Finding Ultra (34 page)

For decades, conventional wisdom was that gluten was harmful only to those suffering from celiac disease, an autoimmune disorder afflicting about 1 percent of the population, in which the ingestion of gluten causes damage to the lining of the small intestine, preventing it from properly absorbing certain nutrients. Celiac patients suffer symptoms ranging from migraines, to skin rashes, muscle and joint pain, and sinus infections.

But in recent years, it's been discovered that far more people suffer a spectrum of ill effects, ranging from mild to serious, caused by the ingestion of gluten. This condition manifests symptoms similar to celiac, but it's generally less severe. The malady is now known as gluten sensitivity, or “GS.”

Currently, there's no specific blood test for GS. To determine your personal level of sensitivity, the only solution is to experiment. In other words, simply remove food products with gluten from
your diet for a week or two and see what happens. But for this experiment to be effective, you must already be eating well. Because if your diet contains copious amounts of processed snacks, for example, you'll feel better deleting these from your routine irrespective of any gluten sensitivity. So begin the process of getting PlantPowered first, settle into a routine, and when your diet is clean, then experiment.

When I removed gluten from my diet, I experienced a rather dramatic improvement not just in the maintenance of my energy levels, but in my athletic performance as well. For example, I noticed my muscles and joints didn't hurt as much the day after a long run, likely the result of a reduction in inflammation, that pesky impediment to exercise recovery. I also discovered an improvement in my training and digestion, as well as some weight loss. Even my face seemed to narrow.

If you determine that you suffer from GS, then it's incumbent upon you to pay close attention to the foods you eat going forward, since you might be surprised at just how omnipresent gluten is, in so many different foods. Because it's indeed the “glue” that makes certain food products stick together, it's found in everything from most breads and pastas to condiments such as ketchup and soy sauce. And, also, almost all vegetarian or vegan processed meat substitutes. But gluten-free options are becoming more readily available at many restaurants and groceries.

And even if you determine that gluten poses no problems for you, it's always best to trade food products made from refined grains (such as white bread) for those made with whole grains. The milling process that refines the grain effectively strips it of all nutritional value, leaving you with those empty calories discussed above. Conversely, the whole grain retains more of the vitamins and minerals inherent in the food. But the best option is always the
sprouted
whole grain—the seed in its germinated state enhances the nutritional value of the food even further, increasing the protein quality as well as the essential fatty acid, healthy enzyme, and vitamin content. For example, Food for Life makes a wonderful line of sprouted grain breads, called Ezekiel 4:9, available at most health food stores.

There's nothing like sprouted mung beans, lentils, or chickpeas. And without much effort, these foods can be sprouted at home. Soak the dry beans in water for eight to ten hours, and then maintain moistness in a colander or “sprouting vessel” at room temperature. Wash daily for a couple days until they sprout. Eat raw or slightly cooked—over brown rice or a tossed salad, for example—to enjoy the enhanced and bioavailable protein, vitamins, and minerals that are the by-product of the sprouting process.

IRON, B
₁₂
, AND ANEMIA

Vegans are anemic
. I hear it all the time. Conventional wisdom states that eating a plant-based whole-food diet fails to provide enough iron to prevent the onset of anemia, a potentially serious condition in which the body becomes unable to make enough oxygen-bearing red blood cells. It's simply not true.

By way of background, iron is a component of hemoglobin, a protein found in red blood cells that acts as a transport system to carry oxygen through the blood to our tissues. Anemia is a decrease in the body's red blood cell count or a reduction in blood hemoglobin caused by an iron deficiency, which undermines the body's
ability to perform this oxygen transport and delivery function. The most commons symptoms are weakness, fatigue, poor concentration, shortness of breath, and depression.

Dietary iron is available in two forms: heme and non-heme. The heme variety is the most readily absorbable and is found in meat and dairy products. Non-heme, also found in animal products, is the only source of iron in the plant kingdom, but isn't as readily absorbed by the body. Hence the premise that plant-based diets lead to anemia.

However, studies have shown that the incidence of anemia among vegetarians and vegans is no higher than that among the general population.
^a
It's believed that this is due to the fact that so many common plant-based foods happen to be high in iron. So heme or no heme, a person subsisting on a
well-rounded
plant-based diet that contains a mix of the foods listed in the chart below should experience no issues with respect to anemia.

It takes a long time to exhaust the body's iron stores, and requires a concerted effort to replenish them once depleted. Moreover, the symptoms of iron deficiency often fail to manifest until those stores are significantly diminished. So it's important to stay on top of this issue. But with a little awareness, ensuring proper maintenance of your iron stores is hardly burdensome. With just a modicum of thought and planning, ensuring that I ingest the recommended daily allowance of 18 mg of iron has proved a non-issue.

Here are a few tips to keep you on track:

Combine iron intake with vitamin C
. Research has established that the absorption of non-heme (plant-based) iron is significantly enhanced when it's ingested in conjunction with foods high in
vitamin C—up to sixfold, in fact. Accordingly, I combine red pepper or citrus fruits such as oranges or grapefruit (all high in vitamin C) with dark leafy greens or pumpkin seeds (high in iron) in my daily Vitamix blend. And as an extra step, I always keep a bag of pumpkin seeds in my car, along with some fruit to munch while I drive—a tip I picked up on the friendly advice of Brendan Brazier.

Avoid coffee and tea at mealtime
. The tannins contained in coffee or tea (irrespective of caffeine content) impede the body's ability to absorb iron, up to 50 to 60 percent. So if you're concerned about your iron stores, it's best to avoid these drinks an hour or so both before and after meals.

Vitamin B
₁₂
supplementation
. Vitamin B
₁₂
is another compound required to generate red blood cells. So a deficiency in this vitamin can also lead to anemia. And vitamin B
₁₂
is the one essential nutrient that simply cannot be found in the plant kingdom. But again, there is no need to be alarmed, run out to the grocery, and start gorging on steaks. The fix is easy. You can simply take a B
₁₂
supplement, available in capsule form at any health food store. Alternatively, many meal supplements, such as my Jai Repair Performance Recovery Formula, or Brendan's Vega Complete Whole Food Health Optimizer, contain the RDA of B
₁₂
. Furthermore, nutritional yeast, which we use in a variety of our recipes, such as Cashew Cheese (see
Appendix III
, Resources,
Jai Seed Vegan eCookbook
), is also high in B12. Finally, a wide variety of packaged foods—including certain grains and breakfast cereals, as well as almond and coconut milk—are generally fortified with this vitamin. Two cups of coconut milk and you've met your B
₁₂
needs for the day.

Five years PlantPowered and I've experienced zero issues with respect to my iron stores, despite the heavy training tax I impose on my body.

PLANTPOWER DIET

Plant-Based Foods High in Iron
^b

(RDA 18 mg iron/day; 100 g equals about 2 cups)

OMEGA MAN: TURNING FAT FROM ENEMY TO FRIEND

One of the incredible benefits of the PlantPowered Diet is that you don't have to overly concern yourself with the fat content of your food. I'm not saying you can go hog wild, but the days of obsessing are over.

How can this be true?

The PlantPower Diet is by its very nature low in fat. When you eat the PlantPower way, you've already removed the “bad” cholesterol and most saturated fat—the nasty artery-clogging, heart
disease–inducing kind that we generally think of when we think of fat. So right off the bat you've taken a massive step toward reducing your chances of suffering a heart attack or getting cancer, all the while working to reduce your (bad) cholesterol and/or high blood pressure.

But PlantPower is not fat-free. Nor, in my opinion, should it be. It's just that we've replaced those disease-inducing saturated fats with clean-burning, healthy unsaturated fats high in essential fatty acids (EFAs), like omega-3, which we hear so much about. Fats critical to an array of proper body functions. The kind of fats that fight disease, actually improve heart health, keep our energy levels high, our skin bright, and our mood sunny.

Fat associated with the typical American diet is your enemy. But PlantPower fat, in modest amounts, is your friend
.

In their various books, plant-based nutrition experts T. Colin Campbell, Dr. Caldwell Esselstyn, and Dr. Dean Ornish all argue that a whole-food, plant-based diet extremely low in fat is best. So they throw out the olive oil and get rid of the avocados. And peanut butter or almond butter? Forget it—no more nuts. How do I feel about that? Well, I concede that if you're obese, fighting cancer, have survived a heart attack, suffer significantly clogged arteries, struggle with critically high cholesterol or blood pressure values, or are afflicted by any chronic disease, then this protocol is best. Your life hangs in the balance, and extreme measures are necessary to back yourself off the ledge. I can't dispute that these authors' programs work, and work well.

However, they're also extreme. Many people unthreatened by imminent demise might not be able to sustain such a strict regimen over time. And as I said earlier,
sustainability is the name of the game
.

The fact is, in cutting out all animal products and most processed foods from our diet, we've already extracted the key culprits in the promotion of heart disease, diabetes, high blood pressure,
and cancer. Moreover, there's scientific evidence to support that swapping saturated fat with plant-based unsaturated fat is just as effective at reducing blood cholesterol as a diet entirely devoid of fat.

Another observation worth mentioning is that when people overdo it in their attempt to remove all fat from their diet, they tend to compensate by binging on starchy (nutrient-poor) carbohydrates, which in turn leads to weight gain.

Then there's this confusing business of EFAs—the essential fatty acids known as omega-3 (alpha-linolenic) and omega-6 (linoleic acid). We've all seen the labels. But what exactly are these fats, and why are they so important? Much like the essential amino acids discussed above, EFAs must be obtained from food, since the body can't itself manufacture them. And they're crucial to the maintenance of a wide array of bodily functions, including the activity of the brain, muscles, joints, adrenal glands, and sex organs. And yet many people suffer from a deficiency caused by an imbalance of these crucial fats, which leads to unhealthy skin conditions, joint problems, lethargy, memory impairment, and heart disease.

Balance the omegas
. The typical American diet tends to be very high—far too high, in fact—in omega-6, which is found in corn (derivations of which can be found in zillions of food products), processed foods, certain vegetable oils, and meat. To be sure, this EFA is important, particularly with respect to maintaining kidney and skin health. But whether you're a vegan or a meat and dairy eater, ensuring adequate intake of omega-6 is rarely problematic. All of us get more than enough, simply because it's present in so many commonly ingested foods. The problem arises when the ratio of omega-6 to omega-3 is too high. When omega-6 isn't counterbalanced by sufficient intake of omega-3, the result can be depression and inflammation, which over time promotes a variety of chronic illnesses, including cancer—not to mention an impediment to timely recovery from exercise-induced stress.