2 Days and Counting and We Need Your Help!

We are excited to announce that the Revised and Updated pH Miracle book will be released on July 2, 2010.

You can preorder now and as our gift to you, you are invited to attend a FREE webinar with Dr. Robert O. Young, the foremost nutritional microbiologist in the world today!

All you need to do is purchase the newly Revised and Updated pH Miracle book at Amazon.com, selling for $11.55—a substantial savings over bookstore prices—then visit www.phmiracleliving.com/t-booklaunch2010.aspx to submit your information. That's it. Then we'll send you the link to the upcoming video webinar.

The new book is already one of the Top 20 Best Sellers at Amazon.com and moving up quickly. . .and you can help Dr. Young and Shelley drive this book straight to the top of the Best Seller list.

This is the fastest way to help the whole world begin to investigate and understand the health benefits of pH alkaline health and nutrition, as well as the life-work of Dr. Robert O. Young and Shelley Redford Young.

So, never count calories, fat grams, or food portions again! Say good-bye to low energy, poor digestion, extra pounds, aches and pains, and disease. Say hello to renewed vigor, mental clarity, better overall health, and a lean, trim body. The key? Your health depends on the pH balance of its blood; striking the right 80/20 balance between alkaline and acidic foods creates the optimum environment. Now this innovative, proven diet program works more effectively than ever with your body chemistry to help revitalize and maintain your health. This new edition includes the latest information on living the pH lifestyle:

* New ways to cleanse and detox the system to improve your body's digestion and metabolism;
* The latest advice on ridding your body of harmful bacteria, yeast, and molds;
* New details on alkaline foods—tomatoes, avocados, and green vegetables-and how to mix them with mildly acidic foods like fish, grains, and certain fruits to create tempting and delicious meals;
* Adding the right types of water and salt to your diet—and the major difference they can make in your health;
* More than 35 delicious new recipes.

pH Miracle Living Center
16390 Dia Del Sol
Valley Center, California 92082 US

© Copyright 2010 - Dr. Robert O. Young
All rights are reserved. Content may be reproduced, downloaded, disseminated, or transferred, for single use, or by nonprofit organizations for educational purposes, if correct attribution is made to
Dr. Robert O. Young. and Shelley Redford Young
If you can't veiw this email, copy and paste this address in your browser's address bar: http://www.phmiracleliving.com/htmlmail/2010/pHe6_25Launch.html
Robert O. Young, Ph.D., D.Sc.
pH Miracle Living Center
16390 Dia Del Sol
Valley Center, California 92082 US

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Interview with Jimmy Moore

About two months ago, I did an interview with Jimmy Moore of the Livin' la Vida Low Carb internet empire. I hardly remember what we talked about, but I think it went well. I enjoyed Jimmy's pleasant and open-minded attitude. Head over to Jimmy's website and listen to the interview here.

I do recall making at least one mistake. When discussing heart attacks,I said "atrial fibrillation" when I meant "ventricular fibrillation".

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In Search of Traditional Asian Diets

It's been difficult for me to find good information on Asian diets prior to modernization. Traditional Chinese, Taiwanese and Japanese diets are sometimes portrayed as consisting mostly of white rice, with vegetables and a bit of meat and soy, but I find that implausible. Rice doesn't grow everywhere, in part because it requires a tremendous amount of water. Removing all the bran was prohibitively labor-intensive before the introduction of modern machine milling. One hundred years ago, bran was partially removed by beating or grinding in a mortar and pestle, as it still is in parts of rural Asia today. Only the wealthy could afford true white rice.

Given the difficulty of growing rice in most places, and hand milling it, the modern widespread consumption of white rice in Asia must be a 20th century phenomenon, originating in the last 20-100 years depending on location. Therefore, white rice consumption does not predate the emergence of the "diseases of civilization" in Asia.

In the book Western Diseases: Their Emergence and Prevention, there are several accounts of traditional Asian diets I find interesting.

Taiwan in 1980

The staple constituent of the diet is polished white rice. Formerly in the poorer areas along the sea coast the staple diet was sweet potato, with small amounts of white rice added. Formerly in the mountains sweet potato, millet and taro were the staple foods. During the last 15 years, with the general economic development of the whole island, white polished rice has largely replaced other foods. There is almost universal disinclination to eat brown (unpolished) rice, because white rice is more palatable, it bears kudos, cooking is easier and quicker, and it can be stored for a much longer period.

Traditionally, coronary heart disease and high blood pressure were rare, but the prevalence is now increasing rapidly. Stroke is common. Diabetes was rare but is increasing gradually.

Mainland China

China is a diverse country, and the food culture varies by region.

Snapper (1965)… quoted an analysis by Guy and Yeh of Peiping (Peking) diets in 1938. There was a whole cereal/legume/vegetable diet for poorer people and a milled-cereal/meat/vegetable diet for the richer people.

Symptoms of vitamin A, C and D deficiency were common in the poor, although coronary heart disease and high blood pressure were rare. Diabetes occurred at a higher rate than in most traditionally-living populations.

Japan

On the Japanese island of Okinawa, the traditional staple is the sweet potato, with a smaller amount of rice eaten as well. Seafood, vegetables, pork and soy are also on the menu. In Akira Kurosawa’s movie Seven Samurai, set in 16th century mainland Japan, peasants ate home-processed millet and barley, while the wealthy ate white rice. Although a movie may not be the best source of information, I assume it has some basis in fact.

White Rice: a Traditional Asian Staple?

It depends on your perspective. How far back do you have to go before you can call a food traditional? Many peoples' grandparents ate white rice, but I doubt their great great grandparents ate it frequently. White rice may have been a staple for the wealthy for hundreds of years in some places. But for most of Asia, in the last few thousand years, it was probably a rare treat. The diet most likely resembled that of many non-industrial Africans: an assortment of traditionally prepared grains, root vegetables, legumes, vegetables and a little meat.

Please add any additional information you may have about traditional Asian diets to the comments section.

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"Medical Truth"

How many more medical lies have to be perpetuated before we stand up for the truth? How many more people need to be poisoned with antibiotics, vaccinations and other cancer causing pharmaceuticals until we stand up and say "Enough!"? How many more children’s lives need to be destroyed before we take a stand? Please help save a life by passing this information on…

• Harvard University and National Cancer Research Journals now confirm that ONE Aspirin or Tylenol each day will cause up to an 80% increased risk of Cancer and Heart Disease. A Prospective Study of Aspirin Use and the Risk of Pancreatic Cancer in Women, Eva S. Schernhammer, Jae-Hee Kang, Andrew T. Chan, Dominique S. Michaud, Halcyon G. Skinner, Edward Giovannucci, Graham A. Colditz, Charles S. Fuchs, Affiliations of authors: Channing Laboratory, Department of Medicine, Brigham and Women's Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA (ESS, JHK, ATC, HGS, EG, GAC CSF); Ludwig Boltzmann-Institute for Applied Cancer Research, KFJ-Spital, Vienna, Austria (ESS); Gastrointestinal Unit, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston (ATC); Nutritional Epidemiology Branch, National Cancer Institute, Rockville, MD (DSM); Departments of Nutrition (EG) and Epidemiology (HGS, GAC), Harvard School of Public Health, Boston; Harvard Center for Cancer Prevention, Boston (GAC); Epidemiology Program (GAC) and Department of Adult Oncology (CSF), Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Boston. Correspondence to: Eva S. Schernhammer, MD, DrPH, Channing Laboratory, 181 Longwood Ave., Boston, MA 02115 (e-mail: eva.schernhammer@channing.harvard.edu


• Take ONE 50 mg. pill of Vioxx for 5 days? A study undertaken two years ago showed that this increases the chances of getting coronary artery disease by 70%. Lancet Oct 5, 2002


• A University of Washington study found that if you filled 25 or more prescriptions for antibiotics over 17 years, you double your risk of cancer (TIME, Dec. 6, 2004) This equates into taking less than ONE antibiotic each year, an activity in which almost every American participates.


• Infants exposed to ONE single round of antibiotics during their first years of life are twice as likely to develop asthma as those who don’t. The more courses of antibiotics, the worse the immunity and the greater the risk of asthma. (Newsday, March 6, 2006)


• Take ONE Benadryl for your allergies, and here are your possible side-effects: Difficulty breathing, closing of your throat, swelling of your lips, tongue, or face, hives, sleepiness, fatigue, dizziness, headache, dry mouth, difficulty urinating, enlarged prostate and a dramatic reduction in energy.


• Take ONE aspirin per day? Daily aspirin intake shows a significantly increased risk of pancreatic cancer among women. This cancer is fatal 90% of the time. Source: American Association for Cancer Research, October 27, 2003


• Take just ONE Crestor pill/day to lower your cholesterol? This drug has been shown to cause 75 times the level of kidney damage than other statin drugs. Public Citizen Oct 29, 2004


• ONE vaccination can leave your child with brain damage or worse a form of Autism: Children are 27 times more likely to develop autism when exposed to vaccines containing mercury: Lori McIlwain, National Autism Association, (919) 272-8192/ Studies suggest that there is a link between neuro-developmental disorders, such as autism, and mercury exposure from thimerosal-containing childhood vaccines. Centers for Disease Control, Jan. 16, 2004.


• Taking just ONE pain killer can cause death. There are over 16,500 deaths from NSAIDs (Pain Killers) each year in the hospitals alone. JAMA July 26, 2000 Vol. 284. Just as many die from AIDS each year!


• Thinking of taking a cough suppressant or giving to your child just ONE time: cough suppressant is linked to Birth Defects: Dextromethorphan, the major ingredient in most OTC cough medicines, has been shown to cause birth defects. Source: Pediatric Research January 1998:43:1-7


• Taking cold medications like Robitussin, Triaminic, PediaCare, Comtrex, etc. just ONE time can cause stroke, brain bleeding, and seizures. This year the F.D.A. completely banned these cold medications for adults and children, especially under the age of 6.


• L. A. Times states: Antibiotics aren’t the answer to treating sinus infections: “The widespread use of standard antibiotics to treat sinus infections does not help cure patients and taking just ONE round may harm them by increasing their resistance to the drugs.


Below is more truth is it applies to some of the most commonly ingested pharmaceuticals in the world


1. Acetaminophen (Tylenol) use is the number-one reason for acute liver failure in the United States. It is also responsible for 8 percent to 10 percent of the end-stage renal disease in the U.S. The New England Journal of Medicine December 20, 2001; 345:1801-1808. Hepatology Volume 40, Issue 1, Pages 6 – 9. Published Online: 30 Jun 2004, American Association for the Study of Liver Diseases.


2. In 2004, the American Academy of Pediatricians reversed its guidelines, pointing out that in more than 80 percent of the children with ear infections, symptoms would subside on their own, without the need for antibiotics.


3. DO NOT take antibiotics or any of the above drugs without the facts!


4. The flu shot and childhood vaccines can be deadly. We have been told to get flu shots that contain mercury, formaldehyde, aluminum and many other dangerous chemicals! Now according to the Vaccine Journal, they said, “flu vaccines offer no protection and have never saved any lives.”


*Mercury!!! 2nd most dangerous substance on earth. Destroys the nervous system and immune system. Associated with Multiple Sclerosis, Central Nervous System Disorders, Autism and Alzheimer's Disease!


*Ethylene glycol (antifreeze) Exposure to ethylene glycol can damage the kidneys, heart, and nervous system.


*Phenol (disinfectant) Exposure to phenol can produce skin burns, liver damage, dark urine, irregular heartbeat, and even death.*Formaldehyde (known cancer causing agent)


*Neomycin and Streptomycin (antibiotics)


*Aluminum associated with Alzheimer's disease and seizures and also cancer producing in laboratory mice. Is this something you want to inject directly into your blood or your children’s?


5. The flu vaccine is manufactured to fight the flu from 2 years previous, so it is IMPOSSIBLE for this year’s flu vaccine to protect you against this year’s exact strain of circulating flu virus!


6. According to Hugh Fudenburg, MD, one of the world’s premier immunogeneticists, the chance of getting Alzheimer’s is ten times higher if an individual has had 5 consecutive flu shots(this is due to the Mercury). Dr. Fudenburg is the 13th most quoted biologist in the world today.


7. A British Medical Journal shows the medical profession to only be about 4% scientific. http://www.vet-task-force.com/CtiM.htm


“Our drugs don’t work.” Dr. Allen Roses, worldwide vice-president of Genetics at GlaxoSmithKline (GSK), Britain’s giant pharmaceutical company, acknowledged at a scientific meeting in London that fewer than half of the patients prescribed some of the most expensive drugs actually derived any benefit from them.

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Update: Taste of Yesterday and Tomorrow

Sorry, for being away for so long.

Don't worry, I've been at work on a pretty interesting piece called "Weakening Veganism: Intersectional, International, Interspecies Conversations." In it, I argue that veganism should be thought of as a conversational process with others that affirms and enriches human-animal relationships rather than an antagonistic identity based on following a fixed moral system based on abstaining from human-animal relationships. You can get a taste of it by visiting the "Paradigm Shift" page.(Yep, it's a new feature just like the "About" and "Table of Contents" pages. I may also try adding a "Video" page, too.)

If you're an old reader, you'll notice the blog has undergone a major template change... and I love it! Yeah, it's not green, but I like the earthiness of the browns. And it's damn sexy, too. But I'm not opposed to changing things around if people have suggestions.

In other news, I will be presenting a paper called "Queering the Breast: De-Naturing the Hu/man through Breastfeeding Practices" that articulates a new relationship between humans, animals, and food based on experience, transformation, and nourishment. It's based on the "The Identity Politics of Breasts" series I posted last summer and is a hybrid creature of animal, feminist, queer, and trans* studies. I hope to get this published in an upcoming special issue on animals in Hypathia. I also plan on publishing a refined version of my "The Racial and Colonial Politics of Meat" when I get the chance in addition to a piece on "Animal Anarchist Ethics in the Flesh" based on the "Weakening Veganism" post described above. So that's a taste of what's to come.

Finally, most of my blogging has been done on Facebook. I usually type responses to other blogs and new pieces that are maybe 200-500 words without any citations.Would people prefer I post these on here?

I've been reluctant because I've tried to maintain very high quality posts, but, then again, its only a blog. Also, 2) how much would you prefer shorter posts--does anyone read through the whole thing ever?

Throw some feedback at me if you're interested in any of this!

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Low Micronutrient Intake may Contribute to Obesity

Lower Micronutrient Status in the Obese

Investigators have noted repeatedly that obese people have a lower blood concentration of a number of nutrients, including vitamin A, vitamin D, vitamin K, several B vitamins, zinc and iron (1). Although there is evidence that some of these may influence fat mass in animals, the evidence for a cause-and-effect relationship in humans is generally slim. There is quite a bit of indirect evidence that vitamin D status influences the risk of obesity (2), although a large, well-controlled study found that high-dose vitamin D3 supplementation does not cause fat loss in overweight and obese volunteers over the course of a year (3). It may still have a preventive effect, or require a longer timescale, but that remains to be determined.

Hot off the Presses

A new study in the journal Obesity, by Y. Li and colleagues, showed that compared to a placebo, a low-dose multivitamin caused obese volunteers to lose 7 lb (3.2 kg) of fat mass in 6 months, mostly from the abdominal region (4). The supplement also reduced LDL by 27%, increased HDL by a whopping 40% and increased resting energy expenditure. Here's what the supplement contained:

Vitamin A(containing natural mixed b-carotene) 5000 IU
Vitamin D 400 IU
Vitamin E 30 IU
Thiamin 1.5 mg
Riboflavin 1.7 mg
Vitamin B6 2 mg
Vitamin C 60 mg
Vitamin B12 6 mcg
Vitamin K1 25 mcg
Biotin 30 mcg
Folic acid 400 mcg
Nicotinamide 20 mg
Pantothenic acid 10 mg
Calcium 162 mg
Phosphorus 125 mg
Chlorine 36.3 mg
Magnesium 100 mg
Iron 18 mg
Copper 2 mg
Zinc 15 mg
Manganese 2.5 mg
Iodine 150 mcg
Chromium 25 mcg
Molybdenum 25 mcg
Selenium 25 mcg
Nickel 5 mcg
Stannum 10 mcg
Silicon 10 mcg
Vanadium 10 mcg

Although the result needs to be repeated, if we take it at face value, it has some important implications:

• The nutrient density of a diet may influence obesity risk, as I speculated in my recent audio interview and related posts (5, 6, 7, 8, 9).
• Many nutrients act together to create health, and multiple insufficiencies may contribute to disease. This may be why single nutrient supplementation trials usually don't find much.
• Another possibility is that obesity can result from a number of different nutrient insufficiencies, and the cause is different in different people. This study may have seen a large effect because it corrected many different insufficiencies.
  
• This result, once again, kills the simplistic notion that body fat is determined exclusively by voluntary food consumption and exercise behaviors (sometimes called the "calories in, calories out" idea, or "gluttony and sloth"). In this case, a multivitamin was able to increase resting energy expenditure and cause fat loss without any voluntary changes in food intake or exercise, suggesting metabolic effects and a possible downward shift of the body fat "setpoint" due to improved nutrient status.
  

Practical Implications

Does this mean we should all take multivitamins to stay or become thin? No. There is no multivitamin that can match the completeness and balance of a nutrient-dense, whole food, omnivorous diet. Beef liver, leafy greens and sunlight are nature's vitamin pills. Avoiding refined foods instantly doubles the micronutrient content of the typical diet. Properly preparing whole grains by soaking and fermentation is equivalent to taking a multi-mineral along with conventionally prepared grains, as absorption of key minerals is increased by 50-300% (10). Or you can eat root vegetables instead of grains, and enjoy their naturally high mineral availability. Or both.

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Vegan logos, 11 Reasons

So I was recently asked by someone why I was vegan. Oddly, this hadn't been something I had thought about recently, so I decided to go through my reasoning. I wanted to keep it short, but you know me! The point is, I'm trying to capture the bigger picture within a linear narrative that, while simplified, still captures some nuance. Let me know what you think I may turn this into a pamphlet. Am I missing something?

1. Nonhuman animals are sentient
2. Nearly all animals raised for food today suffer tremendously.
3. The problem is institutional and of use, not merely cruelty.
4. Discrimination and Contradiction.
5. Killing animals for food involves either self-deception or habituation to violence.
6. Meat is a symbol and legitimator of power and hierarchy.
7. One cannot meet the global demand for meat while fairly feeding the world.
8. The current world consumption of animals is unsustainable.
9. Veganism is the practice of social and ecological justice.
10. It doesn’t matter whether eating animals is natural.
11. Veganism is fun and delicious!Read more »

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New Layout

I thought I'd spruce the place up a bit! Let me know what you think in the comments.

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Nitrate: a Protective Factor in Leafy Greens

Cancer Link and Food Sources

Nitrate (NO3) is a molecule that has received a lot of bad press over the years. It is thought to promote digestive cancers, in part due to its ability to form carcinogens when used as a preservative for processed meat. Because of this (1), nitrate was viewed with suspicion and a number of countries imposed strict limits on its use as a food additive.

But what if I told you that by far the greatest source of nitrate in the modern diet isn't processed meat-- but vegetables, particularly leafy greens (2)? And that the evidence linking exposure to nitrate itself has largely failed to materialize? For example, one study found no difference in the incidence of gastric cancer between nitrate fertilizer plant workers and the general population (3). Most other studies in animals and humans have not supported the hypothesis that nitrate itself is carcinogenic (4, 5, 6), but rather that they are only carcinogenic in the context of processed meats due to the formation of carcinogenic nitrosamines. This, combined with recent findings on nitrate biology, has changed the way we think about this molecule in recent years.

A New Example of Human Symbiosis

In 2003, Dr. K. Cosby and colleagues showed that nitrite (NO2; not the same as nitrate) dilates blood vessels in humans when infused into the blood (7). Investigators subsequently uncovered an amazing new example of human-bacteria symbiosis: dietary nitrate (NO3) is absorbed from the gut into the bloodstream and picked up by the salivary glands. It's then secreted into saliva, where oral bacteria use it as an energy source, converting it to nitrite (NO2). After swallowing, the nitrite is reabsorbed into the bloodstream (8). Humans and oral bacteria may have co-evolved to take advantage of this process. Antibacterial mouthwash prevents it.

Nitrate Protects the Cardiovascular System

In 2008, Dr. Andrew J. Webb and colleagues showed that nitrate in the form of 1/2 liter of beet juice (equivalent in volume to about 1.5 soda cans) substantially lowers blood pressure in healthy volunteers for over 24 hours. It also preserved blood vessel performance after brief oxygen deprivation, and reduced the tendency of the blood to clot (9). These are all changes that one would expect to protect against cardiovascular disease. Another group showed that in monkeys, the ability of nitrite to lower blood pressure did not diminish after two weeks, showing that the animals did not develop a tolerance to it on this timescale (10).

Subsequent studies showed that dietary nitrite reduces blood vessel dysfunction and inflammation (CRP) in cholesterol-fed mice (11). Low doses of nitrite also dramatically reduce tissue death in the hearts of mice exposed to conditions mimicking a heart attack, as well as protecting other tissues against oxygen deprivation damage (12). The doses used in this study were the equivalent of a human eating a large serving (100 g; roughly 1/4 lb) of lettuce or spinach.

Mechanism

Nitrite is thought to protect the cardiovascular system by serving as a precursor for nitric oxide (NO), one of the most potent anti-inflammatory and blood vessel-dilating compounds in the body (13). A decrease in blood vessel nitric oxide is probably one of the mechanisms of diet-induced atherosclerosis and increased clotting tendency, and it is likely an early consequence of eating a poor diet (14).

The Long View

Leafy greens were one of the "protective foods" emphasized by the nutrition giant Sir Edward Mellanby (15), along with eggs and high-quality full-fat dairy. There are many reasons to believe greens are an excellent contribution to the human diet, and what researchers have recently learned about nitrate biology certainly reinforces that notion. Leafy greens may be particularly useful for the prevention and reversal of cardiovascular disease, but are likely to have positive effects on other organ systems both in health and disease. It's ironic that a molecule suspected to be the harmful factor in processed meats is turning out to be one of the major protective factors in vegetables.

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Brushing your teeth may prevent disease

It may seem an unusual link, but doctors have found that people who brush their teeth daily are much less likely to develop heart disease than those who don't.

A new study from the BMJ revealed that people who never or only rarely brush their teeth twice a day are up to 70% more likely to develop heart disease.

Although scientists have long suspected a relationship between gum disease and heart problems, this is the first study to high the dangers of poor oral hygiene.

Experts are unsure of the exact reason for the link, but suggest that it may be a result of inflammation in the mouth and gums, which they believe is connected to the build up of clogged arteries.

However despite the findings, the researchers stressed that the overall risk of heart disease from oral hygiene remains relatively low.

In the survey of more than 11,000 people, just 71% said they brushed their teeth twice a day and only 62% said they visited the dentist every six months.

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Fermented Grain Recipes from Around the World

In my last two posts on grains, I described how traditional food processing methods make grains more nutritious and digestible (1, 2). I promised to briefly describe a few recipes from around the world, then got distracted by other things. Here they are.

Africa: Ogi

Grain fermentation is widespread in Africa and is probably nearly as old as agriculture on the continent. The nutritional importance of fermentation is suggested by the amount of time and effort that many African cultures put into it, when they could save themselves a lot of trouble by simply soaking and cooking their grains.

Ogi is a common West African porridge that's eaten as a staple food by people of all ages. It's even used as a weaning food. It's made in essentially the same manner from corn, sorghum or millet.

Whole grain is soaked in water for one to three days. It's then wet milled, mixed with water and sieved to remove a portion of the bran. Extra bran is fed to animals, while the white, starchy sediment is fermented for two to three days. This is then cooked into a thin or thick porridge and eaten.

South America: Pozol

At first glance, some people may think I left the 'e' off the word 'pozole', a traditional Mexican stew. However, pozol is an entirely different beast, an ancient food almost totally unknown in the US, but which fueled the Mayan empire and remains a staple food in Southeastern Mexico.

To make pozol, first the corn must be 'nixtamalized': whole kernels are boiled in a large volume of water with calcium hydroxide (10% w/v). This is a processing step in most traditional South American corn recipes, as it allows a person to avoid pellagra (niacin deficiency)! The loosened bran is removed from the kernels by hand.

The kernels are then ground into dough, formed into balls and placed into banana leaves to ferment for one to 14 days. Following fermentation, pozol is diluted in water and consumed raw.

Europe: Sourdough Bread

Sourdough bread is Europe's quintessential fermented grain food. Before purified yeast strains came into widespread use in the 20th century, all bread would have been some form of sourdough.

Although in my opinion wheat is problematic for many people, sourdough fermentation renders it more nutritious and better tolerated by those with gluten/wheat sensitivity. In an interesting series of studies, Dr. Marco Gobbetti's group, among others, has shown that fermentation partially degrades gluten, explaining the ability of fermentation to decrease the adverse effects of gluten in those who are sensitive to it (3). They even showed that people with celiac disease can safely eat wheat bread that has been long-fermented with selected bacteria and yeasts under laboratory conditions (4). Rye contains about half the gluten of bread wheat, and is generally nutritionally superior to wheat, so sourdough rye is a better choice in my opinion.

To make sourdough bread, first the dry grains are ground into flour. Next, the flour is sifted through a screen to remove a portion of the bran. The earliest bread eaters probably didn't do this, although there is evidence of the wealthy eating sifted flour in societies as old as ancient Egypt and ancient Rome. I don't know what the optimum amount of bran to include in flour is, but it's not zero. I would be inclined to keep at least half of it, recognizing that the bran is disproportionately rich in nutrients.

Next, a portion of flour is mixed with water and a "sourdough starter", until it has a runny consistency. The starter is a diverse culture of bacteria and yeast that is carefully maintained by the bread maker. This culture acidifies the batter and produces carbon dioxide gas. The mixture is allowed to ferment for 8-12 hours. Finally, flour and salt are added to the batter and formed into dough balls. These are allowed to ferment and rise for a few hours, then baked.

My Experience

I've tried making ogi (millet) and pozol, and I have to admit that neither attempt was successful. Pozol in particular may depend on local populations of bacteria and yeast, as the grains' microorganisms are killed during processing. However, I do eat fermented grains regularly in the form of homemade brown rice 'uthappam' and sourdough buckwheat 'crepes'. The buckwheat crepes are tasty and easy to make. I'll post a recipe at some point.

The first two recipes are from the FAO publication Fermented Cereals: a Global Perspective (5).

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