Help with Rice & Beans

[Keith Wittenstein]

I am trying to get my yoga friends off this idea that rice & beans are the perfect food. This idea is common in the yoga/vegetarian community along with the idea that they combine into a complete protein. I think it's junk.

Any good sources. I guess some Cordain and Sears stuff would be good. Anything else you can think of?

Anybody care to enlighten me on the whole rice & beans issue?

Thanks,
Keith

[Norma Loehr]

Not sure I can shed any light other than when looking at zone blocks, beans are classified as carbohydrates. This means the body 'treats' them as carbohydrates, not protein. So a meal of beans & rice is all carbohydrate which is definitely not balanced at all.

I went Zone and non-vegan at the same time about a month ago and have been having a hard time because, as I have learned, my diet was heavily carbohydrate based with inadequate protein.

[Noah Silverman]

Keith,

Look at the website: http://beyondveg.com

There is a ton of great stuff their to debunk a lot of the myths that the "yoga" crowd believes.

-N

[Nicole Carroll]

Hi Kieth-

I teach a crossfit class at a yoga community where all the clients are long time (like 30 year) vegetarians and yogi's. Needless to say I have heard the beans and rice thing often. When I talk to them about the zone and nutrition I focus on the hormonal impact of the foods. Beans and rice have more than twice as much carb as protein per serving. They are high carb, high GI foods that pack a large insulin response. Complete or not the foods do not create the glucagon response in the body that a protein like tofu (or meat) will.

If any are willing have them experiment with adding proteins like tofu, cheese, seitan etc. in the right quantities to each meal for at least 2 weeks and see how they feel. Also check out The Soy Zone by Barry Sears.

[Keith Wittenstein]

Thanks! Great ideas so far. I still want to know if that rice + beans = protein is malarky or not.

[Ryan Atkins]

Hi Keith,

Here's a snippet from Cordain that might help:

http://www.crossfit.com/discus/messages/23/8579.gif

The gist I get from that article is that, although the quality of protein is there, often the quantity is not. In order to get this quantity solely from legumes and grains would require massive consumption of those substances - often resulting in other deleterious effects (mineral deficiencies, the insulin spiking that Nicole's already mentioned, etc.) because of the displacement of calories from other sources.

I had a conversation with a friend a few days ago. He informed me that Taoist priests don't eat grains.

FWIW,

Ryan

[William Hunter]

Ryan, that's strange that you mentioned the Taoist priests. I have a book on Taoist longevity practices that makes mention of an old phrase used by the priests, "bi-gu" (avoid grains).

[Keith Wittenstein]

William, send the link or title or citation, please!

Thanks, Ryan! Muito obrigado!

[William Hunter]

Keith, the book is called "The Tao of Health, Sex, and Longevity" by Daniel P. Reid. He's a westerner who's been living in Taiwan for a couple of decades studying from Taoist masters. It's an interesting read to say the least.

Here's the excerpt I was referring to:

"Grains have been the mainstay of the human diet for only 6,000 or 7,000 years, and thus the Taoist sages of ancient China recognized them as relative newcomers to the human diet with deleterious effects on human health and longevity. Throughout the ancient Taoist literature on health and longevity we find the term bi-gu (avoid grains) cropping up over and over....the fact that for the past several thousand years the traditional Chinese diet has consisted of 80-90% grains simply reflects the requirements of over-population. Taoists who avoid grains live much healthier and longer lives than the general populace..."

[Keith Wittenstein]

Thanks, William!!!