Lectins - What are they?

[Music] if you've been following this channel for a while you know I'm a big believer in eating lectin free now every now and then I briefly mention what lectins are and that there are bad for you but in case you haven't been following along from the beginning I wanted to take a minute really explain a few things first I'm gonna tell you what a lectin is second I'll explain how they work third I'm gonna tell you where to find them and last I'm gonna tell you why to avoid them at all cost that way if you ever feel lost on your health journey you've got something to come back to something quick and easy to follow so what's a lectin exactly short answer it's a dangerous plant protein designed to poison you yes you read that right poison now chances are lectins won't kill you though eating a lectin heavy diet your whole life might but they'll make you pretty sick you see plants don't want to be eaten but it's not like they can run and hide or even bite back so instead they make lectins to make predators sick in hopes that the next time they'll pass by that plant and eat something else it's actually pretty smart right so that's lectins for you in a nutshell but how do they make you sick well it helps to think of lectins are like little barnacles that look for specific sugar molecules in your blood the lining of our gut and on our nerves when they find a good spot to land they cling to these cells breaking down their ability to communicate with our immune system and then ripping them to pieces which could lead to things like leaky gut a weaker immune system weight gain food poisoning and so much more after all there's nothing worse than an intruder in your system and lectins are just that an unwanted intruder making you sick so clearly they should be avoided at all cost but what exactly does that mean well there are certain lectins in most fruits and veggies but some are worse than others and there are five categories of food you want to avoid at all costs first beans and legumes including peanuts lentils and cashews they carry more lectins than any other food which is why eating undercooked beans makes so many people sick each year so skip them entirely or if you must eat foods like lentils which do have health boost boosting compounds make sure to pressure cook them because pressure cooking kills the majority of lectins outright second squash most squash are new world foods which means our bodies did not evolve to eat them plus they're heavy and lectins so skip pumpkin butternut squash even zucchini whenever possible and if you must eat squash although I don't recommend it peel it and take out the seeds first because that's where the lectins our third grains for the most part grains are a relatively new food to us our hunter-gatherer ancestors didn't search for grains without processing there was no way to eat them Plus most grains even gluten free grains or lectin bombs as well as those gluten free grains substitutes fourth the night shades tomatoes potatoes even eggplants these lectin bombs are another leading cause of food poisoning and they're closely related to some of the most poisonous plants on the planet and last but not least number five fruit especially out of season fruit and remember if it's got a seed it's a fruit so skip that pineapple papaya and strawberries in the winter but also peppers and cucumbers remember their fruits too so now you know what they are what they do and where to find lectins but why should you avoid them at all costs this one's simple lectins are designed to cause disease and weight gain in humans and you deserve to live a long healthy life after all I'm doctor Gundry and I'm always looking out for you thanks for watching don't forget to visit my website linked in the description box below for more of my best tips if you haven't already clicked the circular channel icon to subscribe and make sure you never miss another video because I'm dr. Gundry and I'm always looking out for you

Channel: The Dr. Gundry Podcast

Views: 240,402

Keywords: lectins, lectins in food, food, lectin diet, diet, lectin free, what are lectins, health, healthy, gundry md, dr. gundry, steven gundry, plant paradox, cookbook, the plant paradox cookbook, the plant paradox, nutrition, gundry cooking

Id: iRB7OzGupTY

Length: 4min 42sec (282 seconds)

Published: Fri Aug 03 2018