How to Reduce Antinutrients in Foods

Plants can be hard to digest because they contain antinutrients. A few well-studied antinutrients include lectins, phyate, and tannins. Read along to find out how to remove some antinutrients in foods.

Nutrients in plants are not always easily digested. This is because plants may contain antinutrients.

These are plant compounds that reduce the absorption of nutrients from the digestive system.

What are antinutrients?
Antinutrients are plant compounds that reduce the body’s ability to absorb essential nutrients.

They are not a major concern for most people, but may become a problem during periods of malnutrition, or among people who base their diets almost solely on grains and legumes.

The most widely studied antinutrients include:

Soaking Beans
and other legumes are often soaked in water overnight to improve their nutritional value.

Most of the antinutrients in these foods are found in the skin. Since many antinutrients are water-soluble, they simply dissolve when foods are soaked.

Sprouting
Sprouting is a period in the life cycle of plants when they start emerging from the seed. This natural process is also known as germination.

This process increases the availability of nutrients in seeds, grains and legumes.


Boiling
High heat, especially when boiling, can degrade antinutrients like lectins, tannins and protease inhibitors.

Additionally, calcium oxalate is reduced by 19-87% in boiled green leafy vegetables. Steaming and baking are not as effective.

Combination of methods
Combining many methods can reduce antinutrients substantially, sometimes even completely.

As an example, soaking, sprouting and lactic acid fermentation decreased the phytate in quinoa byby 98%.