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In this article we explore why it is important to not only eat traditional foods (available 150 years back) but also prepare them in a traditional way. This will also help people who find it difficult to digest chapati, brown rice, oats, peanuts - as these will lead to bloating, digestive issues for everyone unless prepared in the traditional way. The aim is to prepare these items in such a way that they digest better and benefits of micronutrients available in such food items can be maximised.
We will also learn the logic behind traditional cooking methods - hand pounding, soaking, roasting, dehydrating and fermenting and how these work to eliminate / reduce phytic acid - a major antinutrient found in all nuts, whole grains, lentils, legumes and improve the availability of micronutrients.
What is phytic acid?
Basically by definition in research papers it is storage form of phosphorous found in many plants especially found in bran or hull (outer layer) of grains, and in nuts and seeds.
Storage form means that mineral phosphorous is not readily in its bioavailable form which means we cannot digest it.
Apart from not being absorbed itself, a major problem with phytic acid is that it binds with other minerals like iron, zinc, calcium, magnesium making them unavailable for absorption in the body as well. So if you eat unsoaked nuts or brown rice with other foods then it will not allow absorption of micronutrients present in other foods as well.
However please note that phytic acid does not leach minerals that are already stored in the body; it only inhibits the absorption of minerals from food.
This is a protective mechanism of plants in order to protect themselves from being eaten by animals in large quantities. However, as human beings, we evolved traditional cooking practices which counter and reduce level and impact of phytic acid and other anti nutrients (lectins, gluten etc) in these plants.
Another problem with Phytic acid
Phytic acid also interferes with enzymes we need to digest our food, including pepsin, which is needed for the breakdown of proteins in the stomach, and amylase which is required for the breakdown of starch. Phytic acid also inhibits the enzyme trypsin, which is needed for protein digestion in the small intestine.
Which food sources have phytic acid?
Is phytic acid all that bad for you
Before you try and scrap all that phytic acid and try to bring it to zero level please note that human beings can tolerate phytic acid roughly 400 mg each day.
However nuts, soyabeans, oats, all seeds, beans, whole grains contain very large amounts which needs to be reduced before consumption. It is a good idea to follow our traditional method of preparation of these foods - which includes - hand pounding, soaking, roasting, dehydrating and fermenting (different for different foods). It may sound like a lot of work but to be honest in this fast paced environment where everything we want quick and readymade a little effort on food seems like a lot! But once you get used to the process it may no longer sound difficult. And yes if you feel you digest better and no more bloated then this process is a must as it saves a lot of time from doctor visits!
How traditional form of cooking helps vegetarians?
In India a large proportion of people are vegetarians which means we are highly reliant on whole grains and nuts for our nutrition. In such cases it is imperative to do basic amount of soaking, fermentation and cooking to ensure we have removed maximum phytic acid. We cannot eliminate it completely but remember we just mentioned that humans can tolerate it well to some extent. So let’s try to minimize it as much as possible.
Examples of traditional Indian cooking which automatically minimize / eliminate anti nutrients like phytic acid
Curd, dosa, idli, chaach, khamiri roti, soaked almonds are few examples of fermented foods that we regularly consume.
To ferment dosa and idli - a batter consisting of dal, rice and water are fermented fully overnight in room temperature. Only the next day, is this used to make traditional dosas and idlis which taste amazing and have such high nutriton value!
To ferment roti, knead the atta with water and as well as curd and leave the atta for 4-8 hours (depending on weather conditions) in room temperature to turn it a little sour. Keep a lid to protect from any particles falling in etc. Then prepare roti with this atta. This is similar to khameeri roti which used to be made in traditional times in India.
To ferment rice, take hand pounded semi brown rice, add water and lemon to this and leave overnight or for minimum of 8 hours in room temperature with a lid. Throw out all the water and then with fresh water, boil the rice for 50 min - 1 hour on low flame.
Fermentation not only reduces phytic acid but also enhances vitamin C, vitamin B and other vitamins and mineral availability of foods. It is also known to increase gut flora thus making digestion better. If you are someone who feel acidity and bloating frequently you need to add fermented foods to your diet.
However, it has been noticed in recent times that a lot of households due to shortage of time are outsourcing batter from other companies or switching to instant batter and market curd frequently. This could be bad news as market products will not be fermented or will be fermented with artificial yeast, added preservatives / baking soda and other agents. This is done by companies and restaurants to bring consistency to packaged food, quicken the process of preparation and increase shelf life of such products. The benefits of increasing gut flora, reducing phytic acid through fermented food is lost and the entire purpose of fermentation is defeated.
Mechanism of how fermentation and soaking / sprouting helps in reducing phytic acid - how the phytase enzyme reduces phytic acid!
Phytase is the enzyme that neutralizes / reduces phytic acid and liberates the phosphorus. This enzyme co-exists in plant foods that contain phytic acid. This enzyme is activated during sprouting and fermentation process thus reducing phytic acid.
Phytase (which reduces phytic acid) is destroyed by high temperatures that happen during processing a food – like preparing cornflakes, museli and biscuits. In addition to this enzyme being destroyed, these foods contain no natural micronutrients (vitamins and minerals) and only added synthetic micronutrients - leading to havoc in long term with digestion.
This is why it is not recommended to eat processed foods like wheatflakes, cornflakes, museli, oats bran biscuits, rice cakes, instant oats, sweetened almonds and fancy nuts as nutrients have been destroyed completely in high temperatures and phytase is killed completely which means phytic acid content remains high.
That is why at Fitgalaxy we ask our clients to completely avoid all processed and packaged food, whether you have gut issues or not - as taking these foods is definitely not nature’s way to provide us nutrition. Such foods add zero value to your life whatsoever and make you micronutrient deficient with compounding digestive issues and sooner or later - these lead to medical bills and hospital visits!
We hope the above logic against processed and packaged foods is clear and also why we should switch to traditional form of preparation of food.
If you have any questions or would like to discuss any point or share your personal experience please feel to drop a message in the comments below and let us know how you feel about the article and if you have seen any benefits of soaking and fermentation process and traditional cooking methods
References:
https://scialert.net/fulltextmobile/?doi=ajpnft.2011.1.22
https://chriskresser.com/another-reason-you-shouldnt-go-nuts-on-nuts/