Do You Know About Phytates? They Are Actually Good For You

Phytates are protective of health but partial or misinformation causes some people to shy away from phytate consumption. Under normal circumstances phytates are very protective of health, and the majority of circumstances are normal.

What Are Phytates?

Phytates are the salt form of phytic acid and are found in grains, seeds, nuts, and legumes. It is also known as inositol hexakisphosphate (IP6), inositol polyphosphate and is the primary storage form of phosphorous.

Are Phytates Bad?

The knock on phytates is their “anti-nutrient” effect because they can bind with minerals like calcium, iron, and zinc and reduce the body’s ability to use it. Though the science is correct about this property of phytates, this information doesn’t actually paint the correct picture of what happens in real life, but many people have taken this partial information and have run with it.

An issue could arise only if large amounts of phytates were consumed along with a severely nutrient deficient diet. Some phytate-associated deficiencies do occur some countries where the majority of food people eat are grains, because of the lack of access to other foods. This is not the norm for diets around the world and phytate-associated deficiencies occur minimally around the world.

This general anti-nutrient effect of phytates led many people to avoid the consumption of grains, seeds, nuts, and legumes, which had also led them to avoid the benefits of phytates, Phytates play a very important role in protecting health and supporting homeostasis in the body.

Cooking grains and legumes, and soaking seeds and nuts does reduce the amount of phytates in food, but the reduction of phytates is only a concern if you consume a severely nutrient deficient diet.

Are Phytates Good For You?

Yes, phytates are good for you and they contain some very important health protecting properties, including antioxidant,^[1][2] anti-osteoporosis, and anti-cancer properties!

Phytates And Osteoporosis

One concern about phytate’s “anti-nutrient” properties was its ability to bind with calcium, block calcium absorption, and possibly cause osteoporosis. Earlier studies had shown that the consumption of large amounts of phytates did reduce the bioavailability of calcium, but that was because calcium deficiency was already present.^[3] Even in this situation the body compensated and was able to retain calcium.

More recent studies have shown that people who avoid high phytate diets have reduced bone mineral density compared to people who eat high phytate diets.^[4][5] The researchers concluded phytates protected against osteoporosis, while low phytate consumption should be considered a risk factor.

This study^[6] measured phytate levels in women’s bodies over a 12 month period and women with the highest levels of phytate had the lowest levels of bone loss.

Phytates And Cancer

Phytates are quickly absorbed through intestinal tract and quickly attach to cancer cells throughout the body.^[7] Phytates have been shown to inhibit the growth of all tested cancers which include: leukemia, colon cancer, breast cancer, liver cancer, throat cancer, cervical cancer, prostate cancer, pancreatic cancer, and melanomas.

Along with inhibiting cancer growth phytates kill cancer cells,^[8][9] and phytates also rehabilitate cancer cells. Phytates cause enhanced differentiation of cancer cells,^[10] which means phytates cause the reversion of cancer cells to the appearance of normal cells and stops cancer cells from acting destructively.

Yes, phytates are protective of health and should be included in the diet. Phytates anti-nutrient properties are only a concern if you have a severely nutrient deficient diet.