• Start Here
  • About
  • Recommended
  • Books
  • Shop
  • My Account
  • Search
  • Recipes
  • Lifestyle
  • Autoimmunity
  • Nutrition
  • Gut Health
  • Wiki
  • Contact
  • Media Requests
  • Terms of Use
  • Privacy Policy
  • Affiliate
  • Refund Policy
  • Menu
  • Skip to left header navigation
  • Skip to right header navigation
  • Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to secondary navigation
  • Skip to main content

The PaleoMom circular atom logo

The Paleo Mom is a scientist turned health educator and advocate.

  • Start Here
  • About
  • Recommended
  • Books
  • Shop
  • My Account
  • Search
  • Recipes
  • Lifestyle
  • Autoimmunity
  • Nutrition
  • Gut Health
  • Wiki
You are here: Home / Gut Health / How Do Grains, Legumes and Dairy Cause a Leaky Gut? Part 2: Saponins and Protease Inhibitors
leaky gut

How Do Grains, Legumes and Dairy Cause a Leaky Gut? Part 2: Saponins and Protease Inhibitors

March 29, 2012 //  by Dr. Sarah Ballantyne, PhD

Facebook0Tweet0Pin0LinkedIn0

About Dr. Sarah Ballantyne, PhD

Award-winning public speaker, New York Times bestselling author and world-renowned health expert, Dr. Sarah Ballantyne, PhD (aka The Paleo Mom) believes the key to reversing the current epidemics of chronic disease is scientific literacy. She creates educational resources to help people regain their health through diet and lifestyle choices informed by the most current evidenced-based scientific research.

One of the fundamental principles of the Paleo diet is to support gut health. But, that doesn’t just mean eating plenty of fermented foods and fiber to feed our microbiome (although both of those things are definitely important! See What Is Fiber and Why Is it Good? and The Health Benefits of Fermented Foods). It also means protecting the lining of the gut by eliminating foods that damage it.

In Part 1 of my “Why Grains are Bad” series, we took a detailed look at how lectins can damage the gut, either by directly harming the cells that line our intestines or by allowing foreign substances to “leak” through the gut wall and enter the bloodstream. (In turn, a “leaky gut” can set the stage for a number of other health conditions, including autoimmune diseases.) Since grains and legumes are both high in potentially harmful lectins, avoiding these foods is an important step in promoting gut health and allowing previous damage to heal.

The Autoimmune Protocol E-Book!

One of my FAVORITE books I used to start the transition to AIP!!! It’s so helpful! I printed mine out and spiral bound it. Thank you for this! -Rita Davidson

The Autoimmune Protocol e-book is your up-to-date guide to jump-start your healing with the AIP today.

  • 3oo+ pages of quick-access information on the AIP
  • 4 weeks of meal plans with shopping lists
  • over 80 family-friendly recipes, all 100% AIP!

Get instant digital access for $19.99

Buy Now

But, lectins aren’t the only way certain foods can cause a leaky gut! Grains and legumes contain saponins and protease inhibitors that can worsen the damage caused by lectins, and dairy is actually designed to promote a leaky gut as part of early nutrition in mammals.

Legumes and pseudo-grains (like quinoa and amaranth) are high in saponins, which are compounds with detergent-like properties. Saponins are designed to protect plants from consumption by microbes and insects by dissolving the cell membranes of these potential predators. All plants contain saponins, but they’re often concentrated in the seed.

Saponins consist of a fat-soluble core (having either a steroid or triterpenoid structure) with one or more side chains of water-soluble carbohydrates. This combination of both a water-soluble and a fat-soluble component is what makes saponins act like a detergent, i.e., something that can make oil and water mix. Because of their detergent-like structure, saponins can interact with the cholesterol molecules imbedded in cell surface membranes, create holes in the surface membrane of the cells that line our gut (enterocytes), allowing a variety of substances found in the gut to enter the cell.

A number of different types of saponins exist, and some bind more easily and more tightly to cholesterol molecules in cell membranes than others. As a result, different saponins can create larger or smaller pores, which may be more or less stable. The larger, more stable (and/or more numerous) the pores, the more difficult it is for the enterocyte to recover. Small doses of some dietary saponins (like those found in fruits and vegetables) might play a helpful role in the absorption of some minerals. But, legumes and pseudo-grains contain very high doses of saponins (and, in general, contain types of saponins that interact more strongly with cholesterol). Dietary saponins from these foods are known to increase the permeability of the gut, likely by killing enterocytes (cells, in general, do not survive large, irreversible changes in membrane permeability).

Interestingly, even when a sub-lethal amount of saponin pores form in the enterocyte surface membrane, the cell loses its ability to actively transport nutrients, especially carbohydrates. While slowing down sugar transport from the gut to the bloodstream seems like a great thing on the surface (why beans are so often recommended as a carbohydrate source for diabetics!), the irreversible increase in gut permeability is just not worth it!

The Gut Health Guidebook!

The depth of information, practical tips, and the accessible way Dr. Sarah shows me how to apply complex science to improve my health is truly remarkable. -Wendy

The Gut Health Guidebook is the culmination of 6 years of research. This unprecedented deep dive into the gut microbiome delivers:

  • A new diet for gut health, built from the ground up
  • Essential gut microbiome superfoods
  • 20 Keys to gut health

Get instant digital access for $27.99

Buy Now

 

When large amounts of dietary saponins are consumed (especially in the presence of an already leaky gut), saponins can leak into the bloodstream. At sufficient concentrations, they cause hemolysis (destruction of the cell membrane of red blood cells). Saponins also have adjuvant-like activity, which means that they are able to affect the immune system leading to the production of pro-inflammatory cytokines (chemical messengers that tell white blood cells to attack) and can further contribute to inflammation in the body.

But the leaky gut story doesn’t end with saponins! Grains, pseudo-grains, (like buckwheat) and dairy contain protease inhibitors. Protease inhibitors are the seed’s attempt to escape digestion completely. These are compounds designed to neutralize the digestive enzymes that would normally degrade the plant’s proteins (and toxins) into their individual component amino acids. However, when protease inhibitors are present in our digestive tract, it affects degradation of all proteins present at that time. When our bodies sense the need to increase protein digestion, the pancreas secretes more digestive enzymes into the small intestine.

Because some digestive enzymes are being inhibited (the proteases which break down protein) while others are not, the balance between the different digestive enzymes is thrown off. One enzyme that ends up in excessive quantities during this process is trypsin, an enzyme that is very good at destroying the connections between cells. If we have a large concentration of trypsin in our small intestine, it can weaken the connections between the enterocytes, creating a pathway for the contents of the gut to leak into our blood stream. To make matters worse, in the presence of an already leaky gut, incompletely digested proteins that cross the enterocyte layer stimulate the resident immune cells of our gut to release inflammatory cytokines and produce antibodies. The result is increased inflammation!

Dairy is designed to create a leaky gut. Scientists still don’t understand all the mechanisms through which dairy products can create a leaky gut. But, it seems to be an important aspect of what dairy is designed to do: feed babies (of the same species) optimal nutrition for rapid growth. In newborn infants, a leaky gut is essential so that some components of mother’s milk can get into the blood stream, like hormones and all the antibodies that a mother makes that helps boost her child’s immune system. When we’re young, a leaky gut is actually a good thing! But, while this is essential for optimal health in babies, it becomes a problem in the adult digestive tract where there are more things present that we don’t want to leak into the blood stream. Drinking milk from a different species seems to make matters worse since the foreign proteins can cause a larger immune response.

The bottom line? Avoiding grains, legumes, and dairy on a Paleolithic diet is about more than replicating the actions of our ancestors. We have ample evidence that these foods can harm our gut health (as well as exacerbate the problems caused by other modern diet and lifestyle components!), and that replacing them with nutrient-dense foods that support rather than damage the gut is key for getting and staying healthy!

Citations

Francis G, et al. “The biological action of saponins in animal systems: a review.” Br J Nutr. 2002 Dec;88(6):587-605.

*NEW* The Gut Health Cookbook!

The Gut Health Cookbook is fantastic! Thank you for researching and creating The Gut Health Cookbook! Such wonderful recipes! I’m so excited to try them all! -Sue

The Gut Health Cookbook puts the 20 Keys to Gut Health into practice with:

  • 180+ recipes featuring 61 gut health superfoods
  • Gut health food lists
  • Why’s behind each gut health superfood

Get instant digital access for $27.99

Buy Now

Gee JM, et al. “Effects of saponins and glycoalkaloids on the permeability and viability of mammalian intestinal cells and on the integrity of tissue preparations in vitro.” Toxicol In Vitro. 1996 Apr;10(2):117-28.

Gee JM, et al. “Saponins of quinoa (Chenopodium quinoa): Effects of processing on their abundance in quinoa products and their biological effects on intestinal mucosal tissue.” Journal of the Science of Food and Agriculture. 1993;63(2):201-209.

Johnson IT, et al. “Influence of saponins on gut permeability and active nutrient transport in vitro.” J Nutr. 1986 Nov;116(11):2270-7.

Rackis JJ, et al. “Protease Inhibitors in Plant Foods: Content and Inactivation.” Nutritional and Toxicological Significance of Enzyme Inhibitors in Food. Volume 199 of the series Advances in Experimental Medicine and Biology. 299-347.

Ryan CA. “Protease Inhibitors in Plants: Genes for Improving Defenses Against Insects and Pathogens.” Annual Review of Phytopathology. 1990;28:425-449.

 

Facebook0Tweet0Pin0LinkedIn0

Category: Autoimmunity, Gut Health, Nutrition

Get the Definitive AIP Resource

 

The Paleo Approach is the New York Times bestselling epic guidebook that explains all of the detailed WHYs behind every facet of the Paleo Autoimmune Protocol.

Get Your Copy HERE!

You may also like

  • why grains are bad
    Why Grains Are Bad--Part 1, Lectins and the Gut

    The idea that grains are harmful is one of the…

  • Why Grains are Bad Part 2
    Why Grains Are Bad--Part 2, Omega 3 vs. 6 Fats

    Two important facets of the Paleo diet are to avoid…

  • The Fiber Manifesto Part 1
    The Fiber Manifesto--Part 1 of 5: What Is Fiber and Why Is it Good?

    Throughout the research for my first book, I kept hitting…

  • The Fiber Manifesto Part 3
    The Fiber Manifesto--Part 3 of 5: Soluble vs. Insoluble Fiber

    Throughout the research for my first book, I kept hitting…

  • The Fiber Manifesto Part 4
    The Fiber Manifesto--Part 4 of 5: Fiber, Cholesterol and Bile Salts

    Throughout the research for my first book, I kept hitting…

  • leaky gut

Previous Post: « Yeast-Based Paleo Bread
Next Post: Paleo Creme Eggs Paleo Creme Eggs»
  • Contact
  • Media Requests
  • Terms of Use
  • Privacy Policy
  • Affiliate
  • Refund Policy

Lithium Apple logo

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Pinterest
  • Instagram
  • YouTube
  • Itunes

Site Footer

Disclaimer: The majority of the links in ThepaleoMom.com posts and sidebar are affiliate program links.
This means that (most of the time) when you purchase a product linked from my site, I receive a commission.

Copyright © 2021 The Paleo Mom · All Rights Reserved · Powered by BizBudding Inc.