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cell proliferation in the colon less likely. The disturbed by saponins include trypsin and chymotrypsin, which are also
theory is that cancer cell membranes contain adversely affected by protease inhibitors. Finally, saponins may be
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more cholesterol than normal cell membranes goitrogenic and spur enlargement of the thyroid. Saponins shouldn’t
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and saponins could bind more easily to them, take all the rap for thyroid disease, but given the fact that they tend to be
thus triggering their destruction. The problem is found in plant foods that also contain isoflavones, coumestans, lignans,
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destruction occurs in normal cells as well, albeit gossypol glycosides and other known goitrogens, we can’t rule them out
at lower levels. If that sounds like a reasonable as a contributor to thyroid disease.
trade off, consider the fact that “leaky gut” with On a more positive note, saponins in spinach and oats may increase
its attendant malabsorption, dysbiosis and other and accelerate the body’s ability to absorb calcium and silicon.
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problems increases cancer risk. Boiling, steaming, sautéing and otherwise cooking foods won’t have
Saponins also break down red blood cells much effect on saponins, as it takes alcohol extraction to remove them.
in a process known as hemolysis. This action is When the soybean is separated into oil and protein, the saponins stick with
also weak, but the human body’s ability to resist the protein, making them an unavoidable component in every soy product
this type of damage decreases with age along except soy oil and lecithin. Soy protein isolates contain the highest levels
with an age-related decline in the quality of red of saponins of any soy product. 71,72
cell membranes. Another potential problem is The good news is old-fashioned fermented soy products have a much
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the fact that saponins inhibit important enzymes reduced saponin content as well as lower levels of protease inhibitors, phy-
such as succinate dehydrogenase, a key player tates and other anti-nutrients. Aspergillus oryzae used in the fermentation
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in the citric acid cycle of the body, which must of miso and soy sauce produces an enzyme known as soybean saponin
function properly if we are to properly absorb hydrolase, which is capable of hydrolyzing soybean saponins. While it is
nutrients, heal and grow. Digestive enzymes true that saponins are metabolized by bacterial enzymes, this does not oc-
LECTINS AND BLOOD TYPES

The 1948 discovery that plant lectins are specific to blood types has created a thriving multidisciplinary research
industry, and led to the 1996 bestselling book Eat Right 4 Your Type by Peter J. D’Adamo, ND.
According to Dr. D’Adamo, lectins in foods only prove troublesome when they are incompatible with the person’s
blood type. When these lectins bite into intestinal cells or leak into the bloodstream, they may be attacked as foreign
antigens and become part of a network of antibodies bound to antigens that are known as “immune complexes.” These
can clot and block blood flow or lodge in organs of the body where they interfere with the key processes related to
digestion, absorption, insulin utilization and a host of other vital functions. As incompatible lectins cause the immune
system to react and overreact, the stage is set for autoimmune diseases. “Leaky gut” correlates with numerous disorders,
including food and environmental allergies; bowel problems such as IBS, Crohn’s disease and celiac disease; inflammatory
joint diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis; dermatological disease such as psoriasis, and many forms of cancer.
If Dr. D’Adamo’s theory is correct, it would make good sense to “eat right for your type.” However a healthy body
with full digestive and assimilative capabilities is capable of handling a variety of food lectins provided the gut is healthy.
Sadly, regular assaults by large servings of lectin-rich soybeans, kidney beans, wheat or other foods will breach the integrity
of the intestinal lining, allowing lectins and incompletely digested food proteins and other toxins to move into the blood
stream. These people often do better when they eat according to their type, although a better method might be to dump
plant-based diets rich in lectins and other gut harming anti-nutrients and take steps to heal the gut.
The most likely reason Dr. D’Adamo’s diet plans have been helpful to many people is that he urges people with Type
O blood—45 to 46 percent of the population—to reject vegetarian diets containing large amounts of lectin-rich plant
foods and soy foods and advises them to eat low-lectin meats instead. He also advises all Types O, A and B—93 to 96
percent of the population—to “just say no” to wheat and flour products such as breads, bagels, muffins, cakes, cookies,
pastas and cereals.
Just going off wheat has tremendous benefit for most Americans. In addition to the wheat germ lectin, wheat con-
tains gluten, which can bite into the human intestinal mucous lining much like lectins. Indeed, ever increasing amounts
of wheat and gluten in the modern diet have been associated with rising rates of a gut disorder known as celiac disease.
Whether it’s high levels of lectins found “on occasion” or low levels found in foods eaten in large quantities on a
regular basis, lectins hold the potential to cause health problems. In his textbook Plant Lectins, Dr. Pusztai warns that
lectins “can have serious consequences for growth and health.”
That said, those who eat rich and varied omnivorous diets will probably not have problems from lectins, provided
they go easy on the soybeans, kidney beans and other legumes, avoid wheat and heal the gut with broth, cultured foods
and other foods recommended on a nourishing traditional diet.
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