Well, if LCers and LC Paleos are too afraid of all starch—even starch that’s digested by gut bacteria into short chain fatty acids (beloved saturated fat)—and thus too lame to help diabetics for their own ignorance—as we saw in comments in the last RS post—then I’ll just have to take a SAD eater.
I have to say a big THANK YOU to Tatertot for that RS list. Somehow or another I stumbled onto this site and all the information concerning RS. I am a Type II diabetic and found it very interesting. I started earlier this week using potato starch anywhere I could, such as mixed in yogurt, a glass of milk, or even in canned black beans that I had. It is amazing at the difference this has made in my blood sugar levels. I do not eat a paleo diet, actually closer to the SAD (I know, I know, the flogging may commence!). But, I just wanted to share my 2¢ about the starch and how it helps. I’m eating more things cold that would contain RS (e.g. pastas, even pizza). The numbers don’t lie; my sugars are consistently lower than if I would eat the same foods piping hot. I truly do appreciate all the effort you guys have been putting into this subject. It is quite fascinating!
Ashamed much? I sincerely hope so. Thought you were supposed to lead the way.
It’s quite a testament to the effectiveness of something when it works even in the context of an otherwise crappy SAD.
As a LCer myself, the ignorant, dogmatic, knee-jerk condemnations of resistant starch, simply because it has the word “starch” in it, are rather disappointing. At this point, I’m embarrassed to call myself a LCer.
What a ringing endorsement.
Solvitur ambulando – AKA “Suck it and see” or in Jack Kruse’s immor(t)al writing: N minus 1.
But then the Cruise Missile is minus many units.
Sláinte
my head is hung in shame!!
“But, I just wanted to share my 2¢ about the starch and how it helps.”
LOL, that’s about all a TBS of potato starch costs, so we’re even! Really glad this comment was posted and Richard chose to highlight it.
I wonder what is really going on with the commenter…eating SAD, but with additional RS normalizes his BG. Is it because of the lowered overall glycemic index or glycemic load? Butyrate production in the large intestine that is sorely lacking on SAD? Healthier overall gut microbes?
Dunno what it is but something is really good about it.Still only doing canned beans,green bananas etc and my gut has improved tremendously.Past two days I have lost the gut enlargement that would happen to me every single day by noon and stick around till next morning.Just feel clean and mean and its only been what maybe a week?Gonna buy some potato starch tomorrow as a safety factor since the list stated that canned beans are so low and just eat the all bran,beans,bananas for the other beneficial fibers.
This may be TMI so be warned.I also notice I do not need toilet paper.My poop just comes out and I wipe as its the right thing to do.In past this would happen to me sporadically maybe one or two days a month and I always wished that it was permanent as it feels very healthy.Now its a normal thing that I will probably start taking for granted soon.LOL
Is raw Maca powder a form of quality resistance starch? It has a bunch of other purported benefits and if it qualifies as another good source or RS that would even better.
JR you ask an interesting questions about the Peruvian vegetable, Maca being a type of RS.
It’s not listed in the database (Thanks Tatertot!)
But it’s a tuber so it’s definitely possible.
Since it’s a small serving I wouldn’t think it’s give much toward that goal of 40 mg a day they recommend BUT could it possibly be especially helpful at feeding certain bacteria – which either regulate the hormones or provide a kind of ‘backup system that kicks in.
One of the hallmarks of Maca is that it seems to ‘correct’ hormone imbalances without actually chaning changing hormone levels.
Could it be changing the qualities (that we don’t measure) of hormones -thereby making them more functional , even if they’re low?
And do so by feeding certain bacteria that make this possible??
The more I think about it the more I think my friend Jane (who posed this Q as well) might be on to something.
So I d say my theory is that the reason Maca works is that it’s a prebiotic to specific bacteria that help to either regulate hormones in some yet unmeasured way or provide a backup system for some of their functions.
@Wolfstriked – If you are eating canned beans, don’t heat them, just put them in a bowl with the broth from the can and mix in starch. Tastes great!
LeonRover,
ita sit, indeed solved by an experiment…..faulty missiles notwithstanding 😉
Anyone with a glucose meter can test this and so I get Richard’s impatience with naysayers who argue from some uninformed standpoint. At the very least they should read the literature and if still doubting (nothing wrong with that) then they should test the reported/studied effects themselves because with 30 years of science behind it, it’s worth it, not a flash-in-the-pan kinda thing.
I did.
But no, typical negative responders don’t even read the very well referenced science and instead argue from sheer, unmitigated, unrelieved ignorance.
They’ve clearly not purged Bacon’s idols…or bacon’s, for that matter 🙂
Aside : Tis a shame the man went to Trinity College centuries before the Nobel prize was established, Dawkins would have approved.
@SteveA,I could never do that as a warm bowl of bean soup is just too yummy.I did purchase some Bob’s Red Mill potato starch today,which my local food mart actually carried.:) Just gonna eat it straight 2tbsps and water.How much PS should I consume per day again?
@Wolfstriked – I try to get at least 4 tablespoons a day. If the soup is less than 150 degrees, then the starch shouldn’t lose it’s bond and should still be beneficial. I tried it in water and it was alright, but if I mix 1-2 tablespoons in milk, it’s much better. Can’t hardly tell the difference, and it’s a quick and easy way to get that last bit in before going to bed.
I actually like a heaping teaspoon in a glass of milk. Gives it a bit of slightly gritty body that I enjoy.
Mashed potatoes is a hot (or rather cold) subject… I make them a little thinner, then put them in the fridge for the next day. Before work or whenever, I’ll mix in potato starch, and I’m set. No difference in texture, it just thickens them up to where they should be, and I get my dose. And again, there isn’t the spike in BG.
Back in my SAD days, I used to add sugar to everything. I found a new use for our sugar container–it’s now a starch container. All the things I used to add sugar to are now getting a scoop of starch. I kind of quit measuring, just a spoonful here and there. Yesterday I mixed a big scoop with some sour cream and had it on my hot, but slightly cooled, potatoes with sauerkraut mixed in. I also mix starch with a bit of milk and cocoa powder and mix into a bowl of frozen berries or a mashed up banana for dessert.
It’s really too easy.
I also now have a pretty good mix of banana flour, tapioca starch and potato starch going. No set proportions, and not mixed real well. I really like the thought of mixing the starches up a bit, and still doing beans, green bananas, and dried plantains depending on mood and availability.
When I eat pasta with tomato sauce, I mix the starch into the sauce (cold) and don’t use parmesean cheese. I actually kept forgetting to put on the cheese, but now I purposely go without and it tastes fine. To quote tatertot, “It’s really too easy.” He’s exactly right. The starch isn’t some chemical additive or whatnot, it’s a naturally occuring substance that is extracted, so what’s the harm in trying it? Plus it’s not that expensive either (I pay around $3.50 for the potato starch, and I’ve found the tapioca starch for $2.98 locally-BRM brand).
Hi Tater,
I’ve been RS starch “aware” – ha, from the beginning of your posts on the subject…trying different starches, food combinations, etc., and have a bit of an update.
You may remember I had the dreaded waking at 3:00 am syndrome you and many others, (especially low carb paleos’) have had. Well I believe RS has been responsible for much better, almost perfect sleep. In fact, I haven’t had that stretchy super relaxed and refreshed feeling in years and right now I am getting it often.
I can’t say 100 percent responsible because I have changed a few other things in this time period of experimenting with the RS, but compared to where I was with the non-restful sleep, I am thrilled and believe RS is a major positive factor in the change.
As far as implementation, I’m doing what your doing…just throwing in a scoop of tapioca starch into some full fat yogurt, letting it sit a bit before eating the over-sized table spoon, (I don’t eat much yogurt). I will also eat dehydrated plantains which are easy and cheap for me to get (with the seeds removed before dehydrating). and will generally eat my rice cod (room temp actually)
Potatoes have always given me problems and unfortunately so does potato starch so I won’t eat it any more but with the other three things I covered.
I haven’t checked blood sugar yet with my meter. (need a new pack of strips and wasn’t in the mood) but I am sure it is behaving nicely because I can correlate it with how well I sleep. I would be 95-100 with the old sleep patterns and in low 80’s when sleep was good.
I plan on throwing some well soaked beans into the rotation as soon as I get a special dispensation from Paul J as the variety will be nice. Thx.
Hey, Perry! Glad to see you are workin’ it.
I think Paul’s PHD recommendations on beans are unfounded. I think he kept with the legume abstinence league just to appease the paleo.
In an article on gut health, http://perfecthealthdiet.com/2010/07/bowel-disease-part-ii-healing-the-gut-by-eliminating-food-toxins/ , Paul condemns all legumes for three reasons:
“Legumes also contain an array of toxins which suspend digestion and damage the gut. Some examples:
– Phytohaemagglutinin, a kidney bean lectin, makes the gut leaky; blocks stomach acid production, promoting bacterial overgrowth of the small intestine; overpopulates the gut with immature cells that are easily colonized by E. coli and other pathogens; disturbs the mucus and shortens villi. [16]
– Alpha-amylase inhibitors in legumes prevent starch digestion and leads to gut bloating and multiplication of pathogenic gut bacteria. [17]
– Antibodies to soy proteins have been identified in duodenitis, Crohn’s disease, ulcerative colitis, and coeliac disease, and these diseases are sometimes cured when soy is removed from the diet. [18]
It should be noted that peanut and soybean allergies are among the most common allergies. This testifies to the significant immune response legume toxins can generate.”
His first argument, Phytohaemagglutinin, is a valid concern, but all of this stuff is removed by boiling for 10 minutes. As few as 5 raw beans can cause poisoning. I’m not sure what effect fermenting has on Phytohaemagglutinin, but it seems to temper all the other bad stuff. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Phytohaemagglutinin
His second argument, Alpha-amylase inhibitors, are actually being used as diet supplements. These inhibitors slow the release of alpha-amylase which is needed to digest carbs–meaning more starch from beans gets to your large intestine…this is probably why beans are so healthy, not why the are to be avoided! The study Paul linked was a rat study that fed high doses of the inhibitors and killed rats.
His third argument, Antibodies to soy proteins, I fully agree with! Don’t eat soybeans!
The only paleo objections to beans are ‘antinutrients’. These are undoubtedly found in raw beans. Fermenting and simmering for a while makes beans healthy. http://fusion.infiniteplane.com/lactic-acid-bean-fermentation.pdf
Do you mean the tiny little black seeds in the core of plantains? If so, how do you remove them?
(My above question was to Perry.)
Tatertot, what about natto (fermented soy)? There’s research suggesting it to be a health food. That used to puzzle me a bit, because it didn’t fit the notions of most Paleo-type diet advocates (though there are exceptions, such as Mark Sisson http://www.marksdailyapple.com/are-you-eating-these-important-supplemental-foods/#axzz2dDflMaWI).
Allergies are connected mainly to roasted peanuts; not so much to raw, blanched or boiled peanuts/groundnuts:
“Peanut allergies are more common in the U.S. and the U.K., where people tend to eat peanuts roasted, than in Asian countries like China, where peanuts are usually eaten raw or boiled. Studies have shown that the allergic response to one of the peanut proteins, Ara h 2, is increased by the roasting process.” http://eatingscience.wordpress.com/2011/12/09/dont-feed-the-children-the-growing-problem-of-peanut-allergies/
Gabriele Macho, a professor of paleoanthropology at the University of Bradford thinks that Australopithecus anamensis ate raw African groundnuts 4.2 to 3.9 million years ago (http://news.discovery.com/human/human-ancestor-diet-nuts.html). Groundnuts were domesticated in Africa “between 9000 and 5000 BCE” (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_Africa).
Cut the plantain in half lengthwise so the halves lay flat with inside face up. Using a small parring knife cut a triangle shape encapsulating the seeds with two cuts down the length of each half and pull out this banana bone (my kids laugh here). Voila, filleted banana. Cross cut each half in slices and put on tray in oven on lowest setting so as not to blow out the starch.
I eat all my bananas this way too, (wife is annoyed) but Tater was right I’m workin it. Ray peat says the banana seeds are what people usually react to and he is certainly seed phobic so I do this as I eat a lot of bananas and plantains. I am not low carb .
Richard will try to steal filleted bananas but I have already tradmarked.
Hmm, Marie,
I no longer am a limber 2 year-old when I could suck my own toes – “it” was beyond me even then, tho’ I could see.
These days, having supplied myself with my own clinical thermometer, BP meter, heartbeat monitor, Tanita scales, spring loaded tape measure, glucometer & strips I am in a position to conduct my own observations on myself. Quite Baconian & E(m)pirical.
Here followeth a very old music hall joke (Devonshire accent):
Q. Who ‘s ‘at Roger Bacon, then ?
A. Dunno, unless ‘e ‘s ‘at varm labourer as vucks pigs.
(Goodies are Oldies.)
Sláinte
@Paleophil – I’ve been hearing about natto for years, never had they chance to try–would love to, as I like to try everything. I’ve heard it’s a mega-dose of K2 and probiotics. Probably proof that beneficial gut microbes produce K2.
I asked my CW doc a while back about testing for Vit K and supplementing–he just laughed and said the only people who should be concerned about K are people on blood thinners–they should avoid it, but for everyone else, there’s no need to supplement because it’s in most foods and made in the gut.
Even though he said that, I could see the wisdom in supplementing from all I have read. WAP wrote a lot about it.
@LeonRover:
The local parish priest meets a young girl leading a cow down the road:
“Where you off to then?”
“Takin’ our cow to get bred at Jimmy’s farm”
“Oh, my, couldn’t your father do that?”
“Oh, no, vicka–it must be another cow!”
LeonRover,
good grief, from bacon to pig ‘husbandry’? Those windmills are churning 🙂 :
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OXFh-mYh2dQ