Phytate, Phytase
Looks like almost every blog on nutrition seems to be fighting the phytate war. Phytates are good for you, phytates are bad for you....As in most cases, the truth lies somewhere in between. Phytic acid is fount in plant tissues - mainly in those tissues that are instrumental in reproduction like seeds, nuts, beans and grains.
Phytic acid keeps minerals like zinc, iron, calcium and magnesium tightly bound into the seed. Of course it makes sense to the plant to keep all these goodies within the seed/nut/bean/grain so that a new little plant has all the necessary nutrients to grow and reproduce in turn.
Since we humans lack the digestive enzyme phytase, we can't easily neutralize phytate. This (and other stuff that adds to the issue - another post on this ...maybe...) leads to seeds/nuts/grains being hard to digest. There is a reason why beans are called the musical fruit.
Phytic acid is not all bad though. It can chelate excess minerals in your body and work as an anti-oxidant. According to the International Dermal Institute
"Phytic Acid (aka myo-inositol, a B complex vitamin) which chelates or binds calcium ions, helping to loosen cell cohesion and promote corneocyte sloughing. Phytic Acid also chelates copper, thereby inhibiting tyrosinase in melanogenesis and controlling hyperpigmentation. It also increases peripheral blood flow to the skin"
Aha, so there is a glass half-full aspect to this - All that lovely oat bran, wheat bran, brown rice, soy and kidney beans that are so tough to digest give you a cheap and lovely exfoliant which also keeps your skin from blotchiness! Wow, me likeee!
And pray how do we get to the phytic acid? Easy, very easy.
- Method 1: Use your coffee grinder to grind up the dry grains, beans etc. into a nice fine powder. You can come up with your own combination of phytate pow(d)er. A teaspoon or so - mixed with water to form a paste - can be used as a face wash (just use more powder for a body-scrub). Add some oil to the mix and spread it over your face as a mask for a more in-depth effect.
- Method 2: Most grains release phytase (which neutralizes phytate) when they come into contact with water i.e. soaking, boiling etc. Oats and rice, however have practically no phytase so go ahead and soak these to form a lovely paste which you can use on your face (and body too!).
