All right--so besides understanding how much Protein you want to go for eating each day (by eating 8 - 16 ounces per day of meat, fish and eggs daily)…and how KEY it is to optimize your Omega-3 and Omega-6 weekly foods...by getting in that weekly 2 meals/up to 1 pound of oily seafood/shellfish/omega-3 algae oil...

And by getting LOW with your omega-6 fats by just enjoying nuts & seeds as occasional "pleasure foods"...and ditching vegetable/soy/canola oils found in pre-made foods...

Plus, planning your weekly meals & getting strategic with the BEST high-heat cooking oils (low in PUFA's that go POOF!)...

And getting IN a daily/weekly amount of body-usable form of Vitamin A...

It’s a bit to take in at first—but it really does become easy to apply once you get started by planning your Protein on a Daily/Weekly basis!

In the next module—which is a deeper dive into the important Micronutrients in Protein that you need to be able to burn fat & feel GOOD--we will explore:

Before we dive more deeply into those ^^^ key Micros and before you get started strategically planning your Protein on a daily and weekly basis…

Let’s explore some extra tips to consider:

So I feel I would be remiss if I didn't share some extra food for thought as climate change troubles are brewing, the ocean is warming, and we have to look for ways we can personally support cutting down on greenhouse gases…

And our Protein choices can be a really good way to do this.

I'll preface my eco food-for-thought here by first sharing that I used to be a Vegetarian because I care about animal welfare and climate change, too.

In the last few years though, I've decided to be an intentional pastured-meat eater instead because after reading quite a bit about different sides of the debate (and some terrible health challenges that finally resolved with adding pasture-raised meat back into my diet)…I'm taking a stand with Allan Savory and other regenerative agriculture researchers who have calculated that we can sequester more carbon with rotational, pasture-raised animals (not CAFO animals)…

More than can be sequestered by vegetable growth & production (because the soil is tilled…and it’s the microbes in the soil that are mainly responsible for sequestering carbon in soil)…

That’s a simplified summary as to why rotational, pasture-raised animal agriculture can sequester more carbon (poop-tastic & no-tillage)).

And why you may want to consider adding in sustainably-raised meat, dairy & eggs...organic, regenerative agriculture produce...and sustainably-farmed shellfish into your weekly food budget, if you can.

Allan Savory describes that the process of being able to sequester/tuck away carbon comes down to having the roots of plants remain intact, in the ground:

Live plants utilize carbon to make oxygen. When you use traditional annual farming practices, you basically rip up the entire plant—roots & all—when you harvest it. And to make matters worse, the soil is often tilled—and it’s the microbes in the soil that are mainly responsible for sequestering carbon in soil…

Plus added to that tillage—fertilizers—which are killing off said microbes, and reducing the micronutrient content of the soil and our food, all at once.

That’s why organic, regenerative vegetable farming helps sequester more carbon—and helps get more nutrition into our bodies—when farmers take great care to nurture the soil mineral content + microbes & don’t use chemical fertilizers.

However, even better than organic veggie farming practices (where plants & roots still get ripped up):

Are perennial plants, where the plants stay planted—like with plantains, bananas, apples & coconuts…

And, the most carbon can be sequestered by rotational, pasture-raised animal agriculture…as ranchers move the animals before they completely mow down the grass, keeping some foliage and the roots intact…plus the animals add a little poop (but as they’re moving around, this fertilizer/microbe food gets spread around too).

Purchasing grass-fed animal products also supports smaller family farms, and not big CAFO (concentrated feed lots) that heavily damage water supplies, air quality…and crowd out small family farms. I will tell you this is a HUGE issue where I live in Iowa. And big factory farms also don’t benefit the community much at all with taxes…or with many well-paying jobs, or good water, soil or air quality, as well.

So that's why I personally spend my dollars this way and think that it's good "food for thought" to share here too---that Pasture-raised animals...and organic produce too...are an eco, community & heart-felt win.

#Iowaperks...seeing small grassfed farming in person

To share a bit more about my own perspective--for me, I do care very deeply about animal welfare…and that’s why I purchase grass-fed, free-range meat, eggs…because these animals are treated very well…Plus I do think that making bone broth & eating a little organ meat is very honoring of the whole animal…

When I look at the life of a pasture-raised cow, who gets to live alongside her baby, eat awesome food, be cared for by a small family farm that really does care about her…and have literally “one bad day” where she meets the inevitable end that all animals and people will eventually meet…

I personally find this more humane than how CAFO (concentrated feed lot animals) are treated AND how small animals are treated in annual soy/corn/wheat/bean crop harvesting fields, as well.

Obviously it's up to each of us to take our own personal stand, and encourage industries to develop better broader practices as we can...and I think "voting with your dollars" can be powerful, all the same.

The unique carbon-sinking power of pasture-raised cows

If you want to explore this idea more--this is an interesting, pointed article called "If you want to save the world, veganism isn't the answer," that shares how grass-fed, pastured animal agriculture is the kind of agriculture that can actually sequester carbon into the soil as a negative carbon sink—as opposed to creating more carbon emissions from the practice of ploughing, typically used in growing annual vegetables and grains:

“Not only does this system of natural grazing aid the environment in terms of soil restoration, biodiversity, pollinating insects, water quality and flood mitigation – but it also it guarantees healthy lives for the animals, and they in turn produce meat that is healthy for us. In direct contrast to grain-fed and grain-finished meat from intensive systems, wholly pasture-fed meat is high in beta carotene, calcium, selenium, magnesium and potassium and vitamins E and B, and conjugated linoleic acid (CLA) – a powerful anti-carcinogen. It is also high in the long-chain omega-3 fatty acid DHA, which is vital for human brain development but extremely difficult for vegans to obtain.

Much has been made of the methane emissions of livestock, but these are lower in biodiverse pasture systems that include wild plants such as angelica, common fumitory, shepherd’s purse and bird’s-foot trefoil because they contain fumaric acid – a compound that, when added to the diet of lambs at the Rowett Institute in Aberdeen, reduced emissions of methane by 70%.

In the vegan equation, by contrast, the carbon cost of ploughing is rarely considered. Since the industrial revolution, according to a 2017 report in the science journal Nature, up to 70% of the carbon in our cultivated soils has been lost to the atmosphere.

So there’s a huge responsibility here: unless you’re sourcing your vegan products specifically from organic, “no-dig” systems, you are...significantly contributing to climate change."

To wrap-up this "food for thought" section--it can be powerful to “vote with your dollars” with grass-fed & free range animal small farm practices which help sequester carbon in the soil (potentially helping climate change) AND keeping water from being even more polluted with CAFO & 2-crop-farm production (corn & soybeans) causing huge water pollution problems.

Anyways, that's where I've decided to land on these issues…for more about how pasture-raised animals can help sequester more carbon in the soil, check out Dr. Chris Kresser’s compilation of resources here.

You can find grass-fed & finished meat in many grocery stores...and find local farms near you too, by doing a simple search online.

And here's a great resource to choose sustainable seafood with these state-by-state guides from Seafood Watch. You could click on your state, and then bookmark it on your phone, to make sustainable seafood shopping at the store easier.

Eco Food for thought, part two...Why SUSTAINABLE Fish & Shellfish are tasty & helpful

All right—so it seems through our biology, that we’re tied to the oceans, as humans, based on our inherent need for omega-3 from algae, shellfish, and fish.

And wild fish like Salmon, sardines and Atlantic Char have those essential Omega-3's you need. However:

Wild caught fish are in great danger of being over-fished…and unfortunately, at the same time, many farmed fishing practices use wild fish as fish food, plus dangerous antibiotics as well…

Making most farm-raised fish actually inflammatory for our bodies, with the antibiotics that are used….and to add insult to injury, currently most fish farming practices are not helping to keep wild fish populations intact:

Farmed fish often eat more small fish per pound, then we get in food per pound by raising them. The exception so far it seems is to be one company (that is selling to select Whole Foods grocery stores) that raises Coho Salmon in tanks, doesn’t use antibiotics, the fish are naturally dyed with Astaxanthin…and they eat 1.1 pounds of “feeder fish” for every 1 pound of salmon protein.

*And most salmon that you can order in a restaurant is not-well-farmed salmon…because it’s cheaper!

You would have to ask at the seafood counter to learn how fish are farmed…and I highly recommend using the Monterey Bay Aquarium’s Seafood Watch recommended fish guides. You would want sustainably caught or well-farmed, when you purchase fish.

The state of wild & farmed fish are both fraught with challenges.

Hello omega-3 Shellfish

What I think is the most eco-friendly & sustainable option at this point is shellfish…as many shellfish are being healthfully farmed right now.

They can be farmed very sustainably in the ocean, without hurting the surrounding environment. They eat phytoplankton too, so farmed shellfish don’t need to be fed other fish like krill…and instead, they help clean the water around them, helping phytoplankton to thrive.

Many people think about shellfish as “filter feeders” and think maybe they get loaded up with toxic gunk…but they actually keep on passing that stuff out, and research has found that shellfish are actually the least contaminated farmed seafood whenever they’re tested.

However, you DO want to make sure you handle shellfish carefully, eat them on the same day you buy them & cook them well. Raw bivalve shellfish can carry bacteria, viruses and toxins that can cause foodborne illness. That's why it is important to harvest, store, handle and prepare shellfish appropriately to help prevent illness.

When you buy them at the grocery store, they usually give them to you “on ice”…and then it’s best to keep them in the refrigerator & then eat them the same day you purchase them from the store.

You can use the Seafood Search on the Monterey Bay Aquarium’s website, to learn more about sustainable shellfish! 🙂

Here’s their entry on Mussels, for example:

Look for farmed mussels, which are one of the most sustainable kinds of seafood you can buy…

Plus, Mussels are so inexpensive (especially compared to wild-caught fish!)...and you can flavor them in so many delicious ways & feel all French when you eat them (mussels are super popular in France :))

This is a great summary article by Mark Sisson of Mark’s Daily Apple, about different kinds of shellfish & the micronutrients you can get from them (like oysters, clams, mussels, scallops, shrimp…)

And another great post about shrimp…and if you eat shrimp, you would want to get US farmed shrimp or wild-caught bay shrimp from Oregon or the Northeast.

Shellfish allergies are a common allergy though…so it’s important not to eat them if you’re allergic to them.

But if you can, many different kinds of shellfish are a great source of these crucial micronutrients:

More deets about Omega-3 fish oil PILLS?

Ok, and also it's important to point out, as Dr. Jaminet writes, that:

"omega-3 fats are chemically fragile:  their carbon double bonds are easily oxidized.  EPA has 5 double bonds and DHA 6 double bonds, so they are the most vulnerable of all dietary fats.  They easily become rancid."

And when these fragile omega-3 oils are put into capsules--and get transported & sit on shelves, they can become rancid. And in fact fish oil pills are the opposite of healthful...they have been shown to cause sudden cardiac death. 🙁 Rancid omega-3's are just not good.

If you don't want to eat fresh fish/shellfish, or not a lot of it--I recommend using Omega-3 Algae Supplements--or refrigerated cod liver oil...way better than fish PILLS...very effective way to get your DHA + EPA Omega-3 fats, from the source!

Plus, if you’ve been taking fish oil to help lower triglycerides…instead, Dr. Chris Masterjohn gives some great insight in why you would want to dump the fish oil pills & try a lower carb diet (like this one! :)) & addressing insulin resistance at it’s root cause, instead of supplementing with high-dose fish oil (video here).

And Dr. Chris Masterjohn recommends that most people would only need 200 - 300 milligrams of DHA a day (see the previous page for way more details).

Triglycerides and Phospholipids--for brain health--oh my:

It's important to know that gently cooked cold-water, oily fish (plus blue mussels, fish roe and krill oil) are still THE most brain-absorbable source of omega-3’s…as omega-3’s from fish come in the form of triglycerides and phospholipids…(in algae, omega-3’s come in the form of triglycerides, so it's still very good)…while triglycerides are very usable by the body, only the phospholipid form has been shown to be readily usable by the brain in reducing Alzheimer’s disease risk in people who carry the APOE4 gene.

So I do recommend eating at least occasionally, the phospholipid form of Omega-3’s from:

Ok, we're going to talk about Protein sources (including properly prepared beans) for Vegetarians here in just a moment (and important MICROnutrient info for EVERYONE)...

And if you're a Vegetarian/Pescatarian or Vegan...

Here are a few nutritional strategies to consider--to make sure that you're getting not only enough Protein if you're a Vegetarian...and also fat-soluble vitamins & minerals (usually found in animal products)...and enough Saturated Fat too (so important for hormonal balance & good energy):

How to make sure you’re getting your Nutrient needs met as a Vegetarian...the Protein edition

I’m going to let him say it below—don’t shoot the messenger! But simply:

It’s hard to get all of the nutrition you need from plant protein, and not eating meat has been shown to reduce stomach acid production as you age, which can lead to poorer and poorer absorption of food, plus different kinds of anemia (B12-deficiency and iron-deficiency).

(I'll share a blog post soon about how to test if you have low stomach acid too...and here are some other common vegetarian nutrition deficiencies)

How to get nourished as a Vegetarian

And here are a few tips from Dr. Paul Jaminet (and insert mine):

“You can replace the red meats with fish, shellfish, [bivalves] and dairy. Pulses should be well cooked, ideally in a pressure cooker or for many hours as in traditional Indian cooking.”

“We don’t recommend vegetarianism, as it is difficult to be well nourished as a vegetarian. However, there are PHD vegetarians. Some keys are to eat 3 egg yolks per day plus dairy, and to eat diverse natural whole foods, not flour-based products or sweets/oils. Fatty plants should come from the tropics. You can relax macronutrient guidelines somewhat as a vegetarian.”

Although more about why I don't agree with the last sentence--I think to be a more successful Vegetarian/Pescatarian...you would actually want to go for keeping your Saturated Fat intake up (more about this in the last FAQ box below).

Plus:

I highly recommend bone broth (and/or supplementing with collagen)…for vital collagen & joint matrix material that our cells, joints and tissues are mainly made of (whether you go the vegan or beef/marine collagen ratio route)…

And--Dr. Jaminet recommends considering being a Pescatarian instead of a Vegetarian...as getting an optimal Omega-3 and Omega-6 intake is so crucial for metabolic health & feeling GOOD:

As research details that human beings can not synthesize all of the EPA (EPA & DHA compromise the long-chain part of omega-3 essential fatty acids) from flaxseeds or chia seeds...

So that's why eating cold water, ocean-caught fish/shellfish (OR using Omega-3 algae supplements) can be very powerful for your health & energy.

Hormonal Balance concerns for Vegetarians

Plus—something I found interesting as I was researching hormonal balance for a friend…is that our hormones are made using *saturated fat* as a pre-cursor (we’ll get more into SaFA fats in the Good Fats section)…and if you’re eating a lot of beans for protein, being a pretty strict Vegetarian…then you’re not going to be getting a lot of saturated fat (most saturated fat comes from eating meat, eggs, dairy, fatty tropical plants).

So eating a lot of beans—and missing out on this saturated fat—may impact your hormone balance/creation. I def say may, as most research that’s been done on this involves men & testosterone (go figure)…but def food for thought!

And additionally—when you take out animal protein—and substitute it with Beans as your Protein source—you are also missing out on the fat-soluble Vitamins (micronutrients) that our bodies genetically expect from this animal protein.

So, when you use Beans as a Protein—it also makes sense that you should strategically plan to *get in* these vitamins that you would be missing, too. And, as a review, let’s talk about a majorly important, fat-soluble vitamin here for a moment:

Retinol Vitamin A.

And unfortunately, the majority of people are not genetically efficient at converting veggie forms of Vitamin A (beta-carotene) to the body-needed/usable form of Retinol, by just consuming most* Vitamin A plant foods.

So that’s why you would want plan to supplement the retinol-form of Vitamin A from either (trying my liver pate recipe :p)…or what’s likely easier, taking desiccated liver supplements (great) or refrigerated cod liver oil (also good) on the daily.

OR--you could also use the body-absorbable Vitamin A found in sustainably-grown red palm oil on the daily, as well.

Plus, selenium is another micronutrients that jumps out as lacking too…plus other nutrients you can't get from plant foods, including vitamin B12, creatine, carnosine, taurine, vitamin D3, heme-iron, and sulfur.

Also, if you are not eating egg yolks daily…you won’t be getting essential Choline and Arachidonic acid…and I'll just repeat this crucial quote from Dr. Paul Jaminet that highlights how important Choline is for good insulin management and healing/preventing metabolic syndrome.

Dr. Paul Jaminet writes:

“Choline deficiency (CD) by itself induces metabolic syndrome (indicated by insulin resistance and elevated serum triglycerides and cholesterol) and obesity.”

And he continues:

“In the book, we recommend…that pregnant women and vegetarians supplement with choline. We thought seriously about recommending that everyone supplement choline, but were reluctant to recommend too many supplements.

In retrospect, we should have recommended choline supplements for everyone who is overweight, has elevated blood glucose or lipids, or has elevated liver enzymes.”

See the previous page for more details. But truly, if you don’t have the vitamins/micros your body needs—it’s hard to have good energy or be able to burn fat, too.

Also, I realize that many Vegetarians also use Dairy products to get protein and good fats…

Plus: as a conclusion that I’m personally drawing, for Vegetarians I would recommend:

Still using the PHD guidelines of getting in your 52% daily Good Fats, even when you eat Beans as your main protein.

This would mean you would think more “ketogenically”

So—my reflection on all of this is that when you use Beans as your protein source in a meal—you would still want to fill in that missing Good Fats (mainly SaFA & MUFA fats) that you would be getting from meat—as we do have this Paleo physiology.

So essentially, you would be eating more “Keto” for your bean-protein meals…adding in a lot of good fats. In fact, I wouldn’t worry about avocado’s omega-6 content either so much (it’s not a damaged omega-6 like seed oils or rancid nuts/seeds)—eat a whole avocado a day, whatever it takes to get your saturated fat UP enough, to match what you would get, if you were eating red meat.

You can figure it out on cronometer.com—just put in 1/2 pound of ground beef for dinner (or 1/4 pound for lunch), and see how much saturated fat that has—and then plan to eat that much Good Fats in your meal when you make Beans your main protein.

Or again, multiply your bodyweight x 0.4 grams of Good Fats, to get at least this much daily for hormonal health.

High Good Fat foods include: avocados & avocado oil, coconut milk & oil, MCT oil, olives, cacao butter…and occasionally using macadamia nuts & butter, almond butter, cashew butter (which are all lower in PUFA fats)

This is just a suggestion from me, and an interesting way to think about making sure you are getting enough Good Fats.

You would still be a “moderate carb” Keto person with Bean meals though—you wouldn’t want to go all in with Keto (I’ll share more details about this in the Safe Starches section)…you still want those Safe Carbs for gut health, brain energy & joint health, too.

So this are my reflections on how to compensate for the lack of Fat in beans as your protein meals…

To help in not missing out on good cholesterol & hormone production.

It’s just a helpful partial solution though…you would also want to plan how to “get in” the missing fat-soluble vitamins/micronutrients you would be missing too…and it helps to be open to adding in nutritional supplements/foods in you need to do so:

Retinol Vitamin A is a case in point for this…and Choline/Arachidonic acid, too (I link to options in the worksheet for this module, too).

For now though, I just wanted to share some eco food-for-thought, ideas about beans & dairy (below), and also about increasing your SaFA & MUFA Good Fats (and planning for missing Micros) when you eat beans as your main protein source in a meal.

Ok--Hopefully that is some inspiration for my Vegetarian/Pescatarian people, and some food for thought. 

Speaking of the incredible importance of designing your daily meal plan around getting IN the RDA of all the key MICROnutrients…

Your body not only needs adequate Macros like Protein on the daily—it also needs ALL of the MICROnutrients too—for you to feel good & to be able to be in the place where you body can more easily build muscle & burn fat.

Let's look a little bit at using Dairy Products as a source of Protein & Calcium...and sprouted Beans/Lentils as a source of Protein & Folate, too.

Let's first look at using Dairy Products as a way to get in your Protein & some Good Fats with a meal...and a way to get in Calcium too.

When it comes to the RDA (recommended daily allowance) of Calcium—it’s interesting that the RDA of Calcium for a middle-aged woman (it does vary based on your age!!) is described as being equal to 3 eight ounce glasses of milk.

That’s an interesting way to describe it—you can actually get a lot of absorbable Calcium from certain veggies too (especially collard greens, kale & bok choy)…as well as edible bones & pasture-raised bone meal…and mineral water.

Which is a good thing, because some people don’t tolerate the proteins in Dairy very well!

I’ll talk more about different sources of Calcium in the next module…for now though, let’s talk about some suggestions of how to add in Dairy in a way that supports your digestion—if you’re not outright allergic to it.

Plus next, some tips on how to eat beans to support good digestion, too.

Here’s a little more about how to add in Dairy, if you do…

What types of Dairy would be best? Here is a great summary from a blog post on the PHD website, by Dr. Paul Jaminet:

"The Perfect Health Diet strongly approves of dairy fats (such as butter and heavy cream – clarified butter or ghee for those with dairy sensitivity) and approves of fermented dairy products (yogurt, cheese)...

but recommends avoiding most dairy protein – especially products containing pasteurized cow casein that has not been pre-digested by bacteria...

Cow casein, especially the pasteurized form which is difficult to digest, has various well-documented problems."

Dr. Chris Kresser shares his summary take on dairy too:

"This doesn’t mean dairy products are safe for everyone. Those who are intolerant of lactose, the sugar in dairy, may need to limit themselves to high-fat dairy products that don’t contain much lactose, like ghee, butter, hard cheese, and cream. Those who are intolerant of dairy proteins will likely need to avoid dairy altogether, with the possible exception of ghee."

And a lot of people do better without dairy products all together.

Whey is one of the two main dairy proteins (the other is casein)...and if you aren't allergic to whey, it can be a great “superfood” that’s low in lactose…it helps maintain glutathione status in your body (the master antioxidant)…and it’s a byproduct of making cheese, so it’s relatively eco-friendly.

This is a grass-fed whey brand I highly recommend because it's low temperature processed, which preserves the fragile cysteine bonds--making it helpful for supporting/maintaining good glutathione status.

I recommend getting whey without added emulsifiers that can be hard on your digestion...and again, some people will not be able to eat whey protein at all.

So recommended dairy fats & fermented dairy would potentially be: butter, heavy cream, ghee, yogurt, cheese, kefir (if you're not lactose sensitive)...

and whey & ghee (potentially do-able, even if you are lactose intolerant)

Beans & Lentils--when they're prepared properly & they don't take the place of other important nutrients--can be a way to add in Protein and to super-charge your Folate, too.

Here are some tips to prepare beans & lentils in a way to optimize their nutrient content & protect your digestion, too.

Tips to prepare Beans, if you do

Ok—so when it comes to Beans…The Dr. Jaminets originally listed Beans as a toxic food to avoid…although they have softened their stance on this a little bit on their blog, when beans are prepared in traditional way (with long, high heat cooking time) or with a pressure cooker (InstaPot).

They are still not totally down with beans though. The thing is—when beans & legumes (not green beans & peas) are RAW, they are highly toxic. In fact, raw/undercooked kidney beans can make you very ill (avoid using a slow cooker especially with these beans).

Beans are the seeds of the plant, and plants don’t really want you to eat them. They have built in defense mechanisms--including PHYTIC ACID, which can bind other minerals and may make it hard to get the calcium, magnesium, iron and other trace minerals you need, if you rely on beans as a main food staple.

If you only eat a few servings of beans a day, and you take time to properly prepare them, our bodies can deal with a lower level of phytates on a daily basis...especially if you're someone who has good gut flora, as some strains of gut flora can produce phytase that neutralizes phytic acid to a good extent.

If you do have poor digestion--or you feel like you may be suffering from a mineral deficiency in calcium, iron, magnesium or the like--it may be best to stick to other Safe Starches and protein sources, instead. In fact, Dr. Chris Masterjohn does eat lentils and beans daily--but he also shares how it allows him to keep his iron levels from going to high (he has a genetic pre-disposition to iron overload). Food for thought! More about phytates & mitigating their effects here.

And here are some best practices to prepare Beans & Lentils if they are a good match for you: 

Soaked and then Boiled at high heat is the second best way to reduce lectin content in lentils & beans…the Instant Pot/pressure cooker is the best way…using canned beans is not good (see exception below) because of the high lectin content, that disrupts the cellular wall of the intestines and can cause leaky gut.

Again, be sure don't forget to soak and boil at high heat (or instapot) your beans to significantly reduce lectin content, if you eat them (see my recipe book for ideas...I used to sprout beans, but since you can get good results with just soaking them, it's A LOT easier to just do that)! 🙂

I also highly recommend dried, pre-sprouted lentils & beans (from a company like TruRoots)…they cost a little more but they are sprouted for a day, making for increased nutrient content & better digestibility…so for me, they are worth the money.

Also, Eden canned beans are so far the only brand of canned beans that I would recommend--as they come in BPA-free lined cans (maybe still not that great for hormonal balance)...however, these beans are processed with pressure cooking methods--nice!

Plus--the Drs. Jaminet recommend NOT using a slow cooker to make beans--that only increase the lectin content. :0 Again, soaking & boiling at high heat...or using a pressure cooker (best) are the best ways to reduce harmful lectins/anti-nutrients/toxins/gut-punchers in beans.

Unfortunately, there isn’t much research to share that all anti-nutrients are eliminated with these ways of cooking.

Dr. Chris Kresser say beans are ok, if you have good digestion & can tolerate them, but so long as they don’t replace other important nutrients.

And I share more about how to get a solid amount of daily Folate from sprouted beans if you do--in the Carbs section too (as beans are part protein and part starch, as well).

Also, be sure to substitute peanut butter (a high PUFA, heat-damaged fat by the time it arrives to you)...with tree nut butters instead!

Let's talk about the last Protein Planning Goal next--and that has to do with Protein at Breakfast...to help you burn fat, feel energized all day long & optimize your daily Cortisol rhythm...