As soon as it comes to healthy eating or losing weight, then everyone first of all thinks about the benefits of oatmeal. However, due to the high concentration of phytic acid in it, nutritionists do not recommend eating oatmeal more than 2 times a week. After all, this insidious acid "steals" calcium from the body.
In fact, phytic acid isn't just found in oatmeal. Any whole grains, legumes, raw seeds and nuts, and wheat germ are abundant in this anti-nutrient. There is especially a lot of phytic acid in bran. I must say that the above are the most useful, healthy foods that are so necessary for every person. But everything is good in moderation. Phytic acid begins to act to our detriment only when it accumulates in the body in a fair amount.
It interacts if it was not possible to neutralize it during cooking, in the intestine with calcium, magnesium, phosphorus, zinc, copper, iron, and blocks their absorption by the body. In addition, phytic acid inhibits the activity of enzymes that are designed to break down proteins.
Therefore, you should seriously consider before you "go" on a rigid diet of oatmeal in water, legumes and raw nuts. As a result, you can lead your body to demineralization. However, don't panic. You just need to observe the measure in everything and learn how to properly cook whole grains. That is, ferment them first.
Ruminants produce a special enzyme in the rumen - phytase, which promotes better absorption of phytic acid. The human intestinal microflora also has this ability, but in much smaller quantities. The production of phytase can be activated in the cereals themselves, which occurs during the long soaking process (12-24 hours).
But you need to take into account that you cannot soak the cereals in hot water before boiling, because at a temperature of 80 degrees, phytase will collapse in just 10 minutes, and there will be no effect. the water should be at room temperature, or 40 degrees. It is better to ferment in an acidic environment, so you can add a few drops of lemon juice or malic acid.
Different cereals are able to release different amounts of phytase to break down phytic acid. So, oats, corn, millet, brown rice, even with prolonged soaking, are not able to eliminate the entire content of phytic acid. Therefore, you should simply eat these foods less often. And cook them only after soaking for a day.
