John,
I was digging around for information for the
magnesium and epilepsy discussion and came across two items that got me to thinking about all the seizure control diets:
All of the seizure control diets, directly (GARD) or indirectly (ketogenic, modified atkins, low glycemic index treatment), effectively restrict/eliminate processed/milled grains from the diet. I wonder if the real reason these diets are working is because of
the ratio of dietary magnesium to glutimate.
If that hypothesis is correct, high glutimate foods which are currently restricted by the GARD diet (grains, legumes) should be OK to eat as long as they are eaten in their whole food (unmilled/unprocessed) forms.
I know you have discussed other issues with legumes such as lectins, but I'm wondering if mother nature isn't just a tad bit smarter than us (in building in the very tools our bodies need to correctly process *natural* foods).
Thoughts?
The key thing to see is that magnesium is absorbed primarily by the duodenum, where the "big 4" (gluten, casein, soy and corn) do their main damage. That same area is where calcium, iron, iodine, B complex/folate, C, zinc, manganese and other trace elements are absorbed. That is why celiacs, for example, are the "who's who" of what goes wrong with people (and pets).
Processing these grains (e.g. white flour) makes the gluten/lectins more available to do their harm. BUT, once sensitized, the individual cannot handle even the gluten in whole wheat products. If the bread sticks together, there is gluten available for harm unless they have used gums and other "glues" to hold it together, which they do in gluten-free breads. But if you're going to do that...use gums to hold whole wheat together...why use it at all, if it is not going to even be available for digestion??? See the "pretzel" logic here?
The Father Nature (smile) you refer to IS correct...those foods that are likely to block the absorption of a substance are often rich in that substance.The Creation is perfect in that regard. Milk is the glaring example. It is LOADED with calcium but most of it is unavailable due to the blocking effect of casein.I t is an epidemiological fact that the countries that drink the most cow milk have the worst osteoporosis and that is because casein blocks calcium absorption (especially in pasteurized milk and cheese) and it also induces villous atrophy in susceptible individuals, which further blocks calcium absorption. Therefore, dairy is the absolute worst source of calcium followed by cereal grains...and now soy (errrh).
But talk about the beauty of Creation: The foods that are THE most likely to induce seizures (dairy and gluten grains) through their lectins and malabsorption syndromes are also the very ones that will innately reduce calcium absorption. Why is that "beautiful"??? Because in seizure physiology, glutamate is the GUN but calcium is the BULLET. In other words, glutamate stimulates the influx of calcium into the next neuron and THAT is what causes the neuron to either be over-stimulated or die. So (how cool is this?), the foods that are the most likely to cause the neurons and glial cells (those controlling the level of glutamate at the synapse) to dysfunction are the very same foods that block the absorption of calcium at the gut level. If they didn't, there would be even more available calcium at the synapse, which could worsen the problem.
Love it when The Plan comes together.
But what is man's answer? "Fortify the milk, wheat, and even the orange juice." We are all under the deception that we need soooo much more calcium that we actually require.
The proof is found in the animal kingdom where none of them consume any of
these things we are discussing (the gluten grains and corn are man-made and man-cultivated and along with soy and milk would not be available to ANY animals naturally) and many of which grow to be huge with big, thick
bones while existing on a diet of grass and hay. Think of elephants,
giraffes, and the like all of which were weaned from mom when they tripled
their birth weight. Think of the dinosaurs, many of which were vegetarian
from the start and we are still digging their bones out of the ground.
Osteoporosis does not exist in the wild animal kingdom.
In fact, too much calcium actually contributes to osteoporosis. The cells
that perform the function of moving calcium in and out of bone apparently
can do this action a limited number of times before they die. If asked to
deal with too much calcium, they will die prematurely. This has been written
up in the medical literature. This and the point of malabsorption are both
contributing factors in the epidemiological fact that the countries that
drink the most milk develop the highest rates of osteoporosis. With dairy
making up nearly 45% of our calories in the US, you would think that if milk
and cheese were the answers to osteoporosis, we wouldn't have it here. BUT,
we LEAD the world along with Scandinavia in the incidence of osteoporosis.
They love their cheese, too. In the countries like those in southeast Asia
(Cambodia, Laos, S.Vietnam) where they drink very little milk, none of their
110 year old people fall over and break their hip, the main criterion used
for the incidence of osteoporosis.
So, the bottom line is to use common sense. Avoid the unnatural and man-made
foods that block the calcium we can get naturally from those sources that
can provide all that we need (meats, fruits, veggies, nuts/seeds). When in
doubt, think naturally.
I hope this helps,
John
