For years, the dietary dogma has emphasized that plant-based foods are healthy and are rich in nutrients. Unfortunately, you may have been misled because many plants contain anti-nutrients that may have harmful effects on your health? 

Antinutrients are natural or synthetic plant compounds found in a variety of plant-based foods such as grains, legumes, beans, and nuts. These antinutrients interfere with the absorption of vitamins, minerals, and other nutrients by inhibiting the digestive enzymes.  

All the antinutrients may not cause adverse effects but some are worth being aware of. understanding what these antinutrients are, what science says about them, and how you can avoid their harmful effects on your health can only support you on your wellness journey.

What Are Antinutrients? 

Antinutrients are plant compounds, which inhibit the absorption of most of the nutrients in your body. They are found in legumes, seeds, and nuts at higher levels and vegetables, fruits, and green leaves at slightly lower levels.

Generally, seeds, the ‘babies’ of plants, contain the most detrimental antinutrients in the highest concentrations. The most common antinutrients are phytic acid, lectins, and saponins. These antinutrients bind to vitamins and minerals, making them unavailable to your body which then cannot absorb them. They are the plant’s defense mechanism to repel pests, bugs, and other predators, protecting the seeds so that they can live and reproduce. 

Not all the antinutrients are harmful; few are considered beneficial too. Antinutrients such as polyphenols are beneficial when consumed in appropriate doses. They are packed with antioxidants and can support the treatment of digestive problems, control diabetes, and treat neurodegenerative disorders. Flavonoids in tea, coffee, and wine also have a lot of health benefits when consumed in limited amounts. 

However, even these positive antinutrients can inhibit the absorption of some essential minerals such as copper, iron, zinc, and vitamin B1. When these antinutrients are over-consumed, they can inhibit some crucial enzymes like proteins and starch, found in plant food. 

Common Anti Nutrients To Avoid

Phytate (Phytic Acid)

Phytate or phytic acid is present naturally in plant seeds, especially in legumes, peanuts, cereals, crop oils, and other plant-based food. Studies say that phytate hinders the activity of enzymes in the small intestine and stomach affecting the digestion of protein. 

It is believed that phytates are negatively charged structures that bind with positively charged metal ions like calcium, copper, zinc, and magnesium. This complex compound lowers the absorption and bioavailability of these metal ions. This increases the risk of health problems like anemia and bone loss. However, eating foods like meat and leafy green vegetables can counteract the effects of phytate and increase iron absorption.

Iron deficiency is one of the major leading health problems; studies suggest that increased levels of flavonoids, polyphenols from consumption of tea, coffee, etc., decreases the iron absorption in your body. Hence, including meat, poultry, fish and organ meats in your diet can help to restore the iron content.

Gluten 

Gluten is one of the hardest plant proteins to digest; it inhibits the digestive enzymes and causes gastrointestinal (GI) distress. It is a well-known fact that gluten leads to leaky gut syndrome (which is highly correlated with autoimmune diseases), cognitive problems, and allergic reactions. Gluten is commonly found in wheat, rye, and barley plants. 

Gluten sensitivity has been classified under the symptoms related to adverse reactions to the gluten protein. It might lead to celiac disease, a severe form of gluten allergy. It also causes joint pains, headaches, tiredness, and poor memory.

Lectins 

Lectins are present in higher quantities in food sources such as beans and wheat. They reduce nutrient absorption and affect digestion, causing bloating and gas for many people. Lectins have the ability to sustain digestion by the GI tract, which means they can penetrate the cell lining and can even damage the membranes of the epithelium lining, inhibit nutrient digestion and absorption, and stimulate shifts in the gut bacterial flora. 

Lectins can also cause food poisoning and immune responses, such as joint pain and rashes. Generally, lectins are at high levels in raw grains, dairy foods, and legumes like peanuts and soybean. 

Soaking and cooking thoroughly can significantly reduce the number of lectins present in your food.

Fermenting your food is one of the best ways to reduce the lectin content. 

Tannins

Tannins are commonly found in tea, coffee, wine, and chocolates. Tannins isolated from the plants have been shown to inhibit several digestive enzymes, including trypsin, alpha-amylase, and lipase. This can lead to protein deficiency and gastrointestinal problems. 

You need an adequate number of enzymes for proper digestion, to metabolize food, and provide nutrients to the cells. Tannins inhibit these enzymes, leading to digestive problems like diarrhea, constipation, bloating, reflux and other GI issues. 

Oxalates

Oxalates are found in high quantities in soybeans, black /brown millets, and sesame seeds They are also found in some dark leafy greens (spinach is a huge source of oxalate) and sweet potatoes. Due to oxalates in food sources such as legumes, they are considered poor protein source. 

Oxalates also inhibit the enzymes essential for digestion and cause health issues such as constipation, kidney stone, mineral imbalance, inflammation, UTI issues, GI problems, mitochondrial dysfunction, and autoimmunity. 

Saponins

Saponins are commonly found in legumes and quinoa. They also affect your gastrointestinal lining leading to a leaky gut and autoimmune syndrome. Saponins bind to iron and reduce its absorption, which can affect iron status in your body. 

Saponins are resistant to digestion by humans, but have the ability to enter the bloodstream and affect your immune response. 

Trypsin Inhibitors

Trypsin inhibitors are commonly found in grain-containing products such as cereals, porridge, baby food, and bread. Also, trypsin inhibitors contribute to the antinutrient profile of the raw soybean. It inhibits pancreatic proteinases in the small intestine.

Although trypsin can get degraded by heat processing and cooking, it can still cause several health problems, such as mineral deficiencies in young infants, children, and anyone who has reduced pancreatic function. 

Isoflavones

Isoflavones are a type of polyphenol commonly found in soybeans. Studies suggest that they can contribute to hormonal changes and interfere with or trigger digestive issues. Isoflavones are believed to have an impact on estrogen. Studies say soy can impact reproductive function in women by altering the hormone levels. 

Solanine

Solanine is toxic with fungicidal and pesticidal properties. It is one of the plant’s natural defenses. Solanine cannot be removed by boiling; however, it can be destroyed by frying. Solanine is commonly present in nightshade plants such as potato, eggplant, bell peppers, and tomatoes. Though these vegetables have beneficial antioxidants, their overconsumption can cause various side effects. Acute toxicity can lead to drowsiness, itchiness in the neck region, increased sensitivity, stressful breathing, and gastrointestinal symptoms such as abdominal pain, nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea.

Chaconine

Chaconine is commonly found in corn and potatoes. It is generally present in low levels in plants but can accumulate to high levels in greened, stored, damaged potatoes. This may cause acute poisoning leading to gastro-intestinal and neurological disturbances. 

Reducing Antinutrients In Your Diet 

Antinutrients do not only affect the absorption of certain minerals, they can also cause toxicity when present in higher levels in your diet. For generations, humans have used some traditional methods and processes to reduce these antinutrient components in food. These include:

1. Soaking 

Soaking is a great way to reduce antinutrient content. When soaked in water overnight, legumes, beans, and other grains have shown better nutritional value. Antinutrients are generally water-soluble; they simply dissolve when food is soaked overnight. A study indicated that 6 hours of soaking at room temperature could reduce phytic acid content by 27.9%, and 24 hours of soaking reduced this further to 36.0%. Soaking results in a substantial decrease in phytate, protease inhibitors, lectins, tannins, and calcium oxalate. 

2. Sprouting 

Sprouting or germination is the most suitable method of reducing the anti-nutrients from plant food. Sprouting results in the activation of the enzyme phytase, which reduces phytic acid. As gemination changes the nutritional content and biochemical properties of the plant, it is highly recommended for reducing antinutrients. According to studies, germination decreases the phytic acid content of chickpea seeds and pigeon pea by 60% and that of urad beans, mung beans, and soybeans by 40%.

3. Fermentation 

In fermentation, sugars are oxidized to generate energy. It is a metabolic process that improves mineral absorption from plant foods. It significantly lowers anti-nutrients such as tannins, phytic acid, and polyphenols. 

4. Boiling 

Generally, many legumes are cooked by boiling before they are eaten. Some studies have reported that boiling or cooking enhances the nutritional value of foods by reducing their antinutrients. 

Boiling at high heat can degrade many antinutrients including lectins, tannins and protease inhibitors, and calcium oxalate. It is one of the most effective and best ways to reduce antinutrients in your food. 

Final Thoughts

Antinutrients reduce the nutritional value of plant foods and may even cause adverse effects on your health.

Though you might always consider plant foods a healthy option, they have a dark side and, especially if you are challenged with chronic health concerns, may be doing you more harm than good. With all the evidence-based information, you can choose to follow steps to reduce antinutrients from your plant food or choose an alternative diet, a Carnivore diet.