Arthritis, heart disease, weight gain and leaky gut
It’s not all in your head… It’s all in your gut!!
Beans, legumes and cashews are good for us, right? They contain protein, fibre, vitamins and minerals. But they also contain large amounts of ‘anti-nutrients’ called lectins. Lectins are the protective part of these plant-based foods and they are highly toxic to insects and animals. They are designed to paralyse insects that are trying to eat them so that they can grow and thrive. So why are Lectins considered one of the biggest hidden dangers in your ‘healthy’ diet?
Dr Stephen Gundry and “The Plant Paradox”
Dr Stephen Gundry is the Director of the International Heart and Lung Institute in Palm Springs, CA, and the founder of the Centre for Restorative Medicine in Palm Springs and in Santa Barbara, California. He is a celebrated Nutritionist, a renowned cardio thoracic surgeon and New York Times best-selling author. He has been researching for over ten years what we eat and how our bodies utilise our food. He has discovered ways to cure obesity and the chronic diseases of ageing with diet and neutraceutical interventions.
Gundry’s book, ‘The Plant Paradox’ looks at plant foods that we eat and which ones are linked to us being over weight, not feeling well and susceptible to disease. He describes plants as both our biggest enemies and our biggest friends. He explains how plants function against animals, their major predator. Plants use a system of sticky proteins called lectins like chemical warfare. These sticky lectins seek out certain molecules on the surface of cells to bind to. In insects they bind to cells that interrupt nerve transmission causing paralysis.
Gundry suggests that we are just like a giant insect to a plant. What happens to an insect that eats lectins may take years and years to manifest in animals and us humans as neuropathy, leaky gut, auto immune diseases, brain fog, arthritis or heart disease.
Gundry’s research over the past 15 years has found that chronic disease can be triggered by these plant proteins. He believes that nearly all disease processes he has come into contact with can be traced back, one way or another to our contact with plant lectins. Lectins attack their predators by causing digestive disturbances, achy joints, neuropathy and failure to thrive. A ‘smart’ animal he said would quickly learn not to eat these plant foods and instead eat something else. Lectins are found in hundreds of common foods, like wheat, beans, potatoes, nuts, and dairy.
So, is it possible that everything you’ve heard about diet, weight, and nutrition is wrong? Dr. Gundry’s book promises to shatter almost every myth you’ve been told about what makes up a “healthy” diet. “The Plant Paradox” offers a full list of high-lectin foods, simple substitutions, a step-by-step detox plan, and delicious lectin free recipes. This Program, outlined in the book and backed by scientific research, has helped thousands of Dr. Gundry’s patients to lose weight and recover from long-standing health disorders. Gundry found that if lectins were taken out of people’s diets then their bodies own ability to heal itself is facilitated.
Gundry has found that the angiograms done on everyone with extensive coronary artery disease also shows extensive spinal arthritis, both he says are caused by the same thing, Lectins. Gundry has discovered in his research labs that Lectins are a huge cause of arthritis. Gundry has cancelled patient’s hip and knee replacement surgery because they actually re-grew cartilage after eliminating lectins
What foods contain lectins?
Lectins unfortunately are in some of the most common foods that we eat. A huge number of so-called ‘health foods’ are loaded with lectins. Grains and beans are two of the highest lectin containing foods. The Centre for Disease Control (CDC) believes that 20% of all food poisoning cases in the United States are caused by the lectins in undercooked beans. Gundry says that completely eliminating all grains and beans from the diet is the number 1 step in returning joints to normal health.
Gluten is probably one of the best-known lectins. Removing wheat from the diet has been widely discussed. But gluten free foods may actually be full of many other unhealthy plant lectins. Our ancestral diet would not have contained any grains or beans and perhaps this is how we should be eating. No corn, quinoa, night shade family, potatoes, eggplant, tomatoes and capsicums, cucumbers, zucchinis, pumpkins, gogi berries, cashews or peanuts. Sun-flower seeds, pumpkin seeds, and chia seeds are full of lectins.
For a comprehensive list of lectin containing foods, what to eat and what to avoid go to https://gundrymd.com/plant-paradox-shopping-list/
Leaky Gut
Leaky gut is now clinically researched and real. It describes a problem where the lining of your digestive tract may be leaking, allowing dangerous toxins to sneak into your body and create havoc with your health. Research has discovered that while the cell lining is strong there is one dangerous thing that can break through and destroy your gut lining leaving holes, LECTINS! Once the holes are made, other toxins can also leak through such as Lipopolysaccharides or endo-toxins which are little pieces of bacteria.
Lectins invade your entire body, skin, blood, heart tissue, joints and brain causing digestive issues, bloating and pain, cardiovascular issues, high BP, cholesterol, insulin resistance, arthritis, cravings, skin rashes, acne, poor immunity, headaches, brain fog, weight gain, low mood and low energy.
Lectins resemble many proteins in your body such as in your thyroid gland, your brain, in your joint spaces, they resemble myelin sheath proteins and proteins in nerves. This can cause us to attack our own tissues, joints and cells creating Auto-immune disease.
All patients with auto-immune disease such as MS, IBS, RA, Chrohn’s Disease and Vitiligo have low levels of Vitamin D as a result of leaky gut. These patients react almost immediately to lectins. Vitamin D penetration through the holes in the gut wall created by lectins is the cause of these low Vitamin D levels. When you heal and seal the gut, your vitamin D levels increase. Vitamin D tells the stem cells in the intestinal villi to grow and divide and repair the gut. Without vitamin D this cannot happen.
Gundry diet plan/program.
So, if this starts in the gut then that’s where it can be fixed. Gundry realised he needed to dedicate his work to preventing people getting to hospital or heart surgeons in the first place by fixing the gut. Most doctors he says are not up to date with this.
- Stop eating foods that are disrupting your digestive tract and causing leaky gut ie whole grains, beans, and other high lectin foods.
- Stop taking non-prescription over-the-counter medications that damage the gut ie antacids, pain-killers and anti-inflammatories.
- Add helpful supplements to heal and seal Leaky gut. Look for supplements containing L- Glutamine, Licorice root, Marshmallow root, Pepsin, Zinc, Vitamin D, prebiotics and probiotics.
Weight loss
Gundry believes he has solved the weight loss mystery. He studied many many people who were eating a healthy, low carb, low fat, vegetarian diet, gym every day, running every week and were still overweight. This was Gundry himself. He was 70lbs over weight. No diets or exercise program worked. He attributes all of his weight loss to changing one thing in his diet…..the removal of Lectins.
The Gundry MD philosophy is a radical departure from traditional dietary “wisdom” which has failed so many people over the past few decades. Perhaps Gundry really does offer a breakthrough for those who have struggled for years and tried everything and nothing has worked…?
Think of your body like an apartment complex
The Gundry philosophy says that true health only happens when you’re living in a state of cooperation with the trillions of tiny microbes that live everywhere in, on, and around your body. You’re the landlord, and the bugs are your tenants. Some of those bugs are “good” tenants. They manage your digestion. They help energy move throughout your body, and power as much as 80% of your immune system function, to keep you from getting sick or infected. But your body is also home to “bad” tenants: lectins (plant-based proteins that harm proper cell function); pathogens (bugs that cause illness and infection); and gut yeasts (which harm healthy digestion and help make you overweight).
Sugar and other sweeteners endanger your “good” bugs
Naturally, you don’t want these “bad” bugs running the show. But when you feed them unhealthy foods like sugars, artificial sweeteners, and preservatives, this makes them stronger. These foods help them kill off the “good” bugs…and turns your body into the kind of “building” where only bad bugs would want to live.
To restore your body to optimum health and wellness, you need to be sure you’re taking care of your “good” bugs. It’s all about taking care of your good bacteria. Because if you take care of them… they’ll take care of you.
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