![\"Phytic](\"https:\/\/pantryparatus.com\/media\/wysiwyg\/Vatican_II\/OtherPeoplesPhotos\/Phytic_Acid.png\" "\\"Phytic")
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You may have heard the term \u201cPhytic acid\u201d before if you have read any food blogs out there at all, or if you have asked someone why they go to the trouble of sprouting their grains before preparing them.\u00a0\u00a0 Let\u2019s explain what it is and its role in the grain first.<\/span><\/p>\n \u00a0Have you heard the new food science that all the experts are just so sure of?\u00a0 We often demonize the next new term out there.\u00a0 Cholesterol = bad!\u00a0 Fats and Oils = bad!\u00a0 Salt=bad!\u00a0 Bad, bad, bad!\u00a0 Grrrrrr!\u00a0 And then we will pin wings onto other terms:\u00a0 Omega 3 fatty acids are overdose-worthy!\u00a0 Protein isgluttony-approved!<\/span><\/p>\n \u00a0It is just not that simple<\/em>.\u00a0 You have to learn about your family medical history and your own personal health first before you can know what you should eat or avoid eating.\u00a0 This data set will look different for every individual person.\u00a0 When foods are on the \u201cbad list\u201d we do not see the demand go down for that certain texture or taste, so we start seeing substitutes.\u00a0 Saturated fat went out of vogue and (for awhile) transfats were in.\u00a0 Sugar is worse than bad, how about aspartame instead\u2014anyone?\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n \u00a0Phytic acid is properly known as \u201cinositol hexaphosphate\u201d and \u201cIP6\u201d in the science world.\u00a0 Foods with Phytic acid generally owe their existence to it. \u00a0The bad reputation it receives is largely because Phytic acid is the chemical within those foods that preserves that seed\/nut until the time in which that seed or nut is brought back from its dormancy through the germination process. \u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n \u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Phytic acid grains (i.e. wheat, rice, barley, etc.) store their phosphorous (up to 50-80%) for future use within this chemical compound in the plant to slow the plant\u2019s metabolism.\u00a0 Furthermore, Phytic acid is an antioxidant naturally occurring in the plant, and it can make up 1-5% of the grain, seed, nut, and even the pollen.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n As you know, an antioxidant helps prevent cancers because they combat the damaging effect of oxidation within tissue.\u00a0 Foods high in Phytic acid, such as beans, may trend towards the same effect.\u00a0 There are numerous studies occurring at any given moment as to how Phytic acid might prevent (or even help cure) different forms of cancer; in fact, they have linked it definitively to preventing colon cancer.\u00a0 Since colon cancer runs in my family the consumption of Phytic acid (for me) is a positive thing\u2014within reasonable limits.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n We would not have the shelf life that we enjoy with such foods as beans, wheat, rice, etc. if it were not for the Phytic acid in food.\u00a0 \u00a0However, after it has done its job and the food is on the table, what other effect does it have on you?\u00a0 And why the anti-phytic acid press if it is an antioxidant?\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n As it turns out, we will still get all the Phytic acid even with preparing our grains\/seeds\/legumes in a way that minimizes Phytic acid. \u00a0A 2004 study (Onomi, Katayama) concluded that dietary intake of Phytic acid at a level of 0.035 percent may protect against a fatty liver, and that the anti-nutrient effect of Phytic acid on mineral absorption will only occur at 10 fold higher levels. The researchers even speculated that Phytic acid may be considered more like a vitamin than an anti-nutrient.\u00a0 \u00a0We easily reach that level of acid if we are eating whole grains, beans and nuts.\u00a0 So we should not seek to eliminate it entirely, nor should we seek out Phytic acid as a supplement.<\/span><\/p>\n In that same study, mice overdosed on Phytic acid had severely reduced growth.\u00a0 The acid attaches itself to minerals (namely iron) but it within itself is not absorbable. The entire complex passes through; this means that you will not get the full nutrition out of the food product.\u00a0 The very fact that it suppresses iron is how it preserves the seed for future growth. \u00a0If you have a high grain diet, take note this is why grain based baby food is fortified with iron.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n \u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n![\"Inositol](\"https:\/\/pantryparatus.com\/media\/wysiwyg\/Vatican_II\/OtherPeoplesPhotos\/Inositol_Hexaphosphate.png\" "\\"Inositol")
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