I feel pretty good about eating a no gluten or lectin diet.
Gut-brain axis: Review on the association between Parkinson’s disease and plant lectins 2022 clinicalcases.eu/index.php/...
"Gastrointestinal (GI) involvement in the pathogenesis of Parkinson’s Disease (PD) has been widely recognized and supported in recent literature. Prospective and retrospective studies found non-motor symptoms within the GI, specifically constipation, precede cardinal signs and cognitive decline by almost 20 years. In 2002, Braak et al. were the first to propose that PD is a six-stage propagating neuropathological process originating from the GI tract (GIT). Aggregated a-synuclein (a-syn) protein from the GIT is pathognomonic for the development of PD.
This article reviews the current literature from the past 10 years as well as original research found in PubMed on the combined effects of enteric glial cells and lectins on the development of Parkinson’s Disease. Studies have found that these aggregated and phosphorylated proteins gain access to the brain via retrograde transport through fast and slow fibers of intestinal neurons. Plant lectins, commonly found within plant-based diets, have been found to induce Leaky Gut Syndrome and can activate enteric glial cells, causing the release of pro-inflammatory cytokines. Oxidative stress on the enteric neurons, caused by a chronic neuro-inflammatory state, can cause a-syn aggregation and lead to Lewy Body formation, a hallmark finding in PD. Although the current literature provides a connection between the consumption of plant lectins and the pathophysiology of PD, further research is required to evaluate confounding variables such as food antigen mimicry and other harmful substances found in our diets.
It is hypothesized that plant lectins have emerged and become more widely distributed due to their ability to defend against microorganisms (bacteria, viruses, and fungi), insects, and plant-eating animals [46].
This hypothesis has been linked to the carbohydrate-binding properties of lectins. For example, it has been found that extracellular lectins found in the roots of plants have a role in defense against bacteria by immobilizing copious quantities via carbohydrate residue recognition and agglutination [47].
In addition to their agglutinin properties, plant lectins are resistant to proteolysis both in vitro and in vivo and have been stable through a wide range of pH [40]. These characteristics help explain the mechanism in which plant lectins survive the gastric pH of plant-eating animals and cause deleterious systemic and gastrointestinal effects [48].
One of the most prominent effects that plant lectins have on the GIT is the induction of a phenomenon called leaky gut syndrome (LGS). LGS is a condition in which TJs are disrupted and gaps are formed in the intestinal wall, causing paracellular hyperpermeability [49]. This enables various hostile antigens or toxins to invade directly into the lamina propria, bloodstream, and plexus [50].
An animal study involving mammalian rats showed that when phytohemag-glutinin (PHA), a plant lectin derived from kidney bean (Phaseolus vulgaris) seeds, was ingested, there was increased mucosal epithelial cell turnover and TJ disruption, leading to increased intestinal permeability [51]. This observation is explained by lectin’s ability to bind to glycosylated residues on the gut epithelial cell surface [52].
Since carbohydrate residues on epithelial surfaces are similar between mammals, these findings suggest that lectins may also increase gut permeability in humans [53]."
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I follow a gluten and lectin free version of the Specific Carbohydrate Diet, except that I have a couple cans of Pepsi with Real Sugar every day.
My diet consists of: A cup of broccoli sprouts in the morning and at night, 1/2 of a whole meatball, an onion, pistachios, cheddar cheese, apple sauce, raw honey, sardines or tuna, raw spinach. And two cans of Pepsi with Real Sugar (Corn Syrup is LECTINS).
That is mostly what I have every day. I have Asperger's so variety is not so important to me.
I make my own meatballs. They have one ingredient: Meat (hamburger).
What about the Oxalates in spinach? I don't think they cause PD.
I do have eggs once and a while if they are offered to me.
Cheddar cheese because I like cheddar cheese and it is on the SCD.
I do have canned salmon sometimes too.
And sauerkraut or kimchi.
And blueberries.
And olive oil - apple cider vinegar on my spinach.
My first list was my normal diet. Now we have covered the bonus items too!
I try to keep things simple and not be too scientific. I eat the broccoli sprouts because I think they are curative. Everything else on my diet is my effort to get a balanced diet that I enjoy and plays within the SCD - Gluten Free - Lectin Free rules.
Levodopa is not abundant in nature. Why are some plants generating levodopa? To defend themselves and to attack other vegetables. Levodopa is a precursor to many alkaloids, catecholamines and melanin, and when the plants produce levodopa they use it to eliminate other plants that compete with them in the same terrain 5.
Levodopa from some legumes (such as beans) destroys the roots and shoots of the neighboring plants 6, that are growing in the field and also to repel insects 7. It is a weapon of defense and attack between plants to mark their territory, is a system for setting limits otherwise known as allelopathy 8 9.
To defend themselves and to attack other vegetables. Levodopa is a precursor to many alkaloids, catecholamines and melanin, and when the plants produce levodopa they use it to eliminate other plants that compete with them in the same terrain 5.5. Soares AR et al. The role of L-DOPA in plants. Plant Signal Behav 2014; 4:9. pii: e28275.
Lectins are defined as proteins that bind to carbohydrates. The same features that lectins use to defend plants in nature may cause problems during human digestion. They resist being broken down in the gut and are stable in acidic environments, features that protect lectin-containing plants in nature. [hsph.harvard.edu › lect...
Lectins | The Nutrition Source | Harvard T.H. Chan School of ...
It occurred to me that PD rates have been rising at the same time plant scientists have been bragging about genetically modifying plants to have natural pesticides (lectins?).
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