Reply To: Materia Medica of Foods
Hi Claudia, see my answers below. 🙂
1. I can’t advise you on continuing to eat peanuts if your doctor recommended you stop. I’m not actually sure what the level of oxalate reduction is if you roast or boil them, but because oxalates are water soluble, blanching, boiling, and roasting would be best. Or, switching to a seed butter that isn’t so high in oxylates to support your kidneys.
2. Regarding sour cream, I believe some varieties are cultured but most are re-pasteurized after the culture is added, which kills the probiotics. I would suggest the full-fat, non-sweetened Greek yogurt for the protein and fats. There are some brands that offer high protein, lower fat varieties that don’t have added sugar (Olympic, for example) if that helps. Some saturated fat from animals is healthy for us, so I wouldn’t concern yourself too much if you have healthy cholesterol levels.
3. If you’re soaking your own beans before cooking, I’d recommend throwing that water out and rinsing them before cooking. The water you boil the beans in can be used (it’s called aquafaba) to flavour other dishes or in place of stock. I recommend doing a little research on the cooking water itself, as I am unsure what the phytate content is after cooking. Here is a quick research article about soaking and phytate removal – https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/12887152/
4. Home-milled it most likely more nutritional, but enriched flour might have added nutrients that are not normally contained in wheat. It just depends what you’re looking for in your bread, nutritionally speaking.
5. In general, yes the meat substitutes are processed. There are some companies that offer mushroom-based/lentil/legume meat alternatives if you’re looking to reduce the soy based ones, but in general, sticking to whole legumes, grains, nuts/seeds, and organic tempeh or soy is preferable most of the time. But the meat alternatives can be fun for one who might miss meat! A blend of all of the above will be sustainable and delicious for him, and balance is so important. Finding joy and satiety in the food we eat is integral.
6. I wouldn’t know if you were deficient or not, but I would suggest not worrying about serving sizes. We are all in different bodies and respond well to different foods and portions. I recommend eating a variety of veggies, fruits, meat/legumes, whole grains, fruit, nuts/seeds that bring you joy and help you feel satiated. I think you would intuitively know if you were lacking in a vitamin or mineral. 🙂
I hope this helps!
Riley