Summary
Lectins are a type of protein found in some plants. There are thousands of kinds of lectins, and some of them are now blamed for digestive problems, obesity, brain fog, and a slew of autoimmune diseases. But many of the plants that contain lectins could be among the healthiest foods in the modern diet. So what’s the truth? Should you eat them or not?
In case you were thinking of reading chapter 11 of Biochemistry, 5th edition, today, I’ll save you the time. Lectins are proteins that bind to carbohydrates. They’re all over the place in nature — in plants, animals, and many kinds of microorganisms — and there are thousands of different kinds.
The word lectin comes from the Latin “legere,” meaning “to select,” because it was thought that they choose the carbohydrates to which they bind. You can think of lectins as the bumps and holes in Lego blocks, which are unrelated to the Latin word “legere” (but it would be fun if they were).
Some researchers think plants evolved lectins to protect themselves against pests and pathogens. This protective effect is similar to that of other phytochemicals, such as flavonoids, which serve as natural defenses in plants and are extremely good for us as well.
Where Are Lectins Found?
Lectins are found in a wide variety of both animal and plant foods. One review estimates that about 30% of foods contain lectins.
Foods High in Lectins
Some of the foods richest in lectins include:
Looking over that list, we can see a few categories of lectin-rich foods: legumes, nuts, grains, fruits, and nightshade vegetables. While the amount of lectins in individual ingredients can vary greatly, these categories of foods generally contain high levels.
The Lectin Controversy: Why the Real Story Is More Interesting Than You’ve Heard
The primary reason there is controversy over eating lectins today is the best-selling book The Plant Paradox by Dr. Steven Gundry. The book, released in 2017, advocates a lectin-free diet.
The author claims that lectins adversely impact your gut flora — the bacteria that live in your digestive system — which can lead to a whole slew of unwanted effects. He claims that many people suffer from lectin intolerance or sensitivity, symptoms of which can include gas, bloating, nausea, diarrhea, fatigue, aching joints, and even allergic reactions after eating them.
The Plant Paradox goes so far as to say that lectins are the biggest dietary danger to our health and may even be killing us. Dr. Gundry warns against eating beans, nuts, and many fruits and vegetables, urging us to remove lectins from our diets.
What benefits purportedly come from eating a lectin-free diet? The main claims include improved digestion, more energy, less gas and bloating after eating, better mood and brainpower, and even improved weight control.
Those are some pretty bold promises. So what’s the deal? Are these claims backed up by research? Do we have studies demonstrating that the purported benefits of a lectin-free diet are real?
Let’s look at the science.
For Most People, Most of the Time, Lectin-Rich Foods Are Among the Healthiest You Can Eat
An admission: When I started working on this article, I thought the simple message would be that lectins are great and Dr Gundry is making everything up. But as I dug into the research, I changed my mind. The science on lectins turns out to be genuinely fascinating, and way more nuanced than either Gundry’s alarming claims or a flat dismissal of his concerns would suggest.
A 2024 review in the journal Heliyon found that lectins can either fuel or calm inflammation, depending on the type of lectin, how much is eaten, and the person’s immune system. Some lectins, such as those in soybeans and wheat, may promote inflammation. Others appeared to reduce it in animal studies. Mushroom lectins were generally nontoxic and affected immune activity. Most of this research was done in cells and animals, and the authors say there is still no conclusive evidence that dietary lectins cause autoimmune disease.
The review concludes that whether a lectin is harmful or helpful depends heavily on which lectin it is, how much of it you consume, and the specific biological environment it encounters. In other words, the science doesn’t support a one-size-fits-all verdict; lumping all lectins together as either villains or heroes misses the point entirely.
And — a little foreshadowing here — while nuance is good when searching for truth, a message demonizing all lectins turns out to be far more effective at selling supplements.
Here’s what the research shows: Most lectins in properly cooked whole foods are not only harmless for most people but also actively beneficial. Some lectins have such powerful anticancer properties that researchers are investigating them as therapies.
Others, in specific contexts and with specific people, can cause problems.
Let’s start by looking at the “good” lectins and what benefits they can deliver. First, Dr. Gundry gets it right: plant lectins bind to carbohydrates, which slows their digestion. The thing is, this is actually a feature, not a bug.
Lectins can lower the glycemic index of carbohydrates, contributing to the weight loss and anti-diabetes effects of beans and many other plant foods. This may be one reason that high-lectin foods like beans, along with many fruits and vegetables, are among the healthiest foods we can eat. In general, the more you eat, the lower your risk for heart disease, cancer, type 2 diabetes, and Alzheimer’s.
Higher legume intake is associated with lower colorectal cancer risk and a small reduction in prostate cancer risk in meta-analyses of cohort studies. For breast cancer, a dose-response meta-analysis found no significant association with legumes, although total fiber intake has been linked to lower risk.There’s a type of lectin found in mushrooms that’s been found to inhibit the growth of cancer cells. And, probably not coincidentally, mushrooms are another food offering powerful protection against cancer. Tomatoes are high in lectins as well as the powerful antioxidant lycopene, which has shown extraordinary anticancer effects.
Laboratory and animal studies suggest that lectins from several foods, including soybeans and mushrooms, have anticancer activity, and some are being investigated as potential therapies.
Lectins may help fight some cancers
A 2017 report described plant lectins as potential diagnostic and therapeutic tools for cancers of the digestive system. The evidence summarized comes from cancer cell lines and experimental models, and the authors note there is little evidence for their use in esophageal cancer.
Concanavalin A, a lectin from jack beans, kills cancer cells in laboratory models and is being studied as a drug candidate. Because it also binds normal cells and causes liver injury in animal models, it is a research compound, not evidence that the lectins in a bowl of beans protect against cancer.
The journal Cancers even created a 2025 special issue dedicated entirely to “Lectins in Cancer.” (I guess that’s kind of like when People magazine has a special issue like “Cher at 80” or “Michael J Fox: His Inspiring Career”?) The researchers focused on lectin interactions with the tumor microenvironment and how they can be used to diagnose and treat cancer. This is a highly active and growing area of research.
Some people feel better when they avoid lectins
Despite all the apparent benefits of lectins, some people genuinely do report feeling better after cutting out lectin-rich foods. One likely explanation has nothing to do with lectins specifically: Eliminating grains and nightshade vegetables may, for some people, coincide with cutting out processed flour, refined sugar, and calorie-dense packaged foods. And any move away from ultraprocessed foods is likely to drive improvement.
For people with diagnosed autoimmune conditions like rheumatoid arthritis or lupus, a temporary low-lectin elimination trial under the guidance of a registered dietitian may be worth exploring to identify specific triggers.
Not because lectins are inherently dangerous, but because individual biology is real and your experience in your own body matters. For example, people with a compromised gut lining or specific digestive conditions may find that certain lectins cause irritation. In those cases, the issue isn’t that beans or eggplant are inherently harmful, but that the person’s digestive environment may need to be strengthened to digest these foods without gas, bloating, or other issues. This is a real phenomenon that deserves a real answer, and it’s one that a qualified healthcare professional can help you navigate.
(Food Revolution Summit speakers James and Dahlia Marin lead a team of registered dietitians who help people resolve complex gut health issues. You can find out more about their work here.)
Who Should Avoid Lectins?
Anyone with a diagnosed food allergy should avoid the foods they react to. People with digestive conditions such as irritable bowel syndrome may be more likely to notice symptoms like gas and bloating after eating lectin-rich foods, and eating less of the foods that cause problems is a reasonable approach. If you have IBD, IBS, or an autoimmune disease and are considering a lectin-free approach like the one in The Plant Paradox, talk with your clinician or a registered dietitian first.
As in all things, listen to your own body. You are the only you on the planet. Just because most of the lectin-rich foods are shown, in numerous studies, to be beneficial to human health doesn’t mean they’re necessarily right for all people, all the time — or for you, right now.
A small percentage of the population does have a sensitivity to lectins, just as some people must avoid wheat, corn, fruit, and tree nuts. But one person’s walnut allergy doesn’t mean that another person should refrain from eating walnuts.
If you do notice any side effects after eating lectin-rich foods, then you might have a sensitivity to certain lectins (or to other components of those foods), and you might want to consider reducing or avoiding them — or making sure they’re adequately cooked. There are some people, for example, who don’t do well eating large amounts of raw tomatoes. But they can typically handle abundant pasta sauce and other forms of cooked tomatoes without a problem.
Although eating certain lectins could present difficulties in some situations, it’s highly unlikely that you’re eating a diet high in uncooked or undercooked lectins of the problematic variety. I don’t know anyone who reaches for a handful of raw, uncooked kidney beans when their stomach starts rumbling.
The Truth About Lectin Toxicity
Given all that overwhelming evidence in favor of common lectin-containing foods, what evidence does Dr. Gundry marshal to support his claim that lectins are the Devil’s proteins? (He doesn’t refer to them in those words, but I think it’s a pretty catchy phrase. Looks like I missed my calling as an anti-lectin marketer!)
In some cases, it’s a flimsy case of guilt by association.
Dr. Gundry and his fellow “lectophobes” (I’m pretty sure I just made that word up) like to point out that one of the lectins found in castor beans, a compound called ricin, is one of the deadliest poisons ever discovered. In 1978, Bulgarian dissident Georgi Markov was attacked in London with a ricin pellet fired from a modified umbrella and died four days later. The killing is attributed to Bulgaria’s State Security, with Soviet assistance reported. Injected ricin is a very different exposure from eating a food.
It’s not just castor beans that can deliver a toxic dose of lectins (with or without a spring-loaded umbrella). Raw kidney beans contain a lectin called phytohaemagglutinin (PHA), which can cause extreme nausea, severe vomiting, and diarrhea, and in some people abdominal pain, when raw or undercooked beans are eaten. As few as four or five raw beans can trigger symptoms.
The important distinction is between lectins in raw or seriously undercooked food, where toxicity is real and well-documented, and lectins in properly prepared whole foods, where the picture is almost entirely positive for most people.
For example, raw red kidney beans contain 20,000 to 70,000 hemagglutinating units (hau), a measure of PHA activity. Fully cooked beans contain 200 to 400, roughly 50 to 350 times less.
These are not the same thing, and treating them as if they were is one of the main sleights of hand in the anti-lectin argument.
Most Lectins Are Beneficial in Small Amounts
You might be thinking, “Well, if some lectins are pro-inflammatory, and others are used by Russian assassins, should I just steer clear?” After all, if the evolutionary purpose of lectins is to create “plant poisons” to prevent them from predation, why would you want to poison yourself?
The answer becomes clear when we look at the other phytonutrients: compounds in plants that are really good for us (and often indispensable to our health). It’s actually the mild stress of a tiny amount of “poison” that triggers healing responses in our bodies. Kind of like the stress of lifting heavy weights that makes our muscle fibers respond by growing stronger.
The fancy name for good stress that forces us to grow stronger is “hormesis.” Without experiencing regular doses of hormesis in the form of small, manageable challenges, we become fragile to our environments and do not thrive. The keywords here are small and manageable.
If you look up hormesis in a scientific textbook, you’ll see a bunch of graphs shaped like the letters U or J that illustrate the dose-response nature of the phenomenon. That is, a small amount of some toxins is actually good for you, while a larger dose is not. And a large enough dose (like that contained in killer KGB umbrellas) will kill you.
That’s one part of the answer to Dr. Gundry’s so-called “Plant Paradox.” The other part is that not all lectins behave the same way, which means the solution isn’t to avoid all lectin-containing foods, but to understand which ones work for your particular body and the best ways to prepare them.
Reducing Lectins in Food
Now, you might be worried about your daily lectin intake. How can you be sure you’re not getting too much and drifting into KGB umbrella territory through your irresponsibly enthusiastic consumption of lentils, eggplant, and barley?
Luckily, cooking inactivates most lectins. Yes, eating a bunch of raw kidney beans will give you a miserable case of vomiting and diarrhea. But before that happens, eating raw kidney beans will give you a miserable case of broken teeth. So why on earth would you be eating raw or seriously undercooked kidney beans?
Lectins in raw or undercooked beans are a real risk, but cooked properly, beans are safe for most people. In fact, even Dr. Gundry concedes that when beans are pressure-cooked (as all canned beans are), they’re pretty safe.
The problem with this admission is that it can still mislead people into thinking that legumes are dangerous and must be processed with all the care and attention generally reserved for a half-pound of plutonium. The truth is, beans are a staple of some of the longest-lived people on earth. And I’m pretty confident that Sardinian peasants and Okinawan farmers haven’t been using Instant Pots to neutralize their lectins for the past hundred years.
Start by soaking dried beans for at least five hours. Soaking helps reduce lectins a little but It also shortens cooking time, by roughly 40 to 55 percent in one study of pinto beans, and it lowers oxalates and the sugars that can cause gas. Because lectins and these sugars are water-soluble, drain the soaking water instead of cooking with it. Then boil the beans in fresh water for at least 30 minutes (some guidance says at least 10 minutes at a vigorous boil). Boiling does most of the work of inactivating lectins.
Don’t cook raw kidney beans in a slow cooker. Temperatures below boiling can fail to destroy PHA, and beans heated to about 80 °C were reported to be five times as toxic as raw. Boil them first, or use canned beans, which are fully cooked and low in lectins.
Sprouting and fermenting can also reduce lectin content. In one study, fermenting lentils for 72 hours destroyed almost all of their lectins.
And remember: For most commonly eaten foods prepared with standard cooking methods, lectin levels are not a meaningful concern for most people.
What the Broader Scientific Community Says
Given the lack of controlled evidence for Dr. Gundry’s argument, and the risk that people who cut out beans and other lectin-rich plant foods may lose the benefits those foods offer, I don’t want to portray this as just another vigorous debate among thoughtful scientists.
To understand the anti-lectin movement, you need to follow the money.
Dr. Gundry’s solution to the Plant Paradox is a suite of supplements and programs — a lectin shield, a range of “must-have” products, and various membership offerings. His widely aired infomercials and marketing campaigns aren’t free. It would seem likely that his company is recouping its investment through high-volume repeat sales.
A nuanced, individualized message about which lectins matter for which people in which contexts doesn’t sell supplements. A simple villain narrative (“lectins are deadly and these pills and powders will protect you”) does. When the science is genuinely complex, it’s worth asking who benefits most from flattening it into something scary and simple.
Yes, some people should limit their exposure to lectins. But I think that the vast majority of us should probably dismiss Dr. Gundry’s assertions out of hand. The truth is that the foods Dr. Gundry warns against are among the most studied, most protective foods in the human diet. Telling people to avoid them has real consequences.
Should You Eat Lectins?
The evidence is clear. For most people, properly prepared lectin-rich whole foods are among the most powerful disease-fighting foods available. These foods provide plenty of vitamins, minerals, and other nutrients that are great for human health. When it comes to adverse reactions to eating lectins, most people don’t experience these as long as cooking methods are adequate. Soaking and cooking legumes can minimize the potential side effects.
I’ve seen a lot of nutritional nonsense, but I have to say that telling people to avoid plant foods such as beans, berries, and tomatoes because they contain lectins strikes me as generally (though not always) terrible advice. Here we are, with soaring rates of chronic diseases that are clearly linked to eating too many low-nutrient, low-fiber, sugar-enhanced, heavily processed foods, yet we’re being warned against eating some of the healthiest foods on the planet.
My advice? Don’t buy the oversimplification in either direction. The science on lectins is genuinely interesting and shows that most lectin-rich whole foods, properly prepared, are among the most powerful disease-fighting foods available to us.
For most people, most of the time, beans, tomatoes, berries, and whole grains are not the problem. They’re a big part of the solution.
If you have specific digestive or autoimmune conditions, work with a clinician to figure out what works for your body. And if someone is selling you a supplement to solve a problem that cooking your beans already solves for free, be a little skeptical.
Tell us in the comments:
- What do you think?
- Do you eat lectins? Why or why not?
Featured Image: iStock.com/malerapaso
I really appreciated this well researched and informative article. I always suspected the financial gain motive for the bad reputation he gives lectins. Also really glad to know I should boil legumes at least 30 minutes before adding them to my crackpot. Well written and very helpful
I’m a nut for a nut and wouldn’t be without my beans, of all kinds. I’m a dowser of many decades and my pendulum will tell me when it’s not a good day for beans or nuts. No such thing as one-size-fits-all. Thanks for this brilliant article!
I’m very glad that this article resonated with you, Janet–thanks very much. –Ina, Food Revolution Network Team
I depend on pulses as a protein source since I have been on a whole food plant based diet for several years. I seem to be far healthier than I was when I didn’t eat as many beans and did eat meat, fish, eggs, and dairy. I also use plenty of various seeds and nuts. Lectin certainly does not seem to be a problem for me.
Hi Holly! Sprouting and fermenting are two of the oldest ways people have made beans tastier and easier to digest, and both are very doable at home.
Mung beans, lentils, chickpeas, and adzuki beans are the easiest to start with. If you can, buy seeds or beans sold specifically for sprouting, since those are usually tested for harmful bacteria.
=Rinse the beans and pick out any stones or broken pieces.
=Put a few tablespoons in a clean quart jar, cover with plenty of cool water, and soak for 8 to 12 hours.
=Drain, rinse, and cover the jar with a sprouting screen or cheesecloth held on with a rubber band. Rest it upside down at an angle so the water can drain, away from direct sunlight.
=Rinse and drain two or three times a day. Most beans grow little tails in 2 to 5 days.
When they’re the size you like, give them a final rinse, drain well, and refrigerate. Use them within a few days, and throw out any that look slimy or smell musty.
Two safety notes are worth knowing. Kidney beans contain a natural compound that can make you quite sick if they’re eaten raw or undercooked. Boil them thoroughly after sprouting, and if you sprout larger beans in general, cooking them is the safer choice. Sprouts also grow in the same warm, moist conditions that bacteria like. For that reason, the CDC advises children, older adults, pregnant people, and anyone with a weakened immune system to avoid raw sprouts and to cook them thoroughly instead.
Home bean ferments come in a few main types, and some are much simpler than others.
-Dosa or idli batter is a great first project. You soak rice and urad dal (split black lentils), grind them into a batter, and leave it somewhere warm overnight until it’s bubbly and has risen. You don’t need a special starter, and you cook the batter into crepes or steamed cakes.
-Tempeh takes a little more setup. You cook dehulled soybeans (chickpeas and other beans work too), cool and dry them, mix in a tempeh starter culture, and pack them into bags poked with small holes. The beans then need a steady warm spot, around 85 to 90°F, for a day or two, until a white mold binds them into a firm cake. An oven with only the light on often works. Cook tempeh before you eat it.
-Miso and natto are bigger projects. Miso uses a cultured grain called koji and ages for months, and natto uses a specific bacterial starter on cooked soybeans. For either one, a tested recipe from a trusted fermentation book is your best guide.
With any ferment, start with clean equipment and follow a tested recipe closely. If something smells rotten, or you see fuzzy mold in pink, green, or yellow, it’s safest to throw it out. (With tempeh, the white coating is supposed to be there, and a few gray or black patches near the air holes are normal too.)
If you’re pregnant, managing a health condition, or have a weakened immune system, we can’t give personalized medical advice, so it’s a good idea to talk with your health care provider about which raw or fermented foods are a good fit for you. I hope this helps! –Ina, Food Revolution Network Team
Thanks again for your question, and for your support of the Food Revolution Network community. I hope this information is helpful, and happy sprouting!
Thanks for the feedback, Patty. I’m glad the article resonated with you. –Ina, Food Revolution Network Team
Hi Olwen! We published an article on the blood type diet that may be of interest to you: https://foodrevolution.org/blog/does-science-support-the-blood-type-diet/. –Ina, Food Revolution Network Team
You’re very welcome, Tina! Thank you for the feedback. –Ina, Food Revolution Network Team
Thanks so much for posting this, Leslie! We are happy to have you here in our community. –Ina, Food Revolution Network Team
Thank you for sharing that, Marilyn. It may be very helpful for others that have the same issues. –Ina, Food Revolution Network Team
We’re so happy you enjoyed this one, Dorothea! — Ina, Food Revolution Network Team
Thank you for your feedback, Leslie–and thanks so much for being here in our community! –Ina, Food Revolution Network Team
You are very welcome, Bobbi. Thank you for reading! –Ina, Food Revolution Network Team
I’m so glad you enjoyed this article, Kathy! –Ina, Food Revolution Network Team
Hi everyone….I came back to see if there was an answer to my question about lentils do they need to be soaked like other beans? and there wasn’t so I finally for the first time used the wellness buddy. I must say it was very helpful I will be using it more often for sure, thank you Ocean for this great tool!
The answer about soaking lentils: Not usually.
Lentils are the exception among dried beans and legumes: they cook quickly and don’t need a soak before cooking.
If you want, soaking lentils for a few hours or overnight can help with digestibility and can cut cooking time a bit.
Rinse them well first to remove any debris or small pebbles.
Red lentils can be a little dusty, so an extra rinse is helpful.
For comparison, most dried beans do benefit from soaking before cooking, especially if you want them easier to digest. How to Use Lentils + 7 Healthy Lentil Recipes · The Benefits of Beans: Why They Deserve a Place in Your Diet
Would you like a simple stovetop method for cooking lentils too?
We are glad to hear you enjoyed the article, Laurie!
– Maritza, Community Experience Team
Glad to hear you enjoyed this, Jackie!
Maritza – Community Experience Team
I love you! 😁 Well said! I always check the source. “Research shows…” doesn’t cut it. In order to trust the claims, I need several citations from reputable scholarly journals about studies (not funded by an involved entity), or preferably, a meta analysis. Thank you, Ocean! I love your wit!
Thank you, Ocean. You are a trusted ethical source of important nutritional information.
Thank you for this article. I LOVE beans and legumes. I do not want to stop eating them. I am familiar with Gundry and use some of his products. We grow our own tomatoes and I love them. Thank you again.
Your advice is excellent. As a nutritionist and health educator, I agree with you fully. Thank you for your clear explanations.
Facts are definitely helpful.
Thank you so much for presenting factual information not filled with hyperbole and scare tactics. I appreciate the work you do to keep us healthy!
Thank you for the kind words and feedback, America! We appreciate you! –Ina, Food Revolution Network Team
If I’m not mistaken, D’Adamo’s book ties in the theory of evolution which is a flawed science in itself. I’m wary of any advice connected to that.
First of all, I agree with you completely. I loved your article—your writing even made me laugh out loud more than once. When I saw the ads from (Dr.) Gundry, I actually felt compelled to write to him about how irresponsible those messages are. Unfortunately, those kinds of ads tend to spread the fastest because of the money behind them.
I follow you, Dr. Fuhrman, and The Goodness Lover because I’ve experienced real, meaningful changes in my own health through your programs. I have firsthand proof that what you teach works, and it makes more sense to me than anything else I’ve tried.
Thank you so much for everything you do. Please don’t ever stop.
Thank you for this article. It is well researched. I especially enjoyed your humor. I have seen Dr. Gundry’s sales tactics on FB and had felt it was a gimmick, since I am aware that the longest lived people and cultures make beans a staple of their diets. I saw Dr. McGregor similarly reveal the health benefits of beans in response to Dave Asprey saying that beans are bad for you. 🙂 Your thoughtful approach to sharing your research and the current findings around lectins was very helpful. I appreciate your fair minded exploration of this subject. It reminded me to be open minded even when I don’t agree or think the science is bunk, as in the case against beans. Thanks again!
The article was very helpful because as a vegan I eat lots of different legumes. I cook them in the pressure cooker and have no problems with digestion. Thanks for your enlightening work.
I am vegan and have IBS. Beans are an important source of protein for me, but they also trigger my IBS symptoms. I found that taking enzymes specifically designed to help digest beans and legumes before eating them has been the solution for me. I can now eat beans without experiencing bloating or cramps.
Thank you so much Ocean for taking the time to clear up some concerns around lectins. We eat lectins daily as we have been eating mostly plant based for about 10 years. The change came from finding Food Revolution Network…I will be forever grateful for you and your Dad, it has changed our lives with the education that you have provided. I know that you mentioned lentils in this article we eat them often in soup…I’m not sure if we’ve been preparing lentils correctly as we do not soak them like we do all the other beans. Could you please address lentils for us, the proper way to prepare them, you mentioned fermenting but I wasn’t clear if you meant that for the lentils. Thank you so much Ocean WE so appreciate you and your Dad, we miss him dearly!
I love this comment. I love those foods also and have started eating beans daily. I feeling more healthy. Thanks Ocean. You are an amazing person who loves people and you are giving such excellent information out to us who would otherwise not have it. Thank you.
Great information on a topic I’ve been skeptical about. Yes I eat lectins and love them. And I soak my beans; drain them; bring to a boil; cook until done.. you might add a list of what “lectins” might be in, IF in certain stages such as a raw bean. 🫘
It would have been more honest if Dr Gundry had noted the facts about reducing the lectins in foods instead of eliminating such nutritional foods in exchange for his expensive supplements!
Thank you Ocean for exposing the simple facts!
Dr Gundry charges huge amounts of money for his supplements.
I have followed Dr. Peter D’Adamo since his first book came out in the early 90’s. He advocates that it depends on your blood type as to which lectins are a problem for your blood type. Fortunately my blood type is A and is well suited to the Food Network’s advice on a plant based diet. When I ate meat I had bad digestive problems and severe inflammation. When I follow the blood type diet, which is mostly plant based, and stay clear of problem lectins for my blood type, I have no problems.
I love reading your articles and watching your yearly seminars Ocean, thank you for all you do.
Always a delight to read your research.
Thank you Ocean , and team
Holly Mandara 💐
I am sooooo happy to have read this article. I have frequently read Dr. Gundry’s infomercials on Fb. Each time, I have been skeptical for the reasons that you mention. Readin the above gave me a sense of relief. I eat beans and lots of nuts, but sometimes I feel a sense of apprehension when I eat almond with the skin on or many o his other no no’s. Makes me crazy. And that’s just him. There are others with the same kinds of scary warnings. Thank you!!!
How do you ferment beans and how do you sprout them? Great article. Thank you.
I agree with you. I eat everything on that list with lectins because those are my breakfast and dinner. They need to be soaked and cooked properly. Who eats raw beans???
Thank you so much Ocean. I love your demonstration ! I have always been skeptikal about Dr Gundry.
I like your humour and logic…eating raw kidney beans will crack your teeth before anything else…WHO eats raw beans?? There is so much sensationalism out there to scare us. I have spent years honing down the best knowledge I could (mostly from Food revolution) and have decided not to get neurotic. 12 years a Vegan, I avoid processed and artificial foods, take Omega 3 EPA DHA and B12 supplements D3 and K. Lots of greens, beans, veg. and fruit. Soy yogurt, whole grains, tofu, oatmeal, almond butter. NOT THAT HARD. I am healthy and keep a constant weight. Feel great….appreciate your input, research….and humour!
I too bought into a Dr. Gundry product that did not do what he claimed it would, he is not to be trusted
I was so intertained by this article for 2 reasons:
1. I never knew people ate raw beans! And this article did answer some of my questions over the last month about minor digestive issues from beans, my doctor(s) know next to nothing about nutrition. And because of this article, I know that I’m doing all the right things when preparing my raw beans before eating.
and
2. Calling out Dr. Gundry because I was involved with another one of his pitches and bought his product when later I found he wasn’t even 50% truthful in what he was saying and that was why his product didn’t do everything he said it would, he is not to be trusted at all, at least not by me.
Thank you!!
As an 80-yr-old who has made beans a staple in my life, I very much appreciate your balanced view! So much Dr Gundry has said I disagree with. I LOVE beans! … and tomatoes, and most other veggies. And I believe that is why I’m so healthy! (And I’m having beans and cornbread for lunch.)
I am from Japan and I was a very healthy individual until I started eating an American lifestyle. My family told me that I needed to stop eating the American foods containing a many chemicals but I have ignored the warning.
2013 I was diagnosed with 3 major chronic illnesses, Diabetes, Cancer, and Valley fever. I started researching what will helps me to recover from my illness and that’s when I saw the Foods revolution network.
Mr. John Robbins and Mr. Ocean Robbins has changed my lifestyles from eating meats, processed foods, and salads every days to the Organic Plant based whole foods, low fat lifestyle. I am 75 years old and free from all 3 illnesses I had and I have been free for almost 8 years. I didn’t go through the conventional treatment and I have followed through Natural Path doctors and my Grandmother( she was natural path)in Japan. It took me few years to recover but I am a healthiest 75 years old now, walking and running 3 miles a day for 6 years and most people asked me how old I am when I told my age, they asked me what am I eating and what am I taking to stay energetic? I just say the plant based whole foods lifestyle but no one believes so I tell them about the food revolution network to find out.
Mr. John Robbins and Mr. Ocean Robbins.
I can’t express my gratitudes in words, Thank you!
Thank you for this wonderful article of Lectins. I believe that you are so right and appreciate your approach as to letting us in on how to understand it all.
Hello Ocean , this article about lectins is so true and interessant ! Our metabolism is complicated and different from one person to another , you have to observe and listen your body to know what is good and what is bad for you ! I’m sick of all the internet presentations ( Gaudry entre autres ) which claims to gond the best solution for everyone !
It’s always the plaisir to read ( or hear) you ! I’m biochemist but l learn a lot from yours approaches.
Thank you, Ocean, for confronting the oversimplification of Gundry’s “advice” with clear truth. Let science speak and thanks for making the research understandable and available to us. I bought into Gundry’s deceitful marketing years ago but quickly realized it’s just about the money. Expensive lesson. I follow Dr. Fuhrman’s Nutritarian Diet and beans are very important for me. Dr. Greger (www.nutritionfacts.org) provided research on IBD that suggested eating a little less fat when eating beans could help with decreasing the amount of gassy discomfort that can happen to some people.
And oh yeah, having been vegan forever we eat lots of legumes, nightshade plants and pay a little attention to Gundry, but more to you.
Thank you Ocean!!!! One of your best articles!! I so appreciate your research, sharing and clear, easy to understand explanations. And you make me laugh a lot. Love your sense of humor!!! My partner, Tom Harvey, had a tv show, the Eco Review, on public tv in Santa Cruz, CA for years, had your father on and we have always loved and paid attention to his and your messages.
I eat all variety of beans and si dar, I have not had a problem.
Thanks for a clear, thorough explanation with a wonderful balance of seriousness and lightheartedness!
Thank you for covering this topic. It helps with the perspectives given by many sources. Unfortunately, too many people look for this information to give them a reason for being able to eat certain foods. I’ve just recently been alerted to the Dr. Gundry studies. I think those studies make a lot of sense. People have to get past the “don’t eat this” phase and look at the reasoning and studies behind it. If people are healthy, then why even look to eliminating foods when they are not affected by something? If you have problems, then maybe you should look into these studies and try eliminating some foods. If your health improves, that should give you a good hint about revising and simplifying your diet. I stopped certain medications because I researched what problems they could cause. This led to amazing improvements. Do your own research and listen to your body rather than look for the advice that you prefer to hear.
Thanks for that article Ocean,you have a great sense of humour !I feel you nailed it ,diet and nutrition is such a personal thing, in my case I have trialed and erred to get my own food protocols , also depending on what’s actually available without having toxins in the food is a real concern.When I first seen Dr Gundy’s information it spun me a little ,this is too common online ,people saying stuff that affects people’s perspective negatively on something that could be good for you is really not cool ,especially when your a Dr of medicine,I feel it’s quite dangerous actually,thanks for shedding some light on this topic .🤗✨
I really enjoyed that so well written article. especially always enjoy when you insert your humor!🤗. Good to learn that slow cooker not a good idea with raw beans. thank you, Peggy K
Your article is very informative and I am glad I read it. I love all kinds of beans, tomatoes, etc. Thank you.
Thats an eye opener for me. I have been cooking all beans including Kidney beans in my slow cooker on High. Can I continue to do that or do I need to find an alternative way? Thank you for your comments
As with all things. I think eating certain foods in moderation may be the best choice. I think cooked spinach and tomatoes work best for my system. I eat those raw in moderation. Our bodies may be the same. But it’s apparent that we sometimes have different responses to different things.
Thank you so much for your thoughtful and balanced article. I have questioned Dr. Laundry’s recommendations and you have confirmed my belief.
Thank you for your take on the lectin controversy. I follow Dr Gundrys diet and felt it was a God-send tome of info that helped me control IBS symptoms. I can tolerate small amounts of lectin foods like nightshades and beans but literally 10 beans only. I’m very sensitive to peanuts and cashews and corn. Can’t eat them. So Dr Gundry made a huge difference in how I feel and appreciate what he has provided. But like you say, each person is different.
Thank you Ocean, for taking on the lectin controversy! I appreciate your time and energy researching this topic, deep in my heart I did not believe Dr. Gundry’s claims. Now I feel even better continuing on with my wonderful, whole food, plant based diet! I’m going to go soak some beans right now!
Spot On Allan..
I adopted a Vegan Lifestyle @ 20 Years Old. 77 Now, Enjoying A Healthy, Happy, Fulfilling Lifestyle!
I have beans everyday. Being a vegetarian I need beans and some grains. I do mostly gluten free except some Ezekiel bread. I eat lots of nuts and seeds fruits and veggies.
I react to ALL of these foods on the list, but aren’t they also high FODMAP as well? I have IBS and have had a duodenal switch gastric bypass.
Thank you for a well written, informative and interesting article — I did not know the importance of proper cooking of beans! I am glad that you emphasized the importance of the individual and their health status resulting in widely variable responses to food choices.
These articles that you publish are a very good format for me – I can read them when I have time. It has been difficult for me to find the time to commit to a multi-day, time limited format. Thank you!
Well done and very clear article! Thank you, Ocean, for this invaluable research. I always wondered about those infomercial claims which totally go against what millions of people eat in the healthiest regions of the world.
Thank you so much for your explanations on this topic. It has bothered me for a while, but I did start feeling like everything Dr Gundry researched was attached to a money-making product and I did wonder at the blanket approach on foods that had other wonderful nutritious qualities.
Thank you so much for this article ! I have stopped following Dr. Gundry as he seems so self serving ! I greatly appreciate you and thank you for your courage with this article !
The voice of reason in a a profit driven world! Thank you, Ocean! As is so often the case, moderation in everything… and follow the cooking directions!
Thank you so much for clarifying the truth about lectins! I don’t totally avoid but do limit. I don’t avoid simply because I have experimented and have not found home grown peppers and tomatoes bothering my arthritis. I do buy the pressure cooked beans. We should Not be afraid of a whole foods from nature. Enough already. Again, thank you for this article!!
Thank you Jessica for bringing needed balance to this‘discussion’ on Dr Gundry’s nutritional advice, which perhaps is very inappropriately intertwined with a discussion of his character and integrity .
Few can claim credit for the number and magnitude of Dr Gundry’s achievements …let’s respect him first for his admirable well intended contributions to humanity… then decide if his nutritional advice applies to our body type or not, and act accordingly.
If Dr Gundry is following his own advice it’s working well for him, still actively working in his seventies to better the human condition.
May we all fare (and contribution) this well in our golden years!!!
Hooray for calling out the Food Fear Fadists! So many of the foods that God gave us to provide life and health have been vilified by so called “experts.”
Or did you mean below 80° C? It seems to be worded poorly.
Is the cooking beans to 80° Celcius (making them 5x more toxic then raw) incorrect? Water boils at 100° C.
I eat black beans, lentils, pinto beans, etc regularly because they are so good for you.
I have been following Dr. Gundry’s Plant Paradox for years and have recently been questioning his approach, which I think you have summed up adequately. The more I listen to his infomercials the more I become convinced that he uses scar tactics to sell his products.
THANK YOU for this utterly enlightening article. There is no escaping his infomercials and, even if partially informative and true and well delivered, there is a lot that is left out and the business driving them is relentless. Thank you agar for all you do.
Hello Ocean,
I’m glad to see you talking about lectins. I read Dr. Gundry’s book over a year ago and began a lectin-free diet following his program. It has made a huge difference in my health. I also lost an additional 35 pounds after losing an initial 30 following an anti-inflammatory diet that still contained lectins but eliminated dairy, sugar, grains, alcohol, and most fruits. It allowed 4 oz of approved protein 2x/day and 4 oz of approved vegetables 2x/day, all the leafy greens you wanted, avocado and olive oil, and up to 4 eggs per day.
That has been my continued diet except without eating lectin-rich foods, nightshade fruits and vegetables (I have fibromyalgia), and any prepared foods or baking ingredients that contain corn, oats, quinoa, wheat, or soy flours. I also only eat wild-caught fish almost daily, pastured eggs, pastured chicken 1-2 times a month, and grass-fed beef 1-2 times a month.
You mention in your article that “Most lectins in properly cooked whole foods are not only harmless for most people but also actively beneficial.” Dr. Gundry stated in his book that some legumes and quinoa can be pressure-cooked to reduce or eliminate the lectins. I’ve tried this, and for me that works. Otherwise, I get gas and bloating when eating most lectin-rich foods.
I have missed eating garbanzos, red kidney beans, and black beans since my initial research did not confirm that they were pressure-cooked. Your statement that all canned beans are pressure-cooked was an eye-opener. I also confirmed that the industrial process does include pressure-cooking beans in the can, which simultaneously sterilizes the product.
Thank you for writing this article and shedding more light on the lectin issue.
Randy, I also follow Dr. D’Adamo’s Eat Right For Your Blood Type Diet in combination with a largely lectin-free diet based on Dr. Gundry’s book that Ocean discussed in this article. I’m a Type A , so mostly vegetarian, vs. my husband who is an O like you. The combo is working for me to eliminate pain and inflammation; however, I’m going to try re-introducing some legumes to see how my body handles those.
Mary – I had never considered pressure cooking brown rice and have been avoiding it because of the lectins. I may try that. I love the nutty flavor.
I’m a meat eater who also loves beans. I’ve followed vegan, vegetarian, and macrobiotic diets in the past. I incorporate some of those principles in my omnivore diet. I always soak beans at least 12 hours. I drain and rinse the beans and put fresh filtered water, a little salt, and a piece of kombu in with the beans and pressure cook in my instant pot. I do not get gas from properly cooked beans and I believe the kombu has a lot to do with it. Also pressure cooked brown rice results in a wonderful texture. (lessons learned from my days following macrobiotic way of cooking)
Great information. I appreciate your approach was nuanced by opposing perspectives.
Right on target!!!
Great article, lots of valuable research and evidence supporting your balanced views. To balance your views, I’ll be blunt. When I first saw Dr. Gundry’s infomercial tossing away a handful of walnuts, I thought to myself “What a clown!” I had read enough about walnuts, which Dr. Greger calls “the blueberries of nuts”, to know that they are superbly beneficial to overwhelming majority of people. As you, Ocean, point out, in every lie there can be a grain of truth. But I was not going to search for it; in Gundry’s case, it would be like pumping a septic tank and filtering 1200 gallons of you-know-what to find a penny.
Excellent advice, as always. Dr. Gundry is an amazing physician, but yes, fear sells, unfortunately…
Thank you for this article, I did read his books and followed that diet for sometime. This all makes sense!
Very well written article, and love the injected humor throughout. Thank you for the research and capsulized information.
Yes, Jordan Rubin healed from serious, near death disease by adhering to a diet embracing all of God’s bounty.
Great article! Thank you for consistently bringing us the truth!
Thank you SO much for being brave enough to stand up and tell the truth. Dr. Gundry may be a wonderful heart doctor, but his information is not 100 % correct and he is scaring people off from very healthy foods. And from the looks of it, it is to make money on supplements. It is very confusing to people who are trying to live plant based to have a doctor tell you these things. No one knows who to believe. Thank you for your common sense, fair approach to it.
I did get scared off of quite a few foods after reading Dr.
Gundry’s books. BUT I have come to the awareness that I was slimmer and felt better when they were a part of my diet.
You make a lot more thoughtful sense than a quick answer to a complex understanding of a food. Lectins are a very big part of my diet.
Good read!!
God gave us fruits, nuts, grains and vegetables to eat and Gundry says don’t eat what God has prescribed as our food!?? I’m 77, have been vegetarian since 1973 and vegan for the past 8 years, don’t get sick, didn’t get get covid but helped others who had it, don’t vax, still cut timber and log doing hard physical labor regularly. I do my lemon water each morning followed later with plenty of fresh fruits then whole grain cooked cereal or toast from my own homemade ancient grain breads. Lots of energy and don’t need 8 hours of sleep. And I get my vitamins from the food that I eat not from a jar of pills.
To me, Gundry is a nutcase whose ads are nothing more than foolishness. If people think for themselves, do their own research and more than anything, trust in our Creator who has prescribed our diet in Gen. 1:29, not people like Gundry. And as much as practical, eat organically, regeneratively grown food.
Your viewpoint on SPROUTED (and raw) chickpeas, lentils, etc ?
I so appreciate your thoughtful critic of Dr. Gundry who’s ideology has made me question my diet. I never agreed, but I do follow one of his suggestions somewhere along his treatise – I remove the seeds, core, and jelly like substance in tomatoes. Don’t know if it helps but he said Italian cooks do it so I do.
Being raised a lacto/ovo vegetarian and now turned vegan (about 15 of my 76 years), I have written off most of Dr. Gundry’s lectin scare tactics for the same reasons stated in your article. Regarding a sensible approach to lectins, I have experienced definite benefits from following Dr. Peter J. D’Adamo’s blood type guidelines. In his “Eat Right For Your Type” book, he list foods into three categories for each blood type: “Highly Beneficial,” “Neutral,” and “Avoid.” Having O type blood, I’ve greatly reduced mucus generation avoiding those foods on his avoid list. Not long ago I tested this advice by freely eating all the foods on the Avoid list that I truly love, like oranges, avocados, white potatoes, and pistachio nuts. I quickly found that eating those foods was not worth the consequences—being heavily congested with mucus.
Before learning of the blood type diet, I learned from experience that peanuts were a poison to me. I had noticed that if I ate peanut butter and honey on wholewheat bread for three mornings in a row, I experienced joint pain somewhere in my body. After not eating that combination for as few days, the pain vanished. If I repeated eating that combination. The pain returned like clockwork. I blamed it on the peanuts then but upon reading D’Adamo’s findings, I found that both peanuts and wheat were on his O avoid list. Needless to say, I choose not to eat either of them regardless of how good they taste to me. From my experience, I highly recommend checking out the Eat Right For Your Blood Type system which is based upon how different lectins affect different blood types, which ones are beneficial, neutral, and which should be avoided.
Exactly right. Too many “doctors” on YouTube selling too many private label products that are no different from any other brands.
I wonder why my 99 year old mother in law has lived her entire life eating a bad diet, drinking several bourbons and cokes a day, not exercising, yet still is frail but with a very healthy and vibrant mind! She takes medicines for high blood pressure, along with an antidepressant, which she doesn’t need. No chronic illnesses! I presume we vary considerably in the impact our genetics has on our health.
Thank you for your time and effort in studying and preparing this article. As a patient of a holistic medical practice, they stress not eating many of these foods. Though not a vegetarian, I am less and less interested in eating meat, and do love beans. I have been very conflicted as to how to proceed, and your article was extremely helpful to me.
I agree with your interpretation 100%!
I find your information well researched and spot on. I feel that Dr. Gundry’s recommendations are for people with specific food sensitivities. So now, when I see his informercials I simply dismiss them because he is always selling stuff. And he does condemn many wonderful plant foods that I was not ready to give up. Thank you for this illuminating article. It answered many questions that I have been pondering for some time. Keep up the good work! Your dad would be proud! 🙂
Thank you! I really enjoy your writing, Ocean. Fun pops up and gets me smiling. When I smile, I can absorb what I’m reading.
I like cooked tomatoes, especially for my husband, who has a little trouble with his prostate. Remember, there are benefits when you look for them.
Been eating beans all my life, not going to stop now. Great information.
Greetings: It is virtually impossible to get en answer to such a question on a platform like this.
I would be interested to see this as well. The BTD approach to lectins differs from that of Dr. Gundry.
I do not think that in the book, Dr. Gundry recommends any supplements or similar commercial items. Personally, I try to follow the book.
I always check to see if the person spouting off about the incredible dangers of eating this or that is trying to sell me something. In Dr. Gundry’s case, he is always trying to sell something. It’s sad since I’m sure he was a respected MD previously in his career, but now he’s reduced himself to little more than a traveling snake-oil salesman!
I also started Gundry’s Lectin Shield a number of years ago. The full bottle still sits on my shelf. The supplement actually made me feel ill. When a Gundry rep called to check on how the supplement was working, I informed him I quit after three days because I reacted poorly. The rep rather abruptly ended the call, saying it’s not for everyone.
I appreciate Ocean’s investigation into this topic and his willingness to consider multiple angles and reevaluate his position. That lends even more credence to his recommendations.
Enlightening! Thank you.
One word…BRAVO!!
(and thank you)
Is it safe to prepare black beans and pinto beans in a slow cooker??
I agree. This explains the horror of lectins promotions. Have always been wary of the claims and glad that a broader explanation has been presented.
Thank you for that explanation. I always thought the lectin discussion was off base. I will continue to eat my beans and tomatoes. It is disappointing that every supplement seller targets some inaccurate science to sell product. It has gotten so confusing out there that the level of trust is significantly low…what sounds really good in terms of discovery and correction is always attached to another pill.
I love this article and find charlatans who are also physicians very disturbing.
It also strikes me that for people who have been eating processed foods for a long time their microbiome is not in very good shape. To switch to a plant-based diet quickly is likely problematic since they will have the wrong microbes in their gut. A slower conversion makes sense for this group. A microbiologist in the UK found that his microbiome changed in about three weeks when he moved to another country, so that might be a reasonable place to start. Begin at 5% and ramp your way to 100% in three weeks and back off if that’s not slow enough. This is the practical perspective from a chemical engineer with 35 years of lab experience 😁.
PS it’s also a pretty convenient excuse if you really want to keep eating meat, eggs, and dairy.
Not only is this excellent, well nuanced, information it is written in such a way it is understandable by most everyone in your audience, the people who are aware of their health. The right balance of facts and ambiguity shows it is not ai generated. Including stories like the ricin pellet from an umbrella breaks up the information into digestible pieces and makes it more memorable.
That was a good read this morning and I am better informed on Gundry’s “devil” lectins.
Thank you.
M
Ocean, thank you for keeping an open mind with honesty. Your well researched articles are gems to read. My appreciation for all you do to educate us without fear mongering.
Excellent! Thank you Ocean, this was such a confusing topic. Dr Grundy appears sincere in his beliefs, is qualified and therefore believable. I needed this kind of clear analysis and can confidently continue with the same diet. 🙏
I love how you state the facts but also acknowledge that we should listen to our body! This is what empowers people. I am so tired of being dismissed by doctors because how I tell them my body feels doesn’t fit into their box or agenda. Thank you for taking the time to research and give us both sides.
I fell down the Gundry rabbit hole for several years and did think initially that I was feeling better for it. But I quickly realized that I was eliminating so many of the things that I enjoyed and felt deprived and tired all the time. Welcoming properly cooked lectins back into my life has given me more variety in my diet and more energy. Thanks for the informative and entertaining facts.
Thanks Ocean for your commitment to sharing health related information to all of us. Living in this noisy world with so many different “opinions” is confusing for many people. FRN is always consistent and up to date on research. 😊
I agree with your analysis concerning lectins
Thank you for this information. I have been cooking my beans in a crockpot. Time to stop.
Thank you for calling out Dr. Gundry’s carefully orchestrated sales pitch. It makes more sense to follow the research, make informed choices, and listen to our bodies.
Thank you so much for this wonderful review. At 72 years old living in New Orleans I’ve eaten red beans in my entire life with no issues. Seems like there’s always a hustle to look out for….
Thank you for your article Ocean and delving deeper into the lectin story. I try to add beans, lentils, tomatoes etc. to our menus and I agree with you that Dr. Gundry’s push is for the supplement angle on this subject. Each person is different and yes, YOU are the best judge of what works for YOU!!! Your humor is also appreciated!
Great article. I still don’t know if eating raw bell peppers on salads is safe. Thank you
Thank you so very much! I’ve been looking for a concise answer to his claims for years. This is the best(and funniest) answer that I’ve seen!
Ocean, your diligence is so appreciated, reading all that research, and your wit: wonderful, but maybe you’re a little too mad at Dr. Gundry? The umbrella/KGB example is priceless, but maybe, in this article only, you’ve kicked the can a few too many times? You’re better than that. Otherwise, so brilliant and important as always. Thank you,
Jessica
I AM INTERESTED TO HAVE ADVICE ON EATING LECTINS IE SQUASH LINSEEDS AND POTATOES AS I HAVE SEVERE OSTEOPOROSIS AND SOME OSTEOPOROSIS
Thanks for your explanation of this Ocean! I know people that are viewing lectins as poisons and have wondered about this for a long time. This is a common sense answer and very happy to hear I can continue to eat my beans and tomatoes. 😁
Very nice and clear article ,
Thank you
Very interesting and comprehensive article ….thank you for making to easier to understand the complexities of food….
I have followed the Plant Paradox diet for 3 years. I have lost 72 pounds, reduced fat and most importantly reversed my Sjőgren’s Autoimmune disease. For the first two years I followed the plan about 90 percent of the time. In the past year I have added pressure cooked beans, berries and homemade yogurt to my food plan. I feel the best I have felt in years. My blood work is now all in the normal range for cholesterol and diabetes.
I believe eating a plant based diet along with wild caught fish and seafood as well as pasture raised chicken and grass fed beef are the healthiest options for me. I eat more plants than anything else and feel the best I have felt in years.
I also tried Gundrys supplements which I didn’t find to be beneficial.
There is some limited research linking gluten to thyroid issues
Rule number 1. Follow the money. Great balanced information. Keep up the good work. Love my electric pressure cooker. Chickpeas – 3 minutes. Drain and cook again with lots of water for 3 minutes. Drain off the water. Perfect for making the homos.
Interesting balanced article. I have diverticulitus so any information that may help with my digestive issues, is helpful. I stopped eating tomatoes and runner beans when I read they contain lectins. I dont particularly like vegetables so theyre generally not included in my diet. However I did like runner beans and occasionally eat peas. Difficult when you read conflicting advice. Guess have to try it and see.
Angel’s comment is right on. A huge thankyou to Ocean for this very informative article. We must follow the science.
Thank you for the level-headed advice, and don’t forget: Beans, beans… good for the heart!
Hi Ocean. I`m a big fan of both yours and Dr G`s knowledge and dedication. I have been an avid follower of his guidance on this matter but your piece paints a very different picture which i take on board. After reading here that the world of Lectins is very large and diverse i`ll reconsider my approach to Lectins as reading Dr G`s thoughts a few months back i have set about removing as many Lectins as poss from my consumption. Your piece is highly interesting and in places brought a broad smile to my face. Thank you for all the information contained and your continued guidance. All my best. Tony
What did you discover Andrea? If it might apply to most people it is worth sharing.
Excellent review with proper research and not just hype and hysteria. Many thanks
I find some beans give me more gas than others, so I avoid them, but I eat them if they are served to me.
The only example I can think of for eating raw beans is the occasional raw green bean. Some people chop them and add them raw to a salad, or even a sandwich. Some gardeners may eat one or two fresh-picked raw green beans while harvesting, especially at the end of the season when there aren’t enough to bother cooking. Perhaps immature beans have less lectin, but at the end of the season the beans in the pods may be pretty mature! I’ve never felt any bad effects from this habit, but I think I’ll refrain in future.
What people need to remember, as Ocean points out here, is that each of us is an individual so what works for some or even most, may not be okay for ourself. The main take away here is to become more in tune with your own body. Step away from distraction and the noise of the mind and listen carefully and trust what your body tells you. As a society we have lost touch with the wisdom of our own body and that’s what gets us into trouble. Stepping into your inner wisdom is one of the most powerful ways of empowering yourself and knowing what is right for your own body and what is not, food wise or otherwise.
THANKS! Your style and multi-sided views are exceptionally resonating.
Thanks, Ocean, for this informative article. I’m wondering if you could share your knowledge regarding the blood type diet. I believe that also looks at lectins, but more specifically regarding the sensitivity of certain blood types to certain lectins.
I haven’t read the book, and I don’t intend to. Financial interests in the food industry—and in every sector, really—are like a detective novel where you have to figure out who stands to gain in order to understand what is being defended and why. The most natural diet is the one hated by the giants of the food, supplement, pharmaceutical, and general healthcare industries; it keeps us healthy but isn’t profitable for them, so they do everything they can to badmouth it. I’m not buying it. Personally, when it comes to nutrition, I listen to my body and follow my ethical principles; I was born a vegetarian into a family that followed a Mediterranean diet, but I consciously chose to remain vegetarian—and eventually became vegan—because that’s what my body needed and what respect for the intrinsic value of animals demanded. As a human, my evolution gave me the mouth, teeth, and gut of a herbivore, so naturally, I follow my biology and eat a strictly plant-based diet. I almost never get sick—maybe the occasional cold if I go out with wet hair. I don’t know what it’s like to be ill, and I have never eaten animal products in my life. My diet consists of leafy greens, vegetables, fruits, legumes, whole grains, nuts, seeds, olive oil, and water.
I read Gundry’s book, and what I got out of it was the pressure cooking advice. I do not remember if he qualified canned. He particularly stressed pressure cooking quinoa. He does do a lot of selling on his videos, which are overlong.
Hey O ean – great arricle. As a lo g time vegetarian ( I actually do not like rhat word, wirh its arian ) of some 58 years, I ha e seen so many of what I call
‘ religions of food ‘. And tried many of them, in my first years. When I came upon Ayurveda, I found a system with a deep comprehention that includes the fact that “one person’ néctar may be another person’s poison”. To understand one’s constitution, and how to balance it, including the influences of sesonal environment/climate and type of work/activity, and how to use food in that equation is a genuine science.
You made many very important points, as usual. Thanks for the consciousness you are sharing.
My mum lived up to 94 years and died of covid. She cosumed all types of lectin rich foods in soups and was the healthiest person I know. She did not like dairy and meat and mostly kept away from them. Most of her protein came from peas, beans etc. I do not feel these foods ever harmed her. I think it is why she lived such a long and healthy life.
I eat lectins. I have noticed, however, when I eat cashews, if I eat too many, my stomach does start to hurt, just a little. I’m 69 years old, with acid reflux, so that’s probably part of it. Otherwise, I have no problem eating beans, etc., besides a little bloating and gas.
Support your gut! Ginger, peppermint, comfrey leaf, golden seal leaf (full of berberines!), aloe… Until your gut is in better shape, cut out grains, NO SUGAR!, caffeine can aggravate an inflamed gut, leaky gut… Dairy too.
Ocean is Wonderful! It’s been so wonderfully amazing to see how excellent he’s been in following his father’s teachings & Love! And always taking everything to the next beneficial level in all ways! Truth! Love!
Ocean, I very much appreciate your statement to avoid oversimplification in either direction. I think there are so many conversations in the world today that would benefit from that view. I love all the lectin containing foods that I have been eating for the past several years. I haven’t experienced difficulty with them and furthermore am much healthier than I used to be. I particularly dislike the use of fear and overgeneralized statements about anything. And when I notice that someone is also offering to sell me something, I become quite suspicious.
My impression of the supplement focussed gentleman is exactly the same. Glad to find someone else who questions his rejection of so many good foods in preference to his “special” supplements.
I’m not familiar with Barbara, but I love wild-caught salmon, and those omega-3 fats are so essential for health, but they’re expensive as heck. For people on a budget and vegan, take a look at livewisenaturals.com. The omega-3/6/9, astaxanthin, and liquid B-12 supplements are my favorites. I’m 79.
Good Article
Every plant has good & bad aspects to it. Have you heard of oxalates, perhaps? Let’s face it. Plants don’t don’t want to be eaten anymore than you do. We all have limits at some point, after which your body tells you , “No more. You’ve had enough of that one, move along.” Read The Secret Life of Plants.” Have you ever bought the olive oil Gundry sells? I’m curious, but I can buy a lot of other food for $40.
Thank you so much, Ocean! This comprehensive explanation of lectins is so very helpful and needed. Thank you for your research and the clarity with which you share this important information.
Most of them seem to be interminable infomercials for some supplement that has no track record behind it. They used to be 30 minutes before they got to their point. Now they stretch it to an hour. And if you stay to the end, you only get their half off price if you don’t order 6 of them right now before the supply runs out.
Thanks for a more in depth look at lectins. I have gut issues and eat a mostly gluten free, dairy free, soy free, gmo free diet. I have Gundry’s book, Plant Paradox and listen to his ads and podcasts. I was becoming lectin paranoid. I feel better now about avoiding all lectins, as my food choices are already limited.
The Weston Price people say to soak nuts in salted water for several hours. It makes sense to me, because I don’t care for the astringent quality of some nuts, especially walnuts. After the salty soak, rinsing the nuts, then drying them at low temperature makes nuts a lot nicer to eat. I don’t know anything about how this affects lectins, but they say that it removes “anti nutrients”.
However, some advisers say you don’t need the salt. So, I don’t know anything about this.
Good luck with the cheese. Ever heard of Paavo Airola? He was a Finnish health guru who ate a lot of dairy milk. He knew it wasn’t so good for him, but it was a lifelong habit. My 97-7r-old vegan friend grew up on a dairy farm in Wisconsin and almost had a heart attack at age 39 until he turned his life around and went raw vegan, eliminating all dairy. He knew Paavo personally. What happened to Airola? He died of a stroke at 64. Cheese, BTW, is fermented milk condensed 10 times. Have you noticed that people who are big milk drinkers tend to have pasty white complexions? I hope I haven’t just jinxed you.
Thanks for this info on lectins. I have Gundry’s book, Plant Paradox and listen to many of his ads and podcasts. I have gut issues and was becoming paranoid of lectins. Thanks for a more in depth look. 😊
You’ve written an informative article, well-researched and clear. That said, I think the issue goes much deeper than inflammation from certain lectins. But the research has yet to be done. My observations and personal experience points to the possibility that people suffering symptoms may not be getting them directly from lectins — that lectins could be a trigger but not the cause. I used to have serious IBS-related symptoms, along with seemingly unrelated additional symptoms. I refused drug treatment as I wanted to get to the source of the problem. I learned medical science is still trying to figure out the bottom-line cause of gut and IBS-type issues; they normally will manage symptoms with medicines. So, I was on my own. I suffered badly for years. Then, I discovered some information in my own quest for wellness (that would also apply to most people). I am well now and eat all the lectins with great enjoyment. If only testing were done on these deeper factors… I suspect that science might then determine that the cause of many symptoms and illnesses goes much deeper than lectins. Just a thought to consider for those seeking to heal. Your body does want to heal.
I was never aware of lettings, so I guess I eat them without any discomfort. Thanks for the article.
I guess I’m one of the lucky ones. I eat all of the high lectin foods that Ocean listed and have never had a problem. I cook beans from scratch and have eaten undercooked kidney beans a few times but I never felt sick afterwards. And trust me undercooked kidney beans taste terrible.
Hi, Jan. I know that you were probably addressing your question to Ocean but I’d like to butt in here: I suspect that there is no substitute for soaking beans a good long time (I soak mine for minimum of 18-24 hours), discarding the water, adding fresh water, and then cooking – in your case in an instant pot. Adding some seaweed to the cooking water is a good idea too. JMO.
I have negative reactions to all medications. They are not fit for human consumption. I can’t think of a single exception. I stopped with even the dental anesthetic in 1993. But I’ve never needed any dental work since 2000 anyway. Read the package inserts with our magnifying glass. Your particular reaction will be sure to be listed. They use those inserts to protect themselves against legal liability. If you try to sue, they’ll say, “See, we old you that might happen.” Kinda like what happens when you download a computer or phone app. If it sells all your private information to the highest bidder, they can say, “Well, it’s right there in the Terms & Conditions. What your problem?” Basically, if you “need” a med, you’re doing something wring with your diet or lifestyle that’s creating that “need.” Often, is a result of prior vaccination(s).
I have not read all 93 comments here, so maybe someone has already mention Ayurvedic Dr. Douillard and his response to Gundry’s anti lectin, anti starch anti nightshade anti fruit anti bean dietary recommendations. He is at the lifespa site. Just type “lectins” in the search box. Here’s a couple of excerpts:
“Researchers believe that 1-2 million years ago, our ancestors evolved to express a gene to manufacture our own amylase, a digestive enzyme exclusively engineered for starch.Why would we express a gene for eating starch if we were not eating a significant amount of starch?”
“Gundry suggests nightshades, such as goji berries, eggplants, tomatoes, and potatoes, along with zucchini, cucumbers, and others originated in South America and have only been available to the Western population for about 500 years. Therefore, he says, we do not have the genetics to digests lectins on the seeds and skins of these foods.”
I might agree with him if that were true, but nightshades like eggplant, ashwagandha, goji berries (a superfood), and many other nightshades, along with mung beans, garbanzo beans, and ancients grains, like wheat and barley, originated in Asia, India, and/or Africa, where they have been consumed as part of Ayurvedic medicine for thousands of years.”
“The diet road we are going down today is one that says the cause of your digestive, mood, weight, or health problem is the food you eat and once you take the right foods out of the diet, all your health concerns will be solved.” [My goodness, I do love this statement. It is perfect.]
Much, much more, of course. Ocean’s article here is excellent, and Douillard’s article is also helpful.
I followed Dr Gundry’s diet for two years. I was always vegan, but did not eat fruit for two years. I am not saying it is why I was diagnosed with cancer, but I will say following an SOS plant-based diet of vegetables and fruit is 70% of why I was freed of cancer. It is easy to be vegan and not eat enough veggies and fruits. Beans, tofu, veggies, fruits, etc. are my staples. I have been cancer free for 6 years without chemo or radiation, which is what oncologists suggested. Thank you, Food Revolution and all other plant-based diet educators and supporters.
How does he recommend preparing his legumes and which ones? It’s my understanding that fatty legumes like peanuts especially & soybeans are not very good for health. The smaller ones like lentils are generally more nutritious. I’ve heard that soy in particular isn’t good for the brain. I had a housemate once who drank nothing but soymilk, 3 or 4 glasses daily, and nearly everyone who knew him assessed him as having a few screws loose up there, a perfect illustration.
Thx for a fantastic article, very well explained, & I always appreciate your sense of humor. You were brave-right on!
It will help, yes. To save money, I once ate for a month unpolished rice soaked in water in the fridge overnight, also consuming the soak water, to no apparent detriment. However, I would focus only on organic rice such as Lundgrens, as commercial rice is grown in paddies high in arsenic to kill parasites, and it remains in the rice. Cooking won’t get rid of it.
Thank you so much for writing this. You are the 1st person I have heard refuting Gundry’s irresponsible claims. I lived in Haiti a long time ago. I learned there that one of the cheapest, readily available (only) protein sources for much of the population was “pois rouge” – red beans. And once they learned to soak them overnight before cooking them, it was a nutritional game-changer. Although I was never worried that Haitians were going to stop eating them based on Gundry’s preaching, it always angered me that he would so carelessly dismiss the dietary needs of impoverished populations the world over.
There is a caveat to those verses you chose – – – Genesis 2:8,9,16 tells me that the only safe plants are in the garden – not just everywhere. God also made The manchineel tree (Hippomane mancinella), also known as the tree of death.
I agree wholeheartedly that foods containing lectins are vital for good health as long as they are prepared properly.
Thanks so much for a much needed clarifying scientific article.
Robert U md 10 years ago out of nowhere. I discovered Gundry and was able to get rid of type two diabetes. Mike drop little mention of the leaky gut phenomenon which transfers your lectin gut issues throughout your body potentially for a lifetime. 11 o’clock. I do appreciate the foreign and open discussion. There is much more to the lectin phenomenon than whether or not you think you are tolerating them well thanks for the form.
I would think perhaps eliminating dairy first will help. dairy is a usual irritant to many people’s digestion, hormonal health, weight and much more. You may also want to look into food combining. I feel much better when I don’t mix certain foods together. I hope this helps.
I don’t eat most, but I do eat rice, potatoes and nuts.
Thank you for clarifying the lectin issue. I believed the lectin issue was a real concern! I wasted some time and $ on the supplements. Fortunately found Physicians Committee and became vegan which led to Dr. Gregor and now to you! Very grateful to be part of this community which is focused on health for us humans as well as animals and our environment.
I have hypothyroidism and am wondering if any of these lectin foods affect that
Good to see someone challenging the esteemed Dr Gundry! As far as I am concerned he is full of bogus claims, and this has nothing to do with lectins. Seems to me his approach is more about making money, rather than health – I speak from experience. So I’m on your page Ocean, even though I love my carnivore diet. Enjoyed your delving into lectins, and your balanced approach.
We cook beans with an instant pot (pressure cooking on high) for thirty minutes then take off the steam before they overcook and don’t use the cooking water. Will that take the lectins out just as well as soaking them before cooking them?
I have been having a terrible time with gas and bloating since I began eating a mostly plant based diet. It may be partly from milk products too. I have been trying to figure it out. I do have Rheumatoid arthritis so I want to investigate this further. This article gave me a lot to think about. I will definitely speak with my Rheumatologist about this. Thanks for the information!
I never agreed with Dr. Gundry on this stance about lectins. They are all healthy to me and I have no problems with any of them! Perhaps he’s trying to sell more supplements?
Thank you for your thorough and open minded response to the controversy of lectins and whole foods Ocean. And you did get a chuckle out of me! As a Christian and creationist, I cannot imagine God intended for us to thrive without the very food he created for us! Genesis 2:9 says “And out of the ground made the Lord God to grow every tree that is pleasant to the sight, and good for food; the tree of life also in the midst of the garden, and the tree of knowledge of good and evil.” And Genesis 1:29 God states, “I have given you every plant yielding seed that is on the surface of all the earth, and every tree which has fruit yielding seed; it shall be food for you.”
I accept that there has been much degradation of soil, agricultural methods and human physiology, to name a few, that impact our ability to receive the nutrients we need. However, to replace whole foods with powders and pills is counterintuitive. Is it challenging to live on a plant based diet? Yes.
Is it sometimes exhausting to choose what we eat thoughtfully? Yes.
Is it time consuming to wash, sort, peel, soak, sprout, cut, combine, cook before you can actually eat? Yes.
Is it worth it? OVERWHELMINGLY YES!
The Food Revolution Network has been so inspiring for me to keep trying 😀
Good question! Gundry avoids tree nuts and who cooks tree nuts? Are commercial nut butters better from a lectin point of view?
Glad I read the whole article. I have followed and respected your articles for years, BUT jumping on the Gundry bandwagon was enough to almost make me unsubscribe until I read the article. I respect all the prominent people in the plant based world who basically think that he’s out there selling a supplement that your pressure cooker could do the same thing. Again, so glad I read it in its entirety, knew you were better than that.
From my local grocery stores, I buy Terra Delyssa brand of olive oil, which is grown in Tunisia, in the kind of climate that Gundry says adds the right polyphenols. 😉
Jessica.. what are small handheld redlight devices? And what’s emf? I have no idea! Thanks in advance for information…
The link is right above the section, ”
Who Should Avoid Lectins.”
I am so happy you brought the lectin info out as I have never trusted what Dr Gundry was saying about them and certain foods he said to stay away from plus it seemed like he was just trying to promote his supplements. I grew up on the farm and always ate and loved tomatoes plus a lot of the other foods you mentioned. We had a nice garden and never had any problems with any of those foods. I am 83 plus don’t go to doctors and never take drugs.
It also destroys a lot of nutrients too, so I never use one anymore. It’s second worst only to microwave ovens for nutrient destruction. My most amusing adventure with my pressure cooker (in retrospect only!) was the time I tried to cook teff in it. It’s maybe the tiniest grain seed in the world that people eat. When the relief valve started singing, and before I could turn down the heat, the entire lid popped off, and I had teff all over the kitchen: the sink, the stove, the fridge, the walls, even the ceiling! And 4 hungry housemates waiting their turn to prepare food for themselves. It took me 30 minutes to clean up the mess!
Thanks for your common sense appraisal of lectins. I’m so lucky that my mom taught me to be skeptical of nonsensical claims. Dr. Gundry sets my teeth on edge, almost as much as much as our president.
Did you see the link in the article? It takes you to “married to health . com” I typed it that way becuz I don’t think links are allowed in comments. WFPB gut specialist offering telehealth, and takes insurance!
I think you did a nice job. Thank you.
Personally, I’d rather eat tomatoes and all my foods raw than cooked, or not eat them all (potatoes). Who said the more lycopenes you consume, the better? The catsup mfrs., that’s who. Where is the evidence that more is always better? Natively, watermelon contains 5x the lycopene as tomatoes, strawberries 7x. Autumn olives, a tree that grows wild in some climates, produces small, tasty, orange berries with an olivelike flavor that have the most lycopene of all, 15x that of tomatoes. I’d rather eat those than tomato paste. Also, there’s no need to “fight” cancer if you don’t cause it in the first place. A woman I knew who died last year, Grace Swanson, nice of the actress Gloria, once fasted for 42 days, the last 14 of which without even water, to heal a broken bone, broke her fast on melons, mostly cantaloupe, and tomatoes. Those were the foods that tasted best to her. But curiously, she peeled the skins (lectins) because with her heightened sensitivity, which fasting induces, they didn’t taste right to her! I’ve never had the urge to peel a tomato. A vegan friend of mine who just turned 97 in August, cannot eat tomatoes at all (or other nightshades). As Ocean rightly says, we have our individual food sensitivities. When I was a child, I wanted mustard on everything, not catsup. My mother said I’d end up hating mustard eventually, and she proved correct. Much older as a raw eater and gardener, I learned how important soil quality is to the health of the plants grown in it. I was able to grow zucchini, my favorite vegetable, to 15-16 brix (a measurement of quality taken squeezing its liquid onto a device called an optical refractometer that measures density), at which point, the sap becomes too thick for squash bug pests to eatch. Most you buy in stores, even organic, are 5 brix or less, and the flesh is white. One you get to 12 and above, the flesh is yellow from all the beta-carotene in it). I grew 5 zucchini plants and managed to eat nearly every one that produced. That’s a lot of zucchini! But then the same thing happened to me. My body began rejecting zucchinis. I can only eat small doses or suffer the runs. Once again, the importance variety made itself felt. The reality is that there is no perfect food, so my body was telling me I was missing out on nutrients I should’ve been getting by eating other foods. My zucchini bucket was full and running over.
Finally; intelligent discussion of a health related, food related topic without trying to simplify something that can’t be simplified. The benefits or detriments of every food depend on the individual, the food itself, the quality of that food, the way it’s cooked or not, and what accompanies it.
very informative , i am a vegetarian and lived eating cooked lentils , beans , rice , wheat , and vegetables . i am 88 years old , i take lifevantage products and combination of pro, pre and postbiotics , work out 2 hours daily .
Ocean did mention that in the article, that canned beans are pressure cooked and that they are safe.
I think sprouting is effective. I prefer sprouted almonds to non-sprouted!
Excellent article and proves the point exactly ( and with humour) having lived eating beans and lentils since I was a toddler I can say that at 78 I enjoy a vigorous and healthy life and worked as an active nurse for 58 years
Thank you for this informative article! You primarily discuss legumes. What about nuts? You did not mention how to reduce the lectins in nuts.
Hi Ocean. Thank you for doing objective research on this subject.
As a nurse, I recognize that Gundry was very unhealthy earlier in his life. The changes he made, probably saved his life. Whiles it’s natural to want to share that journey & help others, he’s also had to come up with an alternative income, since no longer working as a surgeon. I’ve questioned his message & had often wanted to research. You’ve saved me the time & offered helpful info r/t cooking with lectins.
Growing up, I spent many summers with grandparents & great aunts/uncles. I learned to eat the rainbow of seasons. My elders lived very active, & cognitively healthy, into their late nineties. For this reason, I still strive for a “variety is the spice” approach. Lectins are included, not all year long, but when they ripen in the garden.
So, in essence you are saying? What do you recommend? Thanks
I eat greens, beans, quinoa, tomatoes, oats and barley groats almost exclusively. I have found very recently that eggplant makes my face puff up.Wonder if my belly fat is because of my diet…although I have lost 20 lbs since being on this WFPBN diet with No Salt, No Oil, No Sugar.
Ocean, thank you for this informative and delightfully spirited response.
I was turned off when I discovered the ingredients to his Might Reds, or whatever he called them, included “natural flavors.” In the US, the largest ingredient in that mix is MSG. Maybe I’m oo picky, but I thought he shou’ve mentioned that in his infomercial.
Hi, Ocean. Loved your report (laced with fun. You have a gift for understatements). Keep up your good work and thank you for sharing it with the rest of us.
Yup – I heard what Dr.G. said but I kept eating my favorite fruit when in season: tomatoes! I thought his lectin warning was overkill. Now, my son really loves his Wellness MCT powder. And his olive oil is great but now beyond my price range. Thanks for clarifying the “lectin scare” Ocean!
Thank you for your interesting and much needed article clarifying the use of lectins. Although I’ve always thought Dr. Gundry was a crook, I did wonder if there was any validity to his claims. If anyone actually went on this diet, there wouldn’t be much left to eat, particularly if you eat Plant-Based like we do. And BTW, that article is quite funny. Keep it up.😊
You seem not to consider the difference between cooking and sprouting when it comes to high lectin foods and lectins generally. One clueless MD and vaccine promoter, upon hearing I was a raw fooder, warned me against eating raw kidney beans because “they will kill you.” I was tempted to prove him wrong, but those legumes weren’t a normal part of my diet at that time. However, another friend mine, who ate sprouted seeds every day, did sprout red kidney beans from time to time with no negative side effects. In general, carbs become protein-rich foods as seeds turn into plants. Lectins in the dormant phase are there to protect the seeds. They are shed or converted as seeds germinate. Most who sprout say that nutritional content is at its maximum just as the first leaf bifurcates into two. That’s when you eat it. The argument against cooking is that micronutrients are destroyed by heat to one degree or another, the more complex the nutrient, the more damage is caused by cooking, B-12 notably, because it’s composed of thousands of proteins with more chances for bonds to break or twist under heat. All cooking stresses the immune system and the liver, which is hypertrophied in humans compared to other mammals in proportion to body weight. The number of leukocytes is elevated as they gather near the intestinal wall to aid in breaking up food particles that break through the digestive tract due to inflammation. One of the Metchnikoff brothers earned a Nobel prize in the 1880s for his discovery of “digestive leukocytosis” in the 1850s. Quite a few truths about human digestion and other health practices were made during the latter half of 19th Century and early decades of the 20th that didn’t fit the narrative of Big Pharma and were therefore suppressed following issuance of the Flexner Report. The AMA wanted all food to be cooked, including salad greens, but patient noncompliance was such that they had to back down on that one. All Nobel Prize laureates and the work for which they were awarded prior to 1900 were written out of all encyclopedias, compendiums, and dictionaries, including the Britannica. If you inquire from the Nobel Committee itself, they won’t release them to you. Edward Howell’s research into the value of enzymes, all of which begin to die between 107 and 118 degrees F, depending on the particular enzyme and the duration of the heat. Flash pasteurization may cause very little damage, I’m told, so the frozen food section may have some items that are safe to eat upon thawing.
I’m so sorry for your loss
Thank you for this enlightening article, I am so glad that someone is clarifying this about these lectins and especially for mentioning Dr Gundry’s book which I purchased awhile back and I was wondering how he was able to change his story about how he lost his weight and got healthier by removing all lectins but if you are anything like me and I’m on YouTube a lot and I’ve watched several different videos of his stating it was from the lectins then stating it was from something different and then that story changed with the next video and then he talked about how the olive oil he got so much healthier and lost his weight, and conveniently months later that’s all you’ll see on YouTube is his brand new olive oil line he has to come up with after stating this is how he got healthier. It’s exasperating and then to watch him making gazillion dollars on QVC by telling people they just had to buy his numerous products such as his gummy’s and powdered drinks to get healthier somebody needs to really call him out so I’m really happy about this article and I’ve gone back to eating a gazillion tomatoes like I’ve always done. Thank you again.
Thanks for this nuanced approach to lectins. I had the idea that cooking foods with lectins “softened” them to make them less harmful but I was pleased to hear that soaking/cooking can actually remove lectins. And the heads up not to cook beans from scratch in a slow cooker.
And also glad to hear that the anti soy message has finally been modified. I have drunk soy milk for decades without any bad results.
My primary care physician recommended Dr. Gundry’s books. When I started reading it my overwhelming reaction was negative. As a vegan for over 35 years I disagreed with almost everything he recommended. Thank you, Ocean, for justifying my conclusion.
Thanks so much for this article. I read Dr. Gundry’s book (at least part of it), and I dismissed it for a lot of the reasons you stated–people have been eating this way for thousands of years, and I was suspicious of the marketing. Thanks for the confirmation.
Thank you for this clear, balanced, thorough article on lectins. People have ‘warned’ me about eating legumes because of the lectin and I’ve found it baffling since they are known to be an important part of a healthy, plant-forward diet.
Thank you Ocean! Wonderful informational article with rational and realistic reasoning. So beneficial!
I’m so glad that someone has finally put Gundry in his place. A good friend of mine was under his care in Palm Springs and she died. I finally believe that his protocol had something to do with it.
Yes, I eat lectins. But, for me personally, I can not eat ” black beans ” .
As always, thank you for the information, Ocean : – )
Stefani
Thank you Ocean. Makes sense. I think you are correct. I agree great read. Cook things right and eat the spectrum Know your sensitivities , allergies to food
Thanks for being a straight shooter. I know it’s not that easy for calling someone out, in public. I appreciate you understanding how conflicted Gundry’s messaging has made us feel.
Yes I eat lectins and always cook my beans really well and soak them overnight. I appreciate this article and the logic behind your opinion I share your thoughts. Thank you for staying on top of things like this. Bless you Ocean.
I am 81 and have eaten lectins daily since 2014, have lost over 100 pounds and nomalized my lipid profile and metabolic panel. I will never stop eating whole grains, beans, nuts, seeds, berries, greens, and other fruits, vegetables and soy products every day for the rest of my life.
Ocean, I have the most profound respect for you as a writer, researcher, and gentleman.
I think legumes tomates etc prepared correctly are not harmful and indeed healthful
They contain many nutrients and fiber which are beneficial
I do not agree with Dr Gundry’s assessment
As pointed out some of the most long lived populations have a diet high in legumes fiber fruits and vegetables that may infact contain small amounts if lectins some of which are beneficial ( decreasing inflammation)
I’d heard that cooking beans in a pressure cooker does a good job getting rid of the lectins. Is this true?
Wonderful, informative lectin article that answered many of my questions and concerns generated from Dr Gundry’s remarks seen on various platforms.
Thank you, Ocean, for all your valuable work that you do!
Thank you, Ocean!
I wish I could find a clinician to help me with my food sensitivities and gut issues. I have a really good insurance supplement and cannot afford out of pocket costs for alternative treatments. I have NOT eaten the Standard American Diet for almost 40 years.
Great article, as always. I find your articles informative, refreshing, and one of my trusted sources. Thank you.
Thanks for that ,right from the start I doubted Dr Grundy hyperbole about lectins who has time to peel a tomato.
I love your writing and your analogies! Not to mention all the great information. Thank you so much.
Interesting article and I’ve read several similar to this by others wanting to dismiss Dr Gundry’s work. The really important part you missed is: Dr Gundry spends a lot of time educating his clients on how to remove the lectins from most of the foods that are super healthy once properly prepared. He is a huge fan of legumes. My personal experience with following Dr Gundry’s protocol for over 10 years has been enormously successful. Maybe do a little more in depth research before dismissing helpful information and perhaps misleading those who read your articles.
Thank you so much for this article. So much none sense coming through my email and being a little desperate for answers it’s hard not to read them all. I have always trusted your advice. I do have autoimmune issues and food sensitivities so I am trying to figure it out. I just went through a severe allergic reaction to a medication so I am at a crossroads. Thank you for your honesty and non judge mental attitude.
Mary
As usual, a balanced, well researched deep-dive. article into an important topic. I have a question that was not addressed in the article. Regarding grains such as barley grits, steel cut oats, buckwheat grits, and other raw forms, does the over-night refrigerator preparation method, where they are soaked but consumed without discarding the water, offer the same lectin reduction as cooking.
What a great article and humor too. I often wondered what I would eat if I avoided the food with lectins. My parents ate lectin foods all their life and lived to 97 years old. Thank you for the studied truth.
Wonderful you addressed this issue so clearly–and with nuance. Thank you. Bought his book in ’18 and have been uneasy about the message ever since! Bravo for your science –and your humor!
Well written, engaging makes me want to share
Genetics explain why lectins cause problems for some and not others. My body does not handle wheat, corn, pumpkin and others. I also do not handle mold like 75% of people. Thank God for my Danish genes that tolerate cheese.
I love all of those foods, too! Thanks for sharing, Ben. –Ina, Food Revolution Network Team
I love all of those foods, too! Thanks for sharing, Ben. –Ina, Food Revolution Network Team
Our parents feed us tomatoes, beans( varieties), eggplant among others. I am now 72 still eating those stuff.
Our parents feed us tomatoes, beans(several varieties) and eggplant among others. I am now 72 years old and still eating those stuff.
Great and helpful article. I have A+ bloodtype and always first follow Dr.PeterJ.D’Adamo’s charts and Dr. LamM.D’s charts- which Dr.Gundry ignores. Then I find that herbs are amazingly helpful and trying to balance acid/alkaline(D.Barody’s charts are helpful). Soaking and cooking lectin foods is completely necessary-no question about it — and always (and consistently use small handheld redlight devices- the larger redlight devices emit too much emf- as well as costing too much money and wallspace). Those are my collected best bits of tried and true advice.
So glad you enjoyed this one, Kari! Thank you for reading. –Ina, Food Revolution Network Team
I found this article very entertaining and interesting as I am familiar with Dr. Gundry. I think we all need to listen to our bodies and eat what is healthy and what we can tolerate. We are not all created equal. We are all individuals and have different chemical makeups. Thank you for your sense of humor Ocean. Laughter is good for the soul!
Enjoyed your article on lectins. Now, I’m a vegan and I just read a book on oxalates with the similar approach as Gundry that they’re not good for anything and can only be tolerated in very small (cooked) amounts, if vegetable, or just plain zero in meat, dairy, eggs (where I’m not going)
Rael, I’m so glad to read that you are feeling better than ever after selectively trying what you read! Good for you, and may you continue to thrive!
A hearty salute to you, Captain Lectin! (Might you be related to Hannibal Lectin, who has been claiming you two are cousins?)
Gundry, given his swagger, his tinseled braggadosio, his pontificating and lengthy pronouncements of his world-wide fame, should sign his signature The Great Gundry!
I am so glad to read this. There are a lot of videos on YouTube right now telling us that over 60’s must not eat this, and that, and the other I am 84 and have had no problems with nightshades or any other veg but these videos ‘for the elderly’ are really not doing any favours for the elderly and discouraging them from many foods that are so beneficial….
Thank you Ocean, I eat a lot of healthy night shade produce,which I personally prepare,your information is well informed, correct,and to the point. I have a problem navigating Dr.Gundry’s information,as I definitely don’t have the money to go with all those stuff he’s recommending. Keep up the good work,I appreciate it.
Thank you for this article. Following Gundry’s advice would eliminate most of the healthy foods I eat. Potatoes, tomatoes, peanuts? I’ve been eating these for decades without problems. Not overweight, I’m 70 and I eat potatoes and eggs almost every day.
Captain lectin here! Love them as a WFPB person….
I think you are generalizing about Gundry’s book as you say he is generalizing about lectins in general. He doesn’t say don’t eat beans – just pressure cook them.. No big shock there. And he doesn’t say don’t eat vegetables and fruits. Its the seeds in some produce that can negatively affect some people. Its not as black and white as you make it out to be. For folks who have autoimmune conditions its important to have an awareness of lectins so you can make choices if you notice some adverse reactions. HIs book was called paradox for a reason bc lots of plants have good and negative aspects about them, as you stated in your article. Awareness is always a good tool for the consumer
Yes. And try cooking with kombu seaweed
Just WOW! I knew I had trouble believing I should eliminate tomatoes and beans from my diet (I love beans), but this article has me wanting to dump my protein powder and capsules that I thought essential after following Dr G’s so called research.
Thank you for clearing up much of my confusion.
You do an exceptional job in thoroughly looking at everything. And it’s done with a little humour, too. I appreciate your efforts.
Sounds reasonable.I am a vegetarian and I think my diet would suffer if I tried to avoid all foods with lectin in them.Some people try to make a fast buck at the expense of others.
I’m so glad for this article as I had my concerns about Gundry’s articles. I would be hard pressed to find anything to eat according to his advice. I’m mostly, not completely vegetarian. I eat eggs, fermented dairy, and the occasional chicken and salmon if I can find any without hormones added or mercury content.
I can’t eat breads, wheat products of any kind, starchy grains etc. I have bowel and digestive issues. So for me my diet is no wheat, no meat, no sweets except natural honey. My protein sources are dominantly eggs, yogurt, cheeses nuts and seeds. According to Dr Gundry, I would be starving!
I do avoid night shade vegetables because I have inflammation issues. I find tomatoes and peppers particularly irritate arthritis and fibromyalgia joints and muscles. I also was concerned about Gundry’s sale of expensive items. I could never afford to live if I began to purchase his products. My go to health advisor has been Barbara O’Neill for the past two years. I’m 71 have had previous heart attack but since incorporating her health advice I feel better than I ever have.
So good and refreshing to read your common sense, Ocean! I watched Gundry’s infomercial today just out of curiosity because the ad showed a picture of a bowl of eggs and the question, “What happens if you eat these every day?” There was absolutely nothing in his infomercial to answer that question. Of course, I didn’t fall for his high-pressure technique about ordering his product right then and there to save $30 or whatever. Anyway, I’m glad to see you’re following in your father’s footsteps, Ocean! Keep on keeping on.
Aston
Doesn’t soaking grains and beans reduce lectins? I’m surprised this wasn’t mentioned in the article.
When you speak in generalities you just sound foolish. I follow keto but don’t agree with Dr Gundry.
Gundry’s infomercials are the epitome of an annoying snake oil salesman. But the Keto diet people love him…gee I wonder why?