or have certain diseases or health conditions, you probably don’t need to supplement it.

Older people may want to talk with their health care provider to decide if a lab test might be helpful and if supplementation with CoQ10 is recommended since levels of CoQ10 do tend to decrease with age.

Tell us in the comments:

• What have you heard in the press about CoQ10?
• What did you learn about CoQ10 from this article?
• Which CoQ10-containing foods are already a regular part of your diet?

Feature Image: iStock.com/bit245

Read Next:

• How to Get Rid of Brain Fog: Top 5 Tips & Recipes From Dr. Uma Naidoo
• What Are Antioxidants? And Why Are They So Good For You?

The post What Is CoQ10 & Can You Get it From Food? appeared first on Food Revolution Network.

In the world of nutritional science, antinutrients are a hot topic. Journalists, online influencers, media personalities, celebrities, and even some well-meaning doctors talk about compounds such as lectins and phytates as things to be feared. Cookbooks featuring recipes devoid of them abound.

You may have heard that antinutrients can cause everything from nutritional deficiencies to autoimmune diseases. But where’s the evidence? What does the research really say? And should you worry about your intake of these compounds, or even reconfigure your diet to avoid them entirely?

Or — and stay with me here — is it possible that they’ve been unfairly named? Could some of them actually provide health benefits when consumed as part of a varied and wholesome diet?

Might these alleged supervillains simply be misunderstood superheroes, or weak paper tigers, after all? Let’s see what the evidence says.

What Are Antinutrients?

Technically, a compound can be called an antinutrient if it can interfere with the absorption of other nutrients. It may, for example, limit your body’s ability to absorb vitamins and minerals from the digestive tract. Antinutrients are mostly found in plant foods, but also exist in some animal products.

Antinutrients act by binding to particular nutrients in food, thus making it harder for our bodies to absorb those nutrients. Based on this action, some researchers have theorized that antinutrient compounds may contribute to nutritional deficiencies. Additionally, they might cause inflammation (especially in the gut) and possibly contribute to autoimmune disease. And to top it off, some of the antinutrients mimic hormones in our bodies and therefore might act as endocrine disruptors.

So are plants out to get us? In a certain sense, yes, sort of. Plants contain all sorts of active compounds that perform a host of functions to help the plant survive, grow, and reproduce. When it comes to survival, since plants can’t run away from predators, they need other strategies to protect themselves from being eaten.

One of these strategies is to produce compounds that deter animals, insects, bacteria, and fungi from eating them. Toxic in large doses, these compounds prevent not so much the predation of an individual plant but the wholesale destruction of an entire species. The predators can only handle so much of the plant before the compound’s effects become a deterrent. At the same time, they can benefit us when we eat them in small quantities.

It’s an example of the toxicology maxim first coined by the 16th-century Swiss physician Paracelsus: “All things are poison, and nothing is without poison; the dosage alone makes it so a thing is not a poison.” Just as you can build strength by lifting weights that are heavy for you, your body can benefit from the stressors imposed by antinutrients. And as we’ll see below, research demonstrates that consuming a wide variety of the foods that are high in many of these phytochemicals can reduce your risk of chronic diseases.

Types of Antinutrients

While theoretically many plant compounds can be considered antinutrients, just a few receive the most attention in practice. These include:

• Tannins
• Oxalates
• Lectins
• Phytates
• Phytoestrogens
• Goitrogens

And here are some other antinutrient types that get less press:

• Alkaloids
• Protease inhibitors
• Lipase inhibitors
• Amylase inhibitors
• Saponins

Are Antinutrients Safe?

When nutritional science comes up with a theory about what food compounds are good or bad for people, one of the first steps is to test that theory on animals. This is so routine that it may be hard to see how weird it really is. Typically, the way this works is that the researchers isolate the compound and feed it to animals in huge quantities. Quantities that, when adjusted for the difference between animal and human weights, represent amounts that no human would possibly consume as part of a normal diet. (Our view on the use of animals in medical research is here.)

So we’ve got three problems when we try to apply the lessons of these trials to humans. First, animals and humans have different dietary needs and respond differently to foods. Second, we metabolize whole foods very differently from fractionated food compounds. And third, we don’t know if a huge dose that causes harm means that a lower dose will also be a problem.

So it’s easy to see why relying on animal studies can lead to so much nutritional confusion and ambiguity.

Another arena in which antinutrients can look bad is in vitro, which is to say examining the effects of isolated antinutrients on human cells cultivated in test tubes. Again, there’s no way to know if those results say anything about the effects of real food in the living bodies of real people.

Foods with Antinutrients Are Not the Enemy

And here’s the thing — while people are arguing about these details, we know something else for sure. Eating the foods that contain these antinutrients is generally associated with superior human health and longevity. In other words, avoiding the plant-based foods that contain these antinutrients means depriving ourselves of some of the healthiest foods on the planet.

So even though most plant-based foods contain at least some level of antinutrients, you’d actually be much more at risk of nutritional deficiencies by not eating these foods than by including them in your diet. Saying no to plant foods because they contain antinutrients is kind of like not cashing your paycheck to avoid paying income taxes.

When isolated from the foods that contain them, antinutrients may lead to some unwanted effects. But when consumed as part of a varied whole foods diet, they participate in diverse and complex interactions with vitamins, minerals, and other phytonutrients in ways that simple models can’t predict.

And it gets more complicated than that. Antinutrients can also interact with our gut microbiota, which in turn can alter both the bioavailability and biological effects of the compounds. Teasing out a simplistic cause-and-effect relationship of any nutrient within such a complex system, as some anti-antinutrient crusaders attempt to do, appears to be impossible.

Antinutrient Benefits & Downsides

The preponderance of evidence points in one direction — for most people, antinutrients are not a concern as long as you’re consuming them as part of a balanced diet that contains a variety of unprocessed, whole, plant foods. Plant-based diets that contain these compounds also contain thousands of other compounds in the food matrix, many of which counteract the potential effects of the “antinutrients.”

In fact, antinutrients, far from being problematic or simply neutral, may actually provide some health benefits and may even be therapeutic agents for various conditions.

For people with certain underlying health conditions, however, some antinutrients may present problems. Let’s look at the most talked-about antinutrients, with an eye to their potential downsides and benefits.

Tannins

Typically, humans instinctively avoid bitter foods — a choice based on the probability that bitterness indicates a plant is going to take its revenge on you for eating it, due to poisons that it produces to discourage predation. At the same time, many of us grow to appreciate bitterness, for example in “acquired taste” foods and beverages such as tomatoes, beer, coffee, and cacao.

One class of compounds responsible for a lot of that bitterness is tannins, which are found in a wide variety of foods, including legumes, whole grains, cacao, some leafy and green vegetables, red grapes, wine, pomegranates, beer, coffee, tea, and nuts.

Tannins are defined as polyphenol chemical compounds with two antinutrient properties. First, they reduce the bioavailability of dietary iron by binding to the mineral. People with iron deficiency anemia may want to limit their ingestion of tannins, and make sure to wait at least an hour after eating foods high in non-heme iron before drinking coffee or tea, for example. Another strategy to maximize iron absorption is to pair iron-rich foods with foods that are high in vitamins A and C because those nutrients increase the bioavailability of dietary iron.

Second, tannins form complexes with proteins, which deactivate certain digestive enzymes, decreasing protein digestibility as a result. One journal article said that tannins can precipitate proteins, which made me imagine the bacteria in my microbiome running around with tiny little umbrellas, which is absolutely not what happens (to the best of our knowledge).

On the plus side, tannins are antioxidant polyphenols that offer a number of significant health benefits. They have been shown to lower the risk of oxidative-stress-related diseases, including cardiovascular disease, cancer, and osteoporosis. They display antimicrobial, gastrointestinal, and anti-inflammatory properties, and can protect the stomach lining and help heal gastric ulcers.

Oxalates

Oxalates are compounds found in leafy greens like Swiss chard and spinach, nuts, soy (and soy products such as tofu), beans, cacao, rhubarb, and beets. Plants may have evolved to manufacture oxalates for a variety of functions, including protection from predators, calcium regulation, and detoxification of heavy metals.

Oxalates accomplish these feats by binding to minerals like zinc, calcium, and magnesium. When you consume oxalates, they may reduce the absorption of these minerals in your digestive tract. These minerals have to go somewhere, and one of the most unpleasant somewheres can be your kidneys, where they can form stones made of calcium oxalate. For this reason, people who suffer from kidney stones made from this material are often placed on a low-oxalate diet.

This may be helpful in some cases, but disagreement exists within the scientific community over how often (if at all) dietary oxalates are a cause of kidney stones.

Oxalate-containing foods don’t cause problems universally. Research suggests that oxalates are mainly a problem within a larger dietary pattern of lots of salt, animal protein, and excessive vitamin C.

People who are deficient in calcium and are therefore at risk of osteoporosis may want to limit their oxalate consumption. Choosing foods that are high in calcium and magnesium, and drinking plenty of water, can help reduce the mineral-depleting potential of oxalates.

Also, people with gut absorption problems or overactive parathyroid may want to avoid or limit oxalates.

It’s unclear whether oxalates themselves confer any direct health benefits. One theory is that they may prevent the absorption of excess calcium, but this isn’t clear.

What is clear is that many of the healthiest foods on the planet contain some level of oxalates. So even if oxalates come with downsides for some people, food is much more than the sum of its isolated nutrients. Many foods that are high in oxalates have been shown, in study after study, to be good for you. Whether it’s because of or in spite of those oxalates may be an academic distinction.

Want to find out more? We’ve got a complete review of oxalates here.

Lectins

Lectins are among the most prominent antinutrients, thanks to Dr. Steven Gundry’s best-selling book with the alliterative title, The Plant Paradox. Lectins are found in pretty much all plants but exist in higher concentrations in beans, nuts, grains, and nightshades such as tomatoes, potatoes, and eggplant.

The antinutrient superpower of lectins, according to Gundry, is that they bind to carbohydrates, slowing our ability to digest them and their accompanying nutrients. The evidence for this, however, mostly consists of feeding rats large amounts of isolated lectins or large quantities of raw kidney bean powder. When lectins have actually been put to the test in human trials using cooked beans, the purported harmful effects are nowhere to be seen.

To be fair, there’s a lot of evidence that raw kidney beans are toxic. Researchers documented 50 cases of poisoning from inadequately cooked kidney beans between 1976 and 1989 in the UK alone. But extrapolating harm from these cases to chilis and baked beans is like telling people to avoid vending machines because an average of two people per year are crushed to death while rocking the machines to dislodge stuck items.

Of course, the main reason to avoid vending machines is to keep junk food and soda out of your body, but that’s not the point I’m trying to make here. The main point is, don’t eat raw legumes. Instead, you can soak, sprout, ferment, boil, or if your kitchen comes equipped with a science lab, process them in an autoclave.

Some people may want to limit or even avoid lectin-containing foods, such as those who are allergic to those foods or have a sensitivity to certain types of lectins, have a digestive disorder such as irritable bowel syndrome or Crohn’s disease, and, possibly, those who suffer from an autoimmune disorder.

But lectins also have positive superpowers. By binding to some carbohydrates, they lower the glycemic load of carbohydrate-containing foods, which is good for people with diabetes or prediabetes.

And there’s even a type of lectin found in mushrooms that’s been shown to inhibit the growth of cancer cells. And lectins found in lentils, chickpeas, jack beans, peas, and common beans all disrupt the proliferation of some cancer cell lines.

For more information, you can check out our full article on lectins here.

Phytates

Phytic acid can be found in beans, lentils, whole grains, nuts, and seeds. When you eat these foods, the phytic acid binds to minerals in your digestive tract and forms what are known as phytates.

Phytates lock away essential minerals like zinc, iron, and calcium. And since the human body lacks the phytase enzyme that can break down phytates, we can’t digest and absorb the minerals.

For most people, this isn’t a problem. But individuals who are at high risk for malabsorption or who have preexisting mineral deficiencies may want to limit their phytate intake or consume phytic acid-containing foods along with mineral enhancers like onions, garlic, and other allium vegetables.

But you might be wondering: If phytates bind with essential minerals, why shouldn’t everyone avoid them just to be on the safe side? Phytates aren’t one-sided; they may also provide significant benefits, including:

• reducing the risk of cancer
• preventing heavy metal toxicity
• acting as an antioxidant
• protecting against kidney stones
• protecting against heart disease

For more insights, you might want to read our full article on phytates.

Phytoestrogens

Phytoestrogens have been portrayed as nutritional supervillains since the 1970s, due to a  comprehensive campaign against soy and soy products that was led by the animal agriculture industry. In those early days of vegan replacements for meat and dairy, soy was the main ingredient and so was targeted with scare tactics masquerading as legitimate scientific research.

In addition to soy, phytoestrogens are found in other legumes, sprouted foods, nuts and seeds, whole grains, and as lignans in some fruits and vegetables. The way they work as an antinutrient is to bind to estrogen receptors in the body, a feat they can accomplish because of their structural similarity to estradiol, a form of estrogen.

Technically, phytoestrogens can act as hormone disruptors. But it turns out they work in both directions — sometimes phytoestrogens act just like estrogen, and at other times they block estrogenic effects. On the whole, there’s no evidence that consuming soy has “feminizing effects,” such as causing the development of breasts in men.

So who should reasonably limit their phytoestrogen intake? People with the rare lung disease LAM, and those who have iodine deficiency with hypothyroidism.

For others, the benefits of these compounds appear to be significant. They may modulate the negative effects of high estrogen levels and prevent estrogen dominance, a condition where estrogen overpowers another sex hormone, progesterone, which can lead to cancers and other female reproductive conditions.

Phytoestrogens may play a role in preventing diseases like heart disease, cancer, and Alzheimer’s. They might also be beneficial for weight management, skin health, immune health, and menopause.

And while more research is needed, the phytoestrogen class known as lignans may also offer big health benefits. At the very least, we know that regular consumption of lignan-rich foods like flax, strawberries, apricots, and cruciferous vegetables can lower your risk of many diseases.

For more on phytoestrogens, you might want to read our full article about phytoestrogens here.

Goitrogens

The term “goitrogen” refers to compounds that interfere with the function of your thyroid gland, which can increase the risk of goiter and other thyroid diseases. Goitrogens are found in cruciferous vegetables, soy, and some fruits, nuts, and whole grains.

In animal and test-tube studies, goitrogens have sometimes been found to inhibit the ability of the thyroid to take up and utilize iodine. In humans, this tendency may not matter except in people who are deficient in iodine or have pre-existing thyroid disorders.

Like most other antinutrients, goitrogens also come with health benefits. Glucosinolates, a type of goitrogen found in the Brassica family of veggies, show the potential to prevent cancer. One of these, glucoraphanin, is a precursor to the amazing sulforaphane, which is one of the most potent cancer fighters ever discovered. (For the full story, check out our article on sulforaphane.)

Foods deemed goitrogenic also contain thousands of other bioactive compounds that may be protective against thyroid cancer. One case-control study found that a traditional Polynesian diet, which is rich in cassava and cabbage, was significantly associated with a decreased risk of thyroid cancer when compared to a Western-style diet.

How to Reduce Antinutrients in Food

For most people, the substances that have unfortunately been categorized under the foreboding label “antinutrients” appear to be benign, if not positively beneficial. If you’re concerned about the presence of any of these antinutrients in your diet because of an existing condition or known sensitivity, you can reduce the presence of antinutrients in food via a few methods.

Soaking

Soaking before cooking works most effectively to reduce concentrations of lectins, oxalates, and phytates in grains and legumes. Many antinutrients are water-soluble, which allows for their removal from foods through leaching. Soaking also reduces the number of enzyme inhibitors, which can improve both digestibility as well as nutritional value.

One lab study found that soaking cereal grains increased the solubility of iron and zinc. Another recorded a 50% decrease in phytic acid in chickpeas when they were soaked for 12 hours. Similarly, soaking red beans overnight and then boiling them for two hours reduced soluble oxalate by over 40%.

Cooking

Soaking followed by cooking may be the most effective method of reducing antinutrients in legumes and grains. Yellow split peas, lentils, and chickpeas all lost significant percentages of phytates when cooked for one hour at just 95° C (203° F).

Cooking also destroys the enzyme responsible for activating goitrogens, thus negating their anti-thyroidal potency.

Boiling

Boiling foods also can reduce the content and potency of antinutrients in vegetables. Boiling foods that contain oxalates, such as spinach, can lower the concentration of the soluble forms of the compound by up to 87%. And a few minutes of boiling broccoli can cut glucosinolate (which may act as a thyroid-disrupting goitrogen) levels in half.

Germinating/Sprouting

In addition to increasing the concentration of phytonutrients, sprouting legumes and grains can reduce the amounts of antinutrients such as phytates, tannins, and oxalates. Germinating chickpeas and pigeon peas reduced their phytate concentrations by over 60%. This not only preserved their mineral content but also made those minerals more bioavailable.

Fermenting

Fermenting cereal grains can significantly improve their nutritional profiles. By enriching the reservoir of available amino acids, vitamins, and minerals, fermentation enhances the total digestibility and sensory characteristics of food.

One research team performed microbial fermentation on cassava products and reported a significant decrease in the levels of tannins, phytates, oxalates, and saponins.

Fermentation that continues for more than 72 hours has been demonstrated to destroy almost all lectins in lentils. Eating fermented vegetables has been shown to double iron absorption in a meal, whether that meal contains low- or high-phytate foods. And fermentation, such as the natural leavening of bread, has also been found to significantly reduce phytates.

So… Should You Avoid Antinutrients?

While people with certain health conditions may want to limit or avoid the consumption of specific antinutrients, for most people, antinutrients are not something to worry about. Much of the concern around antinutrients has been based on the study of isolated compounds in unnaturally high concentrations in animals. Human studies, where foods are consumed in their whole state, have, for the most part, not demonstrated harm.

If you are still concerned about antinutrients, you can mitigate their impact in legumes and grains by soaking, sprouting, or fermenting, and cooking them properly.

But most of the foods containing antinutrients are among the healthiest foods on the planet — fruits, vegetables, whole grains, legumes, nuts, seeds, and other plant-based foods. Avoiding them out of fear of antinutrients is practically the dictionary definition of throwing the baby out with the bathwater.

Actually, it’s worse, because in this case, the bathwater is pretty valuable, too. Many of the so-called antinutrients may actually provide health benefits, protecting us when we eat them much like they protect the plants that make them.

Tell us in the comments:

• What have you heard about antinutrients?
• Have you ever limited your diet based on concern about antinutrients?
• What did you learn, or what surprised you in this article?

Feature Image: iStock.com/Rimma_Bondarenko

The post What Are Antinutrients? And Do You Need to Avoid Them? appeared first on Food Revolution Network.

Comedian Mitch Hedberg wondered about sesame seeds a lot. Primarily, he was concerned about how they stick to hamburger buns. Do they have adhesive backing on just one side? And who has the time to peel and stick all those tiny seeds to the buns?

Hedberg’s musings about sesame seeds were limited to their relationship to buns because he’d probably never seen them in any other context. Had he grown up in the Middle East or East Asia, though, his sesame set would have featured jokes about foods like tahini, halvah, sushi, and sukiyaki. In recent decades, the tiny and tasty seeds have grown in global popularity and versatility as their cuisines of origin have jumped borders and gone international.

While an individual sesame seed may be small, don’t underestimate the nutritional value of a bunch of them. And if you haven’t experienced the wonders of sesame beyond a bun or an everything bagel, you may enjoy getting to know the much bigger and more delicious world of sesame seeds and sesame products.

In this article, we’ll say “open sesame” to the mystery of the “Queen of Oilseeds.” We’ll explore their health benefits, find out about potential downsides, and brainstorm delicious and creative ways to include sesame seeds and sesame products in your diet.

Ready? With all due respect to Big Bird and Grover (insert Sesame Street theme song music here), let me tell you how to get, how to get to sesame seed.

What Is Sesame?

Archeological evidence suggests that sesame is one of the oldest cultivated crops in the world. The oldest sesame seeds found in an archeological context come from the Indus Valley site at Harappa, now in Pakistan, which dates back 4,000–4,600 years. (I can only imagine how hard it would be to find a seed that old in a giant mound of earth. Hopefully one of the diggers didn’t just drop one from between their teeth after lunch.)

Sesame seeds come from the Sesame or Sesamum indicum L. plant, an oilseed crop of the family Pedaliaceae, which to my surprise did not include unicycle ferns or penny-farthing thistles. A prolific producer, one sesame seedpod can produce hundreds of seeds. Botanists think the plant originated in what is now India or Africa; and considering that it still grows wild in Africa, that’s probably a solid guess.

Sesame was likely domesticated somewhere on the Indian subcontinent and probably spread from there to Mesopotamia around 2000 BCE (that’s a lot of sesame spread!) The Babylonians used the seeds to make the only kind of oil they cooked with, and news of the innovation got to Egypt around 500 years later. By 200 BCE, the Chinese had been growing sesame long enough to make it a common staple crop.

To this day, in some cultures, sesame is regarded as the “Queen of Oilseeds” due to its ability to stay fresh and tasty for a long time, resisting oxidation and rancidity.

Hulled vs Unhulled Sesame Seeds

When you buy sesame seeds, you can get them either hulled or unhulled. The hulls are the shells, or outer coverings, of the seed. Hulled sesame seeds have had this covering removed, and unhulled sesame seeds have an intact outer shell.

When shopping for sesame seeds, you might see them characterized as black, brown, or white. Black and brown sesame seeds are the unhulled version (the outer coating is actually kind of golden brown) of seeds, while white sesame seeds are the hulled ones.

Black and brown sesame seeds boast a nutty taste and slightly sweet flavor and aroma that you can enhance by toasting. White seeds — the ones you’ll typically find in a Western grocery store — have a milder flavor.

Black sesame seeds show up often in Asian cuisine. These have a stronger, earthier, and sometimes bitter flavor, along with a crunchier texture.

Other Sesame Seed Products

Cultures around the world have turned raw or roasted sesame seeds into flavorful and versatile ingredients, as well as cherished items of various cuisines.

Tahini

The Middle East gave us tahini, a condiment or sauce used in Middle Eastern cooking. Tahini is made from ground sesame seeds, either raw or roasted. Tahini is also considered a type of seed butter and is vegan.

There are many uses for tahini, but if you’re a traditionalist, you can drizzle tahini over falafel. You can also include it as a whole-foods fat source in dressings, sauces, and dips. Classic hummus consists of two main ingredients — chickpeas and tahini — along with flavorings like garlic and an acid like lemon juice.

You can buy a bottle of tahini at your leisure, as it’s shelf-stable until opened, for at least a year or two. Once opened, keep your tahini refrigerated so the oil doesn’t separate, and use it within 3–6 months (our recipes below will ensure that it doesn’t last that long). If you’re not sure if your tahini is still viable, check for a rancid odor, or mold forming on the inside of the jar or lid. Homemade tahini may go bad faster; you can slow this down by storing it in an airtight container. And make it in small batches so you can use it up before it turns towards sesame seed heaven, or wherever it is that sesame seeds go when their edible life is drawing to a close.

Sesame Paste

An Asian take on tahini (or is tahini a Middle Eastern take on sesame paste?), sesame paste comes from toasted, unhulled sesame seeds. Sesame paste uses abound in Chinese and other Asian cuisines — use it in soups, as well as noodle and rice dishes.

Sesame paste is typically darker in color than tahini and has roughly the same consistency. But you can also store it like tahini: you can keep sesame paste in its original airtight jar for up to two years, and once opened, refrigerate it and use it within six months.

Sesame Oil

Sesame oil is a staple cooking oil and condiment ingredient in many Asian cuisines. If you use oil, you can use light sesame oil as a neutral cooking oil, and reserve toasted sesame oil as a flavoring for sauces, soups, and other dishes. With sesame oil, the darker the color, the stronger the flavor.

Both types of sesame oil are highly stable and resist oxidation. You can store light sesame oil for up to a year at room temperature. Toasted sesame oil has a slightly shorter shelf life, but will still last for many months if you keep it refrigerated.

If you choose to use sesame oil, do so in moderation, as it’s very high in omega-6 fatty acids. While both omega-6s and omega-3s are essential nutrients, most people consume way more omega-6s than omega-3s, and it’s important to even out the ratio.

Halvah

Halvah is a Middle Eastern dessert that traditionally consists of ground sesame seeds, sugar, and other sweeteners and flavorings, such as honey, pistachios, and chocolate. The texture is solid, almost like a block of fudge, but when you break or bite into it, you’ll find it somewhat crumbly and chalky.

You don’t have to refrigerate halvah, but many people do because the cold keeps it firmer. Unrefrigerated, it will last up to six months, but realistically, if you like it you’ll find it hard not to gobble it up well before then.

Note that some halvah brands use refined sweeteners and natural flavorings, so make sure to read the ingredients before purchasing.

Sesame Flour

Sesame flour is a gluten-free baking flour made from raw, unhulled, and ground sesame seeds. You can use it just like almond flour in gluten-free crackers, breads, batters, and various baked goods.

Some varieties are labeled “defatted,” which just means the seeds are cold-pressed to remove the oil before they’re ground. Sesame flour, defatted or whole, lasts about 6–12 months at room temperature.

Sesame Seed Nutrition

All sesame seeds are good sources of protein, healthy carbohydrates, fiber, fatty acids, B vitamins, and minerals like copper, calcium, iron, magnesium, and manganese. Unhulled seeds contain more calcium, iron, potassium, and other minerals, while hulled seeds are slightly higher in folate and have a higher fat concentration and higher levels of fat-soluble vitamins, such as vitamins A and E.

All types of sesame seeds are high in phytochemicals, including the lignans sesamin and sesamolin (“S is for sesamolin, that’s good enough for me”) that act like antioxidants, scavenging free radicals and reducing inflammation. If you really want to get your antioxidants on, go for the black sesame seeds, which are often studied for their potent health benefits thanks to their stronger antioxidant activity.

Sesame Nutrition Facts

You can see a comparison of the different kinds of sesame products’ nutrition below:

• 1 tablespoon of sesame seeds, whole, dried: 51.6 calories, 1.59g protein, 4.5g fat, 2.1g total carbohydrates, 1.06 fiber (Source: USDA)
• 2 tablespoons of tahini: 190 calories, 5g protein, 16g fat, 6g carbohydrates, 3g fiber (Source: USDA)
• 1 ounce of halvah: 159 calories, 6g protein, 8g fat, 13g carbohydrates, 2g fiber (Source: USDA)
• 1 tablespoon of sesame oil: 120 calories, 0g protein, 13.6g fat, 0g carbohydrates, 0g fiber (Source: USDA)
• 1 ounce of sesame flour: 94 calories, 14.2g protein, .5g fat, 10g carbohydrates, 0g fiber (Source: USDA)

Benefits of Sesame Seeds

Science is catching up on centuries of folk wisdom regarding the health benefits of sesame seeds.

Anti-Arthritic Benefits

A 2019 study out of Iran found that supplementation with sesamin reduced inflammatory biomarkers in women with rheumatoid arthritis. Those in the sesamin group also reported less pain than those given a placebo.

Anti-inflammatory Benefits

A 2021 meta-analysis of seven studies on the anti-inflammatory effects of sesame consumption showed that eating sesame seeds reduced some inflammatory biomarkers. It’s not clear whether these effects will be more pronounced and widespread through the consumption of seeds, oil, or supplements; like almost every nutrition study ever written, the paper ends with a call for further research.

Sesame seeds also seem to be protective of the heart. The lignan sesamin apparently does a lot of the heavy lifting here. As one study put it, there’s evidence that the compound is “anti-hypertensive, anti-atherogenic, anti-thrombotic, anti-diabetic, and anti-obesity,” which I’d pay good money to hear Big Bird and Elmo sing as a duet, with Zoe translating for the rest of us: “against high blood pressure, against injuries to blood vessel walls, against dangerous blood clots, against diabetes, and against gaining too much weight.”

Lowering LDL Cholesterol

A small 2014 study of men suffering from osteoarthritis of the knee found that 40 grams per day of sesame seeds lowered their total cholesterol, and more significantly, their LDL (“bad”) cholesterol. Sesame oil also passed that test, decreasing LDL levels while maintaining the “good” HDL cholesterol levels in humans and laboratory rats, mice, and rabbits. (Our view on the use of animals in medical research is here.)

Anticancer Benefits

Sesame seeds may also fight cancer, thanks partly to the potent antioxidant lignans sesamin and sesamol. And sesamol’s big brother sesamolin has been shown to induce apoptosis (a process whereby damaged cells essentially self-destruct for the good of the organism; something that stops working in cancerous cells) in leukemia, lymphoma, and colon cancer cells.

Good for Athletic Performance

Sesame seeds can improve athletic performance, according to a 2017 study conducted with 20 ​teenage Brazilian football players (you may know the game as soccer). Half the players consumed two tablespoons of sesame seeds a day during 28 days of hard training, and the other half received a placebo.

How do you create a placebo that will fool people into thinking they’re eating sesame seeds when they’re not? I’m glad you asked — I had the same question. The trick, according to the study, was to grind the actual sesame seeds into a paste and sweeten them with honey. The placebo then consisted of honey, maltodextrin, cow’s milk, and artificial caramel food coloring. There — now you can open a restaurant called Placebo Sesame Cafe.

The young athletes who consumed the actual sesame seeds experienced less muscle damage, less oxidative stress, less systemic inflammation, and improved aerobic performance.

Brain Benefits

Sesame seeds may be good for your brain and nervous system. Black sesame seeds appear to contain a compound that interferes with amyloid plaque formation in the brain, the very process associated with the ravages of Alzheimer’s. In 2020, a team of Japanese researchers showed that sesaminol prevented cellular changes associated with Parkinson’s disease in test tube studies.

Another team out of Japan found that 12 weeks of supplementation with sesamin and another compound, astaxanthin, improved cognitive function in people aged 50–79 who exhibited symptoms of mild cognitive impairment. Specifically, those taking the active supplements gained in psychomotor and processing speeds compared to placebo controls.

Antidiabetic Benefits

To round out the research on sesame, it also appears to help prevent and manage diabetes due to its hypoglycemic effects. A 2021 meta-analysis of the eight randomized controlled trials of sesame compounds on blood glucose found that they significantly decreased fasting blood sugar. And a 2019 clinical trial out of Pakistan used white sesame oil not only to lower fasting blood sugar and A1C levels in type 2 diabetics but to improve their liver and kidney functions as well.

Sesame Risks

With sesame seeds, it’s not always a sunny day where the air is sweet.

Sesame Allergy

Sesame has become a major allergen over the past two decades, likely due to the increased use of sesame seed and oil-containing products in Europe and North America.

Sesame’s status as the ninth major food allergen was codified by the US government’s Food Allergy Safety, Treatment, Education, and Research (FASTER) Act on April 23, 2021. (I hope the position of US Acronymer Laureate pays well, it’s an important job —  “Food Allergy Research and Treatment — no, that won’t work…”) The required labeling of products that contain sesame or have been manufactured or packaged anywhere near sesame went into effect on January 1, 2023.

In Israel, a country that takes its sesame seriously, only cow’s milk was found to be a more common cause of anaphylaxis (that’s an extreme allergic reaction that involves all sorts of unpleasant and potentially life-threatening symptoms, including facial swelling, heart palpitations, and inability to breath). Sesame’s place near the top of this list is probably due to near-universal early exposure and heavy consumption of sesame-containing foods in Israel.

Not every allergic reaction to sesame is so severe; sometimes all a sufferer might experience is a mild case of hives. But if you have a sesame allergy, it is recommended to keep an epinephrine injection device like an Epi-pen with you at all times, as epinephrine is the first-line treatment for anaphylaxis regardless of the trigger. And of course, avoid eating sesame seeds in any form.

Oxalates

Oxalates are compounds in certain foods that, consumed in very high amounts, could predispose you to calcium-oxalate kidney stones, which are what you should see pictured when you look up “No fun” in the dictionary. And sesame seeds contain a heck of a lot of oxalates: according to food science, almost 2,800 milligrams of oxalic acid per 100 grams of sesame seeds.

Arguably, this level of oxalate exposure becomes a problem if you’re consuming sesame seeds by the bucketful. But 100 grams is actually a lot of sesame seeds — around half a cup — and as most servings of sesame seeds tend to be a single tablespoon (15 grams) or less, using the seeds as a topping or condiment doesn’t really raise oxalate alarms.

And other sesame products contain much lower amounts of oxalate due to heating and processing, which destroys them. The good news is that because sesame seeds are also high in potassium, calcium, and phytochemicals, all of which moderate the effects of oxalates, they’re generally not a problem for most people.

See our article here for more on oxalates.

Phytoestrogens

Sesame seeds contain lignans, which are types of phytoestrogens. Estrogen is a hormone found in animal-derived foods, and phytoestrogens are plant compounds that look and act enough like true estrogen to be able to bind to estrogen receptors in your body.

The similarities have caused some food writers and bloggers to worry about the effects of these lignans and other phytoestrogens on our sex hormones.

The best-known phytoestrogen controversy is over soy and the development of “man boobs” — which turns out to have no real basis in fact. (For more on the truth about soy, see this article.)

There doesn’t appear to be an evidentiary basis for phytoestrogen concerns in sesame seeds, either. Studies show that while phytoestrogens do bind to estrogen receptors in the body, their estrogenic activity is much weaker than true estrogen, and they may actually block or even oppose the effects of estrogen in some tissues. Think of a piece of gum fitting into a keyhole; as you cram it in, it takes on something of the shape of the key, but it doesn’t open the door. And it makes it harder for a real key to open the door, too.

In addition to their potentially beneficial antiestrogenic effects on some tissues, phytoestrogens offer a number of health benefits, including lowering blood pressure, reducing the frequency of hot flashes in menopausal women, and reducing the risk of hormone associated cancers.

Acrylamide

Roasted sesame seeds and related products may contain acrylamide, a potential carcinogen that is formed in certain foods during cooking or processing at high temperatures.

Acrylamide formation may be a result of the Maillard reaction, which is browning from cooking or processing due to a chemical reaction between an amino acid and a reducing sugar, and not the nasty look you get when you surprise a duck.

Roasted or toasted sesame products — which can include seeds, tahini, sesame paste, halvah, and sesame oil — have been found to contain varying amounts of acrylamide. A few are high enough that the state of California puts a Prop 65 warning on them, signifying that prolonged exposure may increase the risk of cancer.

The testing of sesame products in Turkey, however, found that traditional sesame foods like halvah and tahini have low levels of acrylamide, and that you’re more likely to be exposed to high levels from foods like french fries and baked goods.

You can take steps to limit your exposure to acrylamide. If you stir-fry with sesame oil, heat the pan at most to 170°C (338°F), and don’t use toasted sesame oil for frying. Even better, replace the oil in your stir-fries with water or broth. And add a small amount of cold sesame oil after the dish has been prepared if you want that rich and nutty sesame flavor with minimal acrylamide exposure.

The best way to avoid acrylamides from sesame seeds is to eat them raw, and use sesame products like raw tahini — either store-bought or homemade.

How to Store & Use Sesame Seeds

Even though they resist rancidity better than most other seeds and nuts, sesame seeds aren’t fully immune to spoilage. Because of their high oil content, hulled sesame seeds are kept best refrigerated or frozen in an airtight container after opening. You can keep them for up to three months without refrigeration, up to six months in the fridge, and up to a year in the freezer.

Sesame seeds enhance both savory and sweet dishes. You can sprinkle them on just about anything — oatmeal, power bowls, stir-fries, noodle dishes, salads, appetizers, side dishes, and soups.

Would you like to get your mouth watering with all the great ways you can add sesame seeds to your menu? If so, let’s not waste any time — here are some sesame and tahini recipes that will nourish your body and delight your palate.

Sesame Recipes

Tahini is an essential ingredient in any plant-based kitchen because of its versatility — it can add creamy texture, nutty flavor, and essential nutrients to just about any dish. Sesame Sunflower Chia Bites incorporate nutrient-packed seeds with tahini, making them a good source of protein, fiber, and healthy fats to keep you energized and satisfied. Sesame seeds not only give the Asian Black Rice Salad a finishing touch of color, but add calcium and phytonutrients to boot, plus some fun crunch! Finally, the Turmeric Tahini Sauce gets its scrumptious flavor and creamy texture from dreamy tahini.

1. Sesame Sunflower Chia Bites

Sesame Sunflower Chia Bites boast nutrient-packed seeds, including pumpkin and sesame, making them a good source of protein, fiber, and healthy fats to keep you energized and satisfied. What’s more, sesame seeds are jam-packed with calcium, magnesium, and phosphorus. The bites are sweetened with whole pitted dates that complement the nutty flavor of sesame and sunflower seeds perfectly.

2. Asian Black Rice Salad

Get ready to wow your guests at that summer picnic with the Asian Black Rice Salad. It’s bursting with color, flavor, and fun textures from the carrots, cabbage, and cashews. The addition of sesame seeds not only gives the Asian Black Rice Salad a finishing touch of color, but also adds calcium and phytonutrients, plus more fun crunch!

3. Turmeric Tahini Sauce

Turmeric Tahini Sauce is slightly nutty, very creamy, and packed with nutrition thanks to the tahini. The turmeric adds just a bit of earthiness along with anti-inflammatory compounds, and lemon adds some zest as well as vitamin C. This tahini recipe just might become your new favorite addition to drizzle on top of salads, grain bowls, and steamed veggies!

Sesame and Tahini Are Good for You!

Sesame seeds are a versatile food that offers considerable health benefits. While there are a few considerations when eating sesame seeds or sesame products, they’re safe and ultimately beneficial for most people. You can enjoy many types of sesame products as part of a wide variety of dishes and cuisines, in whole, paste, oil, or flour form. Sesame seeds can be a delicious and nutritious addition to a well-balanced diet.

Tell us in the comments:

• Do you eat sesame seeds or sesame seed products like tahini?
• What was your first non-bun or bagel exposure to sesame seeds?
• What sesame products have you tried, and which is your favorite?

Feature Image: LiudmilaChernetska

Read Next:

• 9 Health Benefits of Chia Seeds and How to Eat Them
• Are Flaxseeds Good for You? — And the Best Ways to Eat Them
• All About Hemp Seeds — A Nutritionally Dense Superfood

The post What Is Sesame? Explore the Benefits & Uses of Sesame Seeds and Tahini appeared first on Food Revolution Network.

When my dad was growing up as the presumed heir to the Baskin-Robbins company (before he left all the ice cream and all the wealth to follow his own “rocky road”), he had an ice cream cone-shaped swimming pool in his backyard. Surrounded by shade trees, the pool was an inviting and cool oasis during the hot California summers.

And while the hero of the story appears to be the ice cream empire that paid for the pool and inspired its shape, what really made those swims safe and enjoyable was the humble pool filter.

Without the filter’s constant diligence, the water would quickly have turned murky, smelly, and unsafe. An aerial photo of the backyard shows the pool itself, a lawn, and a patio — but no pump or filter. These unglamorous elements were hidden out of sight, and not given a second thought as long as they did their job.

Which brings me to today’s topic — the kidneys. They act as filters in our bodies, cleansing the blood, removing waste, and keeping our fluids in a healthy balance. They also perform some amazing and crucial tasks as part of the endocrine system (which is where the pool filter analogy falls short).

Also unlike pool filters, it’s not immediately obvious when the kidneys begin to fail. While in the US, 1 in 7 people have chronic kidney disease, and globally that figure is about 1 in 10, the majority don’t even know they have it. That’s because the disease may not cause any symptoms until it reaches an advanced stage, at which point it often becomes life-threatening in a hurry. And kidney disease incidence is on the rise, largely because of lifestyle and dietary changes that have increased its prevalence, as they have with so many other non-communicable, chronic diseases.

In this article, we’ll explore how chronic kidney disease (CKD) develops, and what it does to our bodies. We’ll also look at lifestyle factors that contribute to CKD, with a particular focus on foods for kidney health (those that can help or harm kidney function). And we’ll finish up with some yummy recipes that your mouth and kidneys will love.

What are the Functions of the Kidneys?

While the kidneys are famous for removing waste and excess fluids from the body — as well as inspiring the shape of some swimming pools and the name of the widely consumed kidney bean — they do so much more. Before we get to those functions, let’s locate them in the body.

The kidneys are a pair of organs, each about the size of a fist, located on either side of the spine just below the floating ribs. As part of the urinary system, the kidneys excrete urea (made by the liver as a byproduct of protein metabolism), which is a major component of urine. Unlike sugars and fats, the body has no means of storing proteins for later use, so the excess has to be excreted to prevent toxic buildup.

In addition to secreting urea, the kidneys remove other waste products, such as drugs and other foreign chemicals, that aren’t native to the body. They also get rid of excess fluid and regulate the fluid-electrolyte balance in your body by continuously filtering your blood.

And by “continuously,”  I do mean continuously. The kidneys filter about 200 quarts of fluid every 24 hours. The average adult has about five quarts of blood, which means that every drop of blood takes a ride through these organs around 40 times per day. (Forget Space Mountain, the most amazing ride can be found in Kidneyland!)

Of those 200 quarts, about 198 are cleaned and returned to the body, good as new, while the remaining two or so quarts are excreted. That’s partially the basis for the often-stated recommendation to drink eight cups of water — two quarts — a day.

If I were writing an infomercial about the kidneys (“Act now, and get two for the price of one” — gosh, this practically writes itself), this is where I’d say, “But wait — there’s more.” The kidneys regulate bodily concentrations of sodium, potassium, and other vital minerals, as well as maintain exquisite control over your body’s acid content.

Kidney Hormones

Your kidneys do much more for you than you may have realized. Kidneys are also highly social organs that love to chat with their colleagues. They produce hormones that affect other organs. One of these hormones is renin, which the body uses to manage your blood pressure. The kidneys also make a chemical called erythropoietin, which prompts your body to make new red blood cells. (A synthetic version of this chemical given to advanced CKD sufferers is also a popular doping agent used by athletes who want to improve their cardiovascular efficiency.)

The kidneys also convert vitamin D3 — which you either get in supplement form or metabolize from sunlight on your skin — into the active form of vitamin D (known to its many chemistry buff fans as 1,25-dihydroxycholecalciferol) that supports the immune system, strong skin and bones, and many other vital functions.

How Does Chronic Kidney Disease Happen?

Chronic kidney disease, the most common condition involving the kidneys, develops over time when the organs are damaged, most often as a result of diabetes and hypertension. It’s a sneakily gradual loss of kidney function, very different from acute renal injury. (“Renal” comes from the Latin word for kidney. Confusingly, a kidney doctor is called a “nephrologist,” from the Greek for kidney, “nephros.”) Acute renal injury, in which the kidneys suddenly stop working, can occur in a matter of days or hours.

In CKD, the kidneys have been structurally and/or functionally abnormal for at least three months, and aren’t able to filter blood properly. As the damage increases, patients move through a number of stages until, in the last one, stage 5, kidneys are functioning at less than 15% of their normal capacity. This is the cutoff for the clinical definition of renal failure.

At that point, known as end-stage renal disease (because a patient doesn’t typically recover from it), dangerous levels of fluid, electrolytes, and wastes can build up in the body. To stay alive, a patient will need dialysis or a kidney transplant. Dialysis, which is the mechanical filtering of blood either inside or outside the body, can replace the kidney’s filtering process to some extent but it doesn’t address the signaling functions or the vitamin D conversion that the kidneys can no longer perform.

When the kidneys fail, the rest of the body suffers. CKD can increase the risks of overaccumulation of fluid in the lungs, malnutrition, heart disease, weak bones, and a dysregulated immune system.

The kidneys don’t decide one day to go on strike — the road from healthy to “we’re outta here” typically takes years, if not decades. While genetics may play a role in CKD, lifestyle factors such as elevated blood sugars, high blood pressure, smoking, and high cholesterol also increase the risk of developing CKD. And the longer you expose your body to those factors, the more likely your kidneys are to lose function.

The Type 1 and Type 2 Diabetes Connection

Approximately 40% of patients with type 1 diabetes and 30% of those with type 2 diabetes may eventually suffer from CKD. This occurs because diabetes damages the small blood vessels of the kidney, decreasing its ability to filter the blood.

Impaired blood filtration brings a few consequences. First, fluid retention in the body can occur, resulting in edema, or swelling, typically in the arms and legs. (If you’re a fan of 19th century English literature, you may have come across its archaic name, “dropsy,” which really paints a mental picture.) Kidneys can also lose protein — it leaks from the kidneys into the urine. Finally, the level of waste products in the blood can increase.

Diabetes also causes bladder dysfunction, including decreased bladder sensation and impaired bladder emptying, which increases the risk of infection. Diabetic neuropathy (nerve damage) can wreak further havoc by making it hard to empty the bladder, or even feel when the bladder is full. And the pressure from an overfull bladder can cause pressure to build in the kidneys themselves, causing further injury. (That advice from your grandma to “never hold it in” turns out to be right on.) 

Plus, if urine that is high in sugar stays in the bladder for too long, an infection may develop from the rapid growth of bacteria in that sugar-rich environment.

Learn what brand-new scientific research says about how to prevent and reverse type 2 diabetes — using food and free lifestyle tips.

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High Blood Pressure and Kidney Disease

High blood pressure, or hypertension, can also damage blood vessels in the kidneys. Because hypertension makes the heart work harder to pump blood, pressure on the kidney walls increases. This pressure can compromise the efficiency with which they remove waste and extra fluids. Now we’ve got a vicious cycle between hypertension and kidney disease, in which those excess fluids further raise blood pressure, which makes the kidneys even less efficient.

Diagnosing Chronic Kidney Disease & Dysfunction

Since you can suffer from progressive CKD long before it causes clinical problems, it’s important for those at risk (i.e., already having high blood pressure, diabetes, heart disease, or a family history of kidney disease) to monitor the status of their kidney health. There are several ways to do this.

Blood tests can check how well your kidneys are filtering your blood. The most common metric for kidney function tests is the glomerular filtration rate (GFR). GFR can be calculated using serum creatinine and is inversely related, meaning the higher the creatinine the lower the GFR. 

A comprehensive metabolic panel, or CMP blood test, often includes a kidney function test, namely, testing for GFR. While you can go through a health care provider to get this standard blood testing done, you can also order at-home kidney function tests, which include the CMP. Check out our article on ordering your own lab tests.

Another marker for kidney disease severity used in kidney function tests is urine albumin, which has nothing to do with the headmaster in Harry Potter. Albumin is found in the blood, is important for fluid homeostasis, and transports hormones, vitamins, and enzymes throughout the body. When there is albumin in the urine, it suggests there may have been damage to the kidneys’ filtering system.

Imaging may be helpful to further evaluate kidney function if needed, including kidney structure and assessing blood flow. In some cases, a kidney biopsy may be necessary to further diagnose the cause of kidney dysfunction.

Lifestyle Changes for Chronic Kidney Disease

Because of the association with type 2 diabetes and high blood pressure, which have a strong link to diet and lifestyle, there are some important things people can do to help prevent the development and slow the progression of CKD. Here are some of the most important ones.

Exercise and Kidney Function

Not being physically active is both a contributing factor for and consequence of kidney disease. By the time someone is on dialysis, they may not feel like moving around much. Their increasingly sedentary lifestyle is associated with an increased risk of additional diseases and premature death.

Research shows that adding gentle exercise can help people at all stages of CKD, and lower the risks of comorbidity, hospitalization, and mortality while enhancing the quality of life.

Kidneys and Smoking

This piece of advice could fit into just about any article on health. For most people, quitting smoking will have a tremendous positive impact on all health outcomes, including kidney disease.

Maintain a Healthy Weight

Obesity is one of the risk factors most predictive of CKD onset. Ironically, the disease itself can lead to significant weight loss, as CKD can cause loss of muscle mass (and strength) as it progresses. When weight loss in CKD patients occurs, they may need to focus on getting enough nutritionally dense calories to maintain a healthy weight.

Get Enough Sleep

Sleep affects all aspects of health. And it turns out that the kidneys operate on a time schedule, with certain functions regulated by the body’s circadian rhythm.

There are links between kidney disease and sleeplessness: an ongoing pattern of insufficient or disrupted sleep is associated with an increased risk of CKD. It’s common for CKD patients to struggle with sleep, which can worsen disease progression. If that’s you, put attention into improving your sleep through sleep hygiene, including creating an environment that’s conducive to deep sleep, and optimizing your diet and meal timing for sleep.

Reduce Stress Levels

Stress harms the body in many different ways, and the kidneys are no exception. Research has found an association between stress-related disorders and increased risk of both chronic and acute kidney disease. One 2018 study found that the more people worried about achieving their goals, the higher the rates of CKD. There are many effective ways to reduce chronic stress levels, including practicing mindfulness and other stress-reduction techniques, reducing stress-related triggers, setting realistic goals and expectations, and choosing a dietary pattern that supports balanced hormone levels. Speaking of which…

Eat a Healthy Diet

Although genetic factors play a role in kidney disease, the majority of cases are preventable. And a kidney healthy diet is probably the most important implement in the prevention toolbox. Researchers estimate that roughly one-quarter of CKD cases in industrialized countries can be attributed to nutritional factors — and this is likely a very conservative estimate.

As industrialized diet patterns have been directly implicated in the development of both type 2 diabetes and high blood pressure, it makes sense that what you eat can affect the development and progression of CKD, as well. Specifically, diets high in animal protein and low in fruits and vegetables have been associated with CKD. The best-odds, “happy kidney” diet consists largely of whole plants, with limited or no animal protein.

Renal Nutrition: Can a Plant-Based Diet Help?

Plant-based diets can decrease the incidence of cardiovascular disease, decrease rates of type 2 diabetes and obesity, and reduce inflammation and cholesterol. Since these outcomes may delay kidney failure and the initiation of dialysis, some clinicians look to plant-based diets as a strong contender to prevent and slow the progression of CKD.

An optimal renal diet emphasizes high-fiber and low-fat foods and, as I just mentioned, substantially reduces or (better yet) eliminates animal-derived protein. Here’s why this is so important: Increased fiber intake changes what the gut microbiota produce, lowering the amounts of uremic toxins. These toxins, which come from animal-based protein, take a heavy toll on the kidneys, which have to break them down, filter, and excrete them. The more fiber you eat, and the less animal protein, the fewer problems you’ll have with uremic and other toxins. Animal protein is no friend to your kidneys.

The figure above shows how these elements can work together to increase helpful compounds and decrease harmful ones to positively affect CKD outcomes.

One of the most impactful dietary changes you can make to keep your kidneys healthy is to swap animal protein with plant protein. This shift can protect you from a nasty — life-threatening, actually — condition called metabolic acidosis (an electrolyte disorder and complication of kidney disease) by lowering acid production in your body.

In a kidney-friendly diet, the dietary source of the protein may be of greater importance than the amount of protein, as plant-derived protein comes with many other beneficial components including fiber, antioxidants, and phytonutrients — all of which are good for kidney health.

Plant-sourced protein sources are also generally lower in saturated fat, and have no cholesterol, unlike animal foods whose dietary cholesterol and saturated fat have been linked with decreased insulin sensitivity, oxidative stress, high LDL cholesterol, and high blood pressure. In short, adopting a whole foods, plant-based diet has been shown to have numerous health benefits for the kidneys, many of which are clinically relevant for the management of CKD.

Other Nutrients That Need Monitoring in CKD

While simply eating more plants, fewer animals, and fewer highly processed foods can help manage CKD, there are some nutrients of concern that deserve special attention.

Phosphorous

One of these is phosphorus, which along with calcium helps build strong, healthy bones, and contributes to overall health. But it’s possible to have too much of a good thing — patients with CKD have trouble excreting excess phosphorus, which can actually weaken bones.

High phosphorus levels can also contribute to dangerous calcium deposits in your blood vessels, lungs, eyes, and heart. One way to avoid excess phosphorus, fortunately, is to limit animal protein, which has high concentrations of the nutrient. Another strategy is to avoid fast foods, sugar-sweetened beverages, and most packaged and processed foods, many of which contain phosphorus as an additive or preservative. Phosphorus from these sources is more readily absorbed by the body, making it especially harmful for people with CKD.

Sodium
Too much sodium in a person’s diet can be harmful because it causes blood to retain fluid. People with CKD need to be careful not to let too much fluid build up in their bodies, as we’ve seen.

CKD patients are often advised to follow the DASH (Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension) diet, which is prescribed to people with hypertension to lower their sodium intake. This diet is associated with a lower risk of end-stage kidney disease in individuals with CKD and high blood pressure.

Most sodium in the modern industrialized diet comes from processed, packaged, and fast foods, so it’s a good idea to limit or eliminate these foods if sodium is an issue for you.

Potassium
Potassium is another nutrient of concern. Hyperkalemia (too much potassium in the blood) is a severe metabolic condition that patients with CKD often experience. As kidney disease progresses, the kidneys’ ability to excrete potassium decreases.

Patients often receive advice to limit dietary potassium intake to maintain their serum potassium levels within the normal range. The benefits of restricting potassium in CKD patients aren’t settled science, however, given that a plant-based diet with a high content of potassium-rich foods can be beneficial and slow the progression of CKD. What most folks can agree on, however, is the benefit of testing for potassium levels, to ensure they are in the normal range.

Vitamin D
Vitamin D transforms in the kidneys into the form your body can use, and CKD can interfere with that process. Whether or not you have CKD, it’s best to get enough vitamin D, whether from your body’s response to the sun, or from a supplement. When your vitamin D levels are too low, you can also end up with low calcium levels. That’s because vitamin D helps your body absorb calcium.

Calcium
Calcium metabolism and regulation are complicated and compounded with CKD. Getting too much or too little can both be problematic. To be safe, it’s usually best to get calcium from food — as supplements could give your body too much and increase your risk of kidney stones.

Click here for more on calcium.

Oxalates
Oxalates are another compound found in certain foods that may cause calcium oxalate kidney stones, which can make CKD worse. They’re also involved in inflammatory pathways. So if you consume too many of them in your diet, that could contribute to the progression of CKD and systemic inflammation.

You can reduce the levels of oxalates in some high-oxalate foods by cooking them. Choosing foods that are high in calcium and magnesium and drinking water can help reduce the negative impact of oxalates.

Click here for more on oxalates.

Best Foods for Kidney Health

To recap, the best foods for kidney health are high in fiber, antioxidants, vitamins, and minerals, moderate in (preferably plant-based) protein, and low in phosphorus, fat, and sodium.

That leaves most, if not all, plant-based foods! Here are a few stellar kidney foods.

Lentils

Lentils are a safe, delicious, and versatile plant-based protein source that you can substitute for animal protein. Cooking lentils reduces their potassium and phosphorus levels to those recommended for CKD patients. Additionally, lentils are high in fiber and folate. Folate is important because research has found that amongst people with CKD, having normal levels of serum folate was associated with lower risk of mortality.

Flaxseeds

Flaxseeds are one of the foods for kidney health that can provide lots of valuable fiber, and are one of the richest sources of lignan precursors. Lignans are plant antioxidants that may play a role in glucose control and high blood pressure. Studies have found that flaxseed oil may reduce bone loss or shrinkage in hemodialysis patients.

Read our related article about ways to eat flaxseeds.

Blueberries

Blueberries may lower serum uric acid levels, which is a good thing if you’re not a fan of kidney stones. Furthermore, the anthocyanin antioxidants in blueberries can protect kidneys from oxidative stress and inflammation. Blueberries also appear to combat type 2 diabetes and heart disease by lowering their biomarkers (including the all-important blood pressure). Through all these and possibly other mechanisms, blueberries just might be a kidney’s best friend.

Leafy Greens

Low-oxalate leafy greens, a club that includes kale, collards, arugula, lettuce, and many others, provide necessary antioxidants, vitamins, and minerals, as well as being a good source of fiber.

Cauliflower

Cauliflower, like its cruciferous cousins, is a great source of sulforaphane, which in addition to being an anticancer powerhouse, may also help fight against oxidative damage caused by kidney disease. Sulforaphane also assists the liver in its job of detoxification of the blood, which takes some of the strain off the kidneys.

Cauliflower is also high in antioxidants, folate, fiber, and vitamin K1, which helps regulate your calcium balance and build strong teeth and bones — all of which are important when dealing with CKD.

Read our related article about creative ways to enjoy cauliflower.

Buckwheat

Buckwheat is a gluten-free whole grain that’s relatively low in potassium and phosphorus and may alleviate kidney problems in patients with type 2 diabetes. A good source of protein and fiber, buckwheat has been shown to protect kidneys and break up compounds that can harm them — in rodents, at least. (Our view on the use of animals in medical research is here.)

Grapes

Grapes, especially red ones, are rich sources of a compound called resveratrol that’s the subject of a lot of hype for its purported anti-aging properties. While the jury’s out on that one, it’s clear that resveratrol protects against CKD and its progression.

The flavonoids in grapes can benefit heart health and ameliorate the effects of type 2 diabetes, both of which can support kidney health. And grapes also contain quercetin, which helps maintain healthy blood vessels.

Chili Peppers

The more chili peppers you eat, the less likely you are to have kidney disease, at least according to this 2019 study of the eating habits and health status of over 8,000 Chinese adults. Eating chilis appears to decrease the risks of obesity and hypertension, both of which can increase the risk of CKD.

Another study from China showed that the enjoyment of spicy food enhanced the diner’s sensitivity to salt, which meant they needed and wanted less of it. This in turn lowered daily salt intake and blood pressure. And two compounds found in chili peppers, capsaicin and piperine, have been shown to improve kidney function.

Recipes with Kidney Healthy Foods

When it comes to healthy kidney function, focusing on fiber-dense foods (plants!) is key. Below you’ll find a tasty array of plant-based meals that contain tons of fiber, as well as other nutrients, to support healthy weight, blood pressure, insulin response, and bones. Consider your own unique needs when choosing foods for kidney health, making substitutions or omissions where necessary, since each individual’s dietary plan to meet kidney function goals can be different.

1. Blueberry Poppy Seed Pancakes

This one delicious breakfast boasts multiple kidney-friendly ingredients. Blueberry Poppy Seed Pancakes contain fiber-rich buckwheat flour. Flax meal provides lignans, which may help with blood pressure and blood sugar management. The blueberries are packed with anthocyanins, which are anti-inflammatory, helping support heart and kidney function. Of note, poppy seeds can be high in oxalates. One tablespoon of poppy seeds for four servings won’t put you over the oxalate level. However, if you’re concerned about kidney stones, simply omit the poppy seeds (the pancakes will still be delicious!).

2. Super Greens Salad with Bulgur and Lentils

Super Greens Salad includes healing, low-oxalate greens (kale and arugula), and provides a source of plant protein from lentils and pumpkin seeds. What’s more, there is plenty of fiber in this satisfying salad, found in the lentils, bulgur, pumpkin seeds, and greens. Super Greens Salad with Bulgur and Lentils can support kidney health, whether you’re simply trying to care for healthy kidneys or to prevent the progression of kidney failure.

3. Korean Cauliflower Tacos

Adding cruciferous vegetables like cauliflower to your plate may help fight against oxidative damage caused by kidney disease. Also, the detoxifying capabilities of sulforaphane may take some of the workload off of the kidneys (their job, after all, is pretty huge!). Take note, peanuts are high in phosphorus, so you may want to omit them if you’re watching your phosphorus intake. Also, if you’re watching sodium, consider adding crushed red pepper flakes in place of hot sauce to avoid sodium added to commercial hot sauce.

Keep Your Kidneys Healthy

Kidneys perform an important role in waste regulation, electrolyte balance, and the production of certain hormones. As the incidence of chronic kidney disease increases due to the increase in chronic diseases like type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease, it’s important to look at the lifestyle factors that may be impacting the kidneys. With chronic kidney disease, in particular, diet is one of the most vital lifestyle changes to consider — and a well-planned plant-based diet may be helpful in preventing or slowing the progression of the disease.

Tell us in the comments:

• What’s your favorite kidney-friendly food?
• What lifestyle change would most benefit your kidneys, and why?
• What food shape do you think will be the next fad in swimming pool design?

Feature Image: iStock.com/Lisovskaya

Read Next:

• Not All Protein Is Equal: A Doctor Explains Why You Should Choose Plant Protein Over Animal Protein for Better Heart Health and Longevity
• The Truth About Nitrates and Nitrites in Your Food & Water

The post How to Take Care of Your Kidneys — and the Best & Worst Foods for Chronic Kidney Disease appeared first on Food Revolution Network.