It Starts With Food: Discover the Whole30 and Change Your Life in Unexpected Ways (17 page)

We think that sounds reasonable, but to answer the question “How can I know how grains affect
me
?” we need you to do some self-experimentation.

During our Whole30 program, you’ll evaluate how your body reacts, first without any grains, then with the reintroduction of grains back into your diet. Then you’ll combine the science we’ve presented, our experience and
your own
experience to make an educated, informed decision about how often (if at all) you should eat grains.

See? We’ve got this all worked out for you.

Next up is another plant family that has a lot in common with grains: legumes. Legumes include all types of beans, peas, lentils, and peanuts (which are not actually a “nut” at all). Like cereal grains, plants in this family have similarities in the way they behave and what chemical constituents they contain, which impacts us when we eat them.

The similarity to grains starts with the seed. Legumes are actually a plant family, but the part we eat when we consume black beans, soy, or lentils is the
seed
of the legume plant. The seeds of legumes, like the seeds from cereal grains, store a large amount of energy in the form of carbohydrate. In fact, in most legumes, the amount of carbohydrate present is double or triple that of protein.

Now, remember—we are not afraid of carbohydrate, nor do we know of anyone who has suffered metabolic catastrophe by eating too many carbohydrates from black beans! That’s not to say that legumes are the healthiest choice, but the reason we exclude them is not because they contain a lot of carbohydrate. The carbohydrate content of foods
alone
is not what causes hormonal dysregulation—it starts with overconsumption.

In our experience, people generally don’t chronically overconsume legumes—at least, we’ve never heard of anyone having an unhealthy psychological relationship with lentils. Legumes are not milled like grains often are, so legumes are essentially the equivalent of whole grains—more fiber, more water, and more nutrients than their more refined counterparts. This makes them far less likely to promote overconsumption than a refined, supernormally stimulating, nutrient-poor food.

Since legumes don’t violate our first or second Good Food standards, does that mean they’re a healthy choice?

First, legumes, like whole grains, contain considerable amounts of phytate. Remember, these phytates bind many of the minerals present in the seed, rendering them unavailable to our bodies. This makes legumes not as micronutrient-dense as you might think, in the same way that whole grains are not micronutrient-dense.

As with grains, ancient cultures that consumed legumes as a major food source had ways of mitigating some of the issues with legumes, such as rinsing, sprouting, prolonged soaking and cooking, and fermentation. However, remember that specific legumes were consumed for calories because that’s what was
available
. The fact that these cultures survived on these foods does not mean that their choices were optimal, or even good—only that they had no choice. “Properly preparing” legumes using these traditional methods today is time-consuming—and frankly, it seems like a tremendous amount of work for a food that simply isn’t that nutritious.

Because some of the short-chain carbohydrates (sugars) found in legumes aren’t properly absorbed in the small intestine, they can then act as food for bacteria living in both the small and large intestines. The bacteria then “ferment” (digest) these carbohydrates (called
galactans
), which can create many unpleasant symptoms, including gas and bloating.

We suspect that you’ve experienced this effect.

In addition, if you have an imbalance or overgrowth of gut bacteria, large amounts of this specific type of carbohydrate may feed the “bad” bacteria, thus promoting ongoing gut dysbiosis. The significance of this concern is largely determined by the health of your gut microbiota. Given the kind of foods you used to eat and their cumulative effects on your gut bacteria, dysbiosis is, unfortunately, all too common. This is one potential outcome that would cause legumes to fail our third Good Food standard (promotes a healthy gut), and by default, our fourth (systemic inflammation, via an unhealthy gut).

We’ll address soy and soy products separately, as they contain unique compounds—and because, due in large part to marketing efforts, “soy” is often perceived as synonymous with “healthy.”

We do not agree with that.

Soybeans are particularly good at producing seeds more protein-rich than most other legumes (and all grains). This makes them ideal for large-scale production but does
not
automatically make them a healthy food choice! You see, soybeans contain compounds called
isoflavones
, which are types of
phytoestrogens
(
phyto
meaning “plant,”
estrogen
as in that female sex hormone).

These
phytoestrogens
are recognized by our bodies—male and female alike—as a female reproductive hormone. Got that? Our bodies recognize these phytoestrogens as
estrogen
! Some phytoestrogens act to stimulate estrogen receptors in the body, while others block the estrogen receptor. The effects of soy phytoestrogens are tissue-specific, meaning that the effect on one tissue (such as breast tissue) is totally different than on another tissue (such as uterine tissue or prostate tissue).

You may have heard that “soy is heart healthy” or that “soy reduces the risk of breast cancer,” but those are radically simplified media sound bites and are not representative of the overall effect of soy phytoestrogens. The fact is, phytoestrogens may be beneficial for a very specific population (perimenopausal women, for example), but the effect on other populations is largely unknown.

We think that regularly consuming a food rich in hormonally-active substances,
especially
if you do not have a specific sex-hormone imbalance, as in perimenopause (or are male and probably not estrogen-deficient), is a huge health gamble, and not one we think anyone should take. We are not ready to say that soy fails our second Good Food standard (healthy hormonal response)—but we’ll keep a close watch on this subject.

Peanuts are also of special concern, as they contain uniquely disruptive proteins. First, peanuts aren’t tree nuts at all—botanically, they are legumes. All legumes contain protein structures that may be hazardous to humans—one type in particular is called a
lectin
. In their raw state, lectins are highly resistant to digestion and toxic to animals.

In other legumes (like black beans or kidney beans), these lectins are destroyed during the cooking process, rendering them harmless. But peanut lectins are different. They are resistant to digestion and are not destroyed by heat. When they land in your gut, they are largely intact. They can then fool your gut lining into letting them through into the body (by mimicking the structure of other proteins) and get into your bloodstream.

Once they’re inside, these peanut lectins can induce an immune response. (Remember, that undigested foreign protein is totally out of place
inside
the body.) By now, you know that any abnormal activation of your immune system might negatively affect both your short- and long-term health. These dangerous proteins violate our third and fourth Good Food standards—which means that peanuts and peanut butter are banished from your plate. (We suspect that the resilience of peanut lectin is partly responsible for the rapidly growing incidence of peanut allergies.)

It’s impossible to blame lectins for all the problems with legumes, since
no one
eats legumes without cooking them first, and non-peanut lectins are destroyed by high heat. It’s worth noting, however, that in
improperly cooked legumes
(such as those cooked in a slow cooker at a lower temperature), lectins may not be completely broken down—and that could result in severe gastrointestinal distress.

Admittedly, the scientific case against legumes isn’t nearly as strong as the case against, say, sugar. While data suggests that certain lectins
can
be extremely detrimental, and plenty of research supports the idea that phytoestrogens in soy may adversely affect hormonal balance, researchers simply don’t have enough data on all legumes to know how potentially dangerous they are.

This is where you come in.

Remember, our recommendations are based on three factors: first, the science; second, our experience and the experience of our clients; third, self-experimentation. The science suggests that consuming legumes (especially peanuts) violates our Good Food standards. Our experience certainly confirms that most folks look and feel their best when legumes are kept off their plates. But now it’s time for you to step up.

You can participate in additional (small-scale) research on legumes by participating in our Whole30 program. Make
yourself
the subject of a case study to determine the effects of legumes on
you
. Eliminating legumes from your diet (at least for a trial period) will allow you to assess your own personal tolerance—and help you decide what role they should have in your daily meals.

“During and following our family’s Whole30, my son Jeremiah’s (type 1 diabetic) blood sugars have been completely under control … and they
never
have been before. His numbers normally jump from low to high extremes without any reason—we never knew what to do about it. It’s been very frustrating … but now his numbers are perfect. I can’t fully put into words how amazing this transformation has been. Thanks to the Whole30, I now know without a doubt that Jeremiah’s body is working the best it can and that I am doing my job as his mom to keep it that way.”

—Jacque G., New Orleans, Louisiana