Nevertheless, they exist in rough quantities and variations in foods. As many recent studies will show us in this article, these plant toxins do impact health. Lectins foods that start with j large proteins that plants use as toxins to defend themselves against predators. While animals have teeth and claws to protect themselves against predators, plants are not handling such weapons.
Moreover, they are usually rooted so that they cannot run away. Somewhere the natural resistance to parasites must come from, right? Accordingly, lectins adhere to sialic acid in the nerve endings of the intestine and brain, which inhibits communication and causes brain disorders. These sugar molecules also exist in body fluids and blood vessel linings.
Although people do not digest lectins, the sticky proteins can often sneak into the bloodstream via the gut. Lectins also facilitate the attachment and binding of viruses and bacteria and help them to reach their targets. Therefore, some people who are more sensitive to lectins are more susceptible to viruses and bacterial infections than others. It is the seeds, grains, leaves, barks, and shells where lectins are hiding. You may have heard that people used to place tomatoes in front of the pantry to keep insects away. Tomatoes among the foods highest in lectins. Hence, the concentration of lectins in the skin and seeds is exceptionally high.
For example, these lectins can paralyze smaller insects. When an animal eats a plant, lectins contained in the seeds help to keep the seeds intact as they pass through the digestive tract of the predator. After the animal has excreted the seed, it ensures the survival of the plant’s species. Accordingly, lectins target sugar molecules and attach themselves to them on the surface of the cells of other organisms, such as fungi, insects, and other animals.
Nevertheless, humans are predators to many plants as well. Since we are significantly larger than insects, the effects of lectins are usually not immediately noticeable. But they appear over more extended periods. As we will examine in more details foods high in lectins can unfold quite health-endangering effects according to current studies. How Do Lectins Affect Gut Health?