The Plant Paradox Quick & Easy

I found this book as a perfect introduction to lectin free eating. I like that it was shorter and to the point!

I finished reading the book 2 days ago and, because I sincerely acknowledge its valuable content, I'd like to share a review before you make any commitment. I’ll divide it in 3 parts. First, I'll write thoughts about to whom I’d recommend reading it. Then, I’ll share a brief summary from each chapter. Last, I’ll express personal strategies to comply with the program. RECOMMENDATION If you haven’t had the opportunity to read any of the 2 previous Plant Paradox books yet, and would like to understand the program and hopefully give it a try, you are in the right place: this one piece will cover all. It’s a short, comprehensive, and actionable book. As Gundry says, the present book focuses on practical matters, specially for those who have a busy life and think the program is impractical. If, however, you’ve already read any of the 2 previous books and are satisfied [or perhaps not] with what you've learned, please, save your money for the upcoming book—The Longevity Paradox. In fact, since I believe it’ll be groundbreaking, I’ve already pre-ordered it. Having said that, if you’re like me, who, even after reading and researching details over again, enjoy learning new findings over time, then this book here, in fact, brings new perspectives on how to interpret previous concepts. SUMMARY If I could summarize the book in a few words, I'd say that it’s a revised edition of the classic program, where the content is laid out in a succinct and more practical way to be implemented. In other words, I sincerely believe Gundry’s main objective here was to make it easier, walking us through the program, step by step. [Chapter 1] It’s a primer on lectins. We learn what the heck lectins are; the food sources high in lectin; the effects of consuming foods high in lectins; how lectins influence our weight; as well as the 7 deadly disruptors that damage our gut and immune system. It’s important to highlight them. They are: [1] broad spectrum antibiotics; [2] non steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs; [3] stomach acid blockers; [4] artificial sweeteners; [5] endocrine disrupters commonly found in plastics, personal care products, and household cleaners; [6] genetically modified foods and the herbicide roundup; and [7] over exposition to blue light specially in the evening. [Chapter 2] Here we learn the details of the program itself: how it sets apart from other programs; how it can restore our health issues; how it can benefit those who wish to lose weight; and also about the 4 rules for success. I fell in love with them when I read the previous book, and will share here with you: [1] what you stop eating has far more impact on your health than what you start eating; [2] pay attention to the care and feeding of your gut buddies, and they'll handle the care and feeding of you; [3] fruit might as well be candy; and [4] you're what the things you're eating ate. [Chapter 3] Now we delve into the 30-day challenge, where we learn the details of the 3-phase challenge—why, what, and when to eat during these phases—explained in an easy and comprehensive format. At the end there is a section on intermittent fasting. [Chapter 4] This chapter starts with a list of the foods we'd want to stock our kitchen, and a list of those we'd want to avoid because they're either high in lectin or detrimental to our overall health. Then Gundry explains the details of certain foods we’d want to eat frequently due to their benefits. Some examples are: almonds, avocados, cassava flour, cauliflower rice, coconut, eggs, nori seaweed, and extra virgin olive oil. He then shifts gears towards the common pitfalls we habitually fall while choosing our food. Also, he shares common stores [such as Costco, Trader Joe's, Amazon, Thrive Market, Walmart] where we can purchase high-quality food without spending extra money when compared to what we’d spend following the Standard American Diet. Finally we find a description of Gundry's favorite kitchen equipments and how we can take advantage of them. [Chapter 5] Here is where we learn practical strategies to start the program, making it easy to overcome resistance such as having a family to take care, demanding work schedules, stress, and so forth. Gundry shares ways to simplify our grocery list, notes on how to be more realistic towards our goals, as well as a handful and well-explained strategies to prepare our meals by maximizing the quality and taste while saving time. He finishes up with many suggestions on how to choose, prepare, and store ready-to-go snacks and meals whenever we need. [Chapter 6] This is the one chapter that sets it apart from his previous books. Gundry addresses concerns we may face when dealing with specific needs such as tailoring the program for kids, parents, vegans, as well as for patients in extreme medical conditions. He doesn’t leave behind special recommendations for those on ketogenic diet. I don’t have kids yet, but I love the section about preparing kid-friendly meals. At the end of the chapter we find a short section about the importance of good sleep and hydration, as well as considerations on supplements. [Chapter 7] This is a no-brainer 30-day meal plan, with all meals outlined. More than that, there is a weekly prep plan for each one of the 4 weeks. Recipes are found in the following chapter. [Chapter 8] In terms of recipes, I’ve only had the chance to try two of them. The Salmon Avocado Bowl was delicious, which is made with avocado oil and cauliflower rice. The second recipe, which I tried yesterday, was the Sage and Mushroom Soup. Well, it’s aromatic and works perfectly as an entrée for cold evenings. Easy to prepare. PERSONAL THOUGHTS Although I’m fortunate to be in good health, I've been feeling better than ever after deciding to embark on Gundry's low lectin program late in 2017 after reading the main Plant Paradox book twice. I say twice because it was during the second read that I absorbed the details, and committed to try it out for the initial 6-week program. Not only my skin looks brighter, but I also have more energy during the day and my digestive system has worked smoother since I took the leap and adopted this lifestyle. At first, the program Gundry proposes looks both daunting and difficult to comply. Even though I’d been following a combination of other similar protocols during the last couple of years from figures such as Joseph Mercola, Mark Hyman, Valter Longo, Chris Kresser, and Frank Lipman, having to make only small adjustments such as removing darling foods high in lectin such as cashews, eggplants, pumpkins, tomatoes, cucumbers, and bell peppers was a difficult task. After all, Gundry added the lectin factor—a protein produced by certain plants used as a defensive strategy that can trigger a cascade of damaging effects on our health. It took me over 10 years to fully comprehend my ways to keep unnecessary inflammation away while getting more energy. That journey started most probably because I’ve been fascinated about the impact of good nutrition on physical performance and the joy of sharing meals we prepare with loved ones. I say all that because, choosing to give it a try, you will be jumping ahead decades of unbiased clinical and experimental researches. Although these experts I mentioned above are all brilliant, in my humble opinion Gundry’s program is the latest refinement. That said, I'd like to share with you a strategy to ease the transition towards any diet you intend to try. First and foremost, we could think not as a “diet” but as a “lifestyle” instead. Besides creating a healthy and positive habit, we could embrace it as part of our own personal values. It doesn’t matter exactly where we’re right now as long as we vow to move the needle towards a more meaningful lifestyle. For that, changes in our current diet can be done all at once or can be refined over time. Personally speaking, specially in terms of eating habits, I'd consider taking the time to create a strong and lasting connection with our choices—specially these days we’ve been emotionally and physically attached to food. For example, during the first week you could remove from all of your meals a group of detrimental foods such as sugar and artificial sweeteners while making sure to include at least two tablespoons of a high-quality extra virgin olive oil every day. Keep adjusting on a weekly basis while you get familiar with the program chosen until you take the leap and commit fully to the program. In this case, Gundry proposes an initial 30-day challenge. After all, what’s 30 days when we are supposed to live beyond 80 years given the right conditions? Last, some people may claim that this lifestyle is expensive. Looking from distance it does look pricey. But trust me, it can be easily done spending less money than the Standard American Diet. I appreciate how thoughtful Gundry was to write the section “Food Shopping Tips and Tricks” where he shares notes on how we can take full advantage of Costco, Trader Joe’s, Thrive Market, Amazon, Walmart, and local farmers market. Besides that, throughout the book Gundry mentions specific brands to look for. I’ve been on Phase 3 for over a year now. Finishing the book, I decided to come back to Phase 1 and follow the 30-day challenge, starting this coming Monday. It’ll be a positive reset. Well, it turned out to be a long review. I hope it helps you in some way. Take good care, Haical

I ordered this to get more recipes for my vegetarian husband but he wasn’t interested. It appears to be well written.

Great book, great information.

If this book will convince you to change your eating habits over from the “Standard American Diet”, it’s likely to initially make you feel better. Eliminating bread, peanuts, soy, etc while being on the lookout for lectins will, at least for a while, temporarily improve your health. Dr. Gundry’s efforts to educate about harmful plant lectins have deservedly earned him praise and acclaim. The long-term consequences of all these “healthy” foods that Dr. Gundry recommends is the reason why I rated this a 1- star book. Specifically, Dr. Gundry openly encourages the consumption of many highly damaging plant based toxins, while using highly questionable fringe scientific studies to justify it. This is what really makes, “The Plant Pardox” more akin to Peter DeAdomo’s “Eat Right 4 Your Type 2.0” because both are devastatingly wrong for so many unsuspecting folks like myself. Here are just a handful of examples. Perhaps the most astonishing of all the harmful suggestions in this book are to load up on oxalate rich foods. It’s curious that Gundry fervently campaigns against lectins, while encouraging us to readily consume a far more sinister toxin like oxalates. If unfamiliar with just how catastrophic oxalates are for your health, watch Sally K. Norton’s numerous interviews on YouTube. It will send chills down your spine and will allow you to likely discover the true source of your health woes for the first time in your life. I mentioned Gundry’s recommendation of high oxalate foods like sweet potatoes, okra, dark chocolate, etc…which leads me to the second major criticism, which are his controversial use of “Blue Zones” to promote his dietary recommendations. In other words, cherry picking certain alleged dietary habits of the Blue Zone centenarians to model his dietary approach. While living to 70-80 has little to do with genetics, it has been well documented that these so-called Blue Zone centenarians can exclusively attribute their extreme old age to incredibly good genes. They also are mostly women under 5’ tall. Moreover, Dr. Gundry’s home base Blue Zone, Lima Linda CA, has been criticized for the way they generate and interpreted their longevity data. Another criticism is Dr. Gundry’s prolific polyphenol pumping campaign. This too is a highly controversial field of commercialized product promotion b/c polyphenols are yet another in a wide array of plant poisons classified as enzyme inhibitors. They interfere with protein digestion. Encouraging the chugging of polyphenol laden olive oil by the liter just doesn’t make any sense when, like all the rest of these so-called nutrient dense plant foods loaded with antinutrients, actually do more harm than good. Other controversial claims surround the advice to severely limit healthy animal foods like meat and dairy, without mentioning that there is a difference between how they are raised just like with organic plant foods. While pasteurized dairy from inhumanely raised animals can certainly wreck your health, Dr. Gundry fails to mention that raw dairy like grass fed butter is one of the healthiest fats available, capable of some amazing health benefits. He also rails against red meat b/c of the alleged Neu5Gc connection, while repeating the worn out claim that we just don’t need that much protein as we age. Both have been sharply criticized as false and lacking credible scientific evidence for these claims. How Dr. Gundry pushes generous consumption of debilitating plant poisons like oxalate, phytate, enzyme inhibitors, polyphenols, tannin, goitrogen, saponin, phytoestrogen, solanine, etc rich foods, while considering a carnivore approach nothing more than an elimination diet is beyond me. In conclusion, Dr. Gundry appears to be a genuinely nice guy who sincerely wants to help folks heal their health problems. Deeply engrained, long held beliefs die hard, no matter how flawed these ideas may be. While I sincerely applaud Dr. Gundry’s efforts to make the world aware of bad plant lectins, these are only the tip of the iceberg in a vicious array of plant toxins that can completely destroy our health. Dr. Gundry has humbly admitted when he has been wrong in the past, appears to be adamantly committed to changing his recommendations when new information becomes available, so I hope he can partner with someone like Sally K. Norton to make oxalates his next wave of public awareness.

Excellent product

This is the only diet that I’ve tried that works for me. You lose about 10 pounds in 2 weeks. And after the 30 day challenge, just make a few adjustments to your diet and you will continue to see progress.

I cannot tell you how much this lifestyle change has changed my outlook on life. I have lost 16 pounds in 4 weeks and want to lose another 15. It is a change in the way you eat and not everyone is ready for that but at 62 and being 30 pounds overweight, I have had a knee and hip replacement so getting the weight off and keeping it off was crucial for me. I knew I had to do something. It gives you a good food list (and bad) and gives you recipes and a lot of information behind the science of what is making us unhealthy. I highly recommend it.

Stile chiaro, conciso, pratico. Si legge tutto di in fiato. Ho imparato tantissime cose ed è un libro che utilizzerò tantissimo. Consiglio anche i video sul sito web di Gundry, lui è un tipo molto generoso e non risparmia precisazioni e consigli. Sono contenta di averlo conosciuto

Many of the information in the book need proven data

Pour une meilleure santé !

Facile à lire et beaucoup de solutions pour le IBS. Je suit contente car mon gastro en France est completement nul et devrait lire ce livre!!

This books explains the principle and includes a 4 weeks email plan including recipes.