With Crohn's, is it wise to soak nuts before using?

The short answer is yes, it is wise to soak nuts before eating or using them for baking. A diet which maximizes the nutritional potential of foods while avoiding detrimental foods will be higher in nuts. Because Crohn's predisposes individuals to micronutrient malabsorption and diseases processes deplete micronutrients, guarding the nutritional potential of foods is imperative. The chelating effects of phytate-rich nuts are undesirable; therefore, soaking nuts to lower phytic acid is a positive step toward improving the nutritional potential of this almost perfect food.

"Living with Phytic Acid" from The Weston A. Price Foundation
"It is not necessary to completely eliminate phytic acid from the diet, only to keep it to acceptable levels. An excess of 800 mg phytic acid per day is probably not a good idea. The average phytate intake in the U.S. and the U.K. ranges between 631 and 746 mg per day; the average in Finland is 370 mg; in Italy it is 219 mg; and in Sweden a mere 180 mg per day.

In the context of a diet rich in calcium, vitamin D, vitamin A, vitamin C, good fats and lacto-fermented foods, most people will do fine on an estimated 400-800 mg per day. For those suffering from tooth decay, bone loss or mineral deficiencies, total estimated phytate content of 150-400 mg would be advised. For children under age six, pregnant women or those with serious illnesses, it is best to consume a diet as low in phytic acid as possible.

In practical terms, this means properly preparing phytate-rich foods to reduce at least a portion of the phytate content, and restricting their consumption to two or three servings per day....

In general, nuts contain levels of phytic acid equal to or higher than those of grains. Therefore those consuming peanut butter, nut butters or nut flours, will take in phytate levels similar to those in unsoaked grains. Unfortunately, we have very little information on phytate reduction in nuts. Soaking for seven hours likely eliminates some phytate. Based on the accumulation of evidence, soaking nuts for eighteen hours, dehydrating at very low temperatures—a warm oven—and then roasting or cooking the nuts would likely eliminate a large portion of phytates.

Nut consumption becomes problematic in situations where people on the GAPS diet and similar regimes are consuming lots of almonds and other nuts as a replacement for bread, potatoes and rice. The eighteen-hour soaking is highly recommended in these circumstances.

It is best to avoid nut butters unless they have been made with soaked nuts—these are now available commercially. Likewise, it is best not to use nut flours—and also coconut flour—for cooking unless they have been soured by the soaking process." [Emphasis mine.]

With Crohn's, is it wise to soak beans?

The short answer is yes, it is wise to soak dried legumes before eating or cooking with them. These harder-to-digest foods are a food source that is not globally suitable in Crohn's. In the Specific Carbohydrate Diet, for example, legumes are considered to be an advanced food eaten only over time in the absence of symptoms. Because Crohn's predisposes individuals to micronutrient malabsorption and disease processes deplete micronutrients, guarding the nutritional potential of foods is imperative. The chelating effects of phytate-rich legumes is undesirable; therefore, soaking legumes to lower phytic acid is a positive step toward improving the nutritional potential of this potentially versatile food.

"Living With Phytic Acid" from The Weston A. Price Foundation
"It is not necessary to completely eliminate phytic acid from the diet, only to keep it to acceptable levels. An excess of 800 mg phytic acid per day is probably not a good idea. The average phytate intake in the U.S. and the U.K. ranges between 631 and 746 mg per day; the average in Finland is 370 mg; in Italy it is 219 mg; and in Sweden a mere 180 mg per day.

In the context of a diet rich in calcium, vitamin D, vitamin A, vitamin C, good fats and lacto-fermented foods, most people will do fine on an estimated 400-800 mg per day. For those suffering from tooth decay, bone loss or mineral deficiencies, total estimated phytate content of 150-400 mg would be advised. For children under age six, pregnant women or those with serious illnesses, it is best to consume a diet as low in phytic acid as possible.

In practical terms, this means properly preparing phytate-rich foods to reduce at least a portion of the phytate content, and restricting their consumption to two or three servings per day."

At a minimum, beans should be soaked for twelve hours, drained and rinsed several times before cooking, for a total of thirty-six hours. Cooking with a handful of green weed leaves, such as dandelion or chickweed, can improve mineral assimilation."

Are micronutrient levels lower in Crohn's?

"Quantitative data on the magnitude of the systemic inflammatory response and its effect on micronutrient status based on plasma measurements" in Am J Clin Nutrition (2012)
"Except for copper and vitamin E, all plasma micronutrient concentrations decreased with increasing severities of the acute inflammatory response. For selenium and vitamins B-6 and C, this occurred with only slightly increased C-reactive protein concentrations of 5 to 10 mg/L. For each micronutrient, the change in plasma concentrations varied markedly from patient to patient. The magnitude of the effect was greatest for selenium and vitamins A, B-6, C, and D, for which the median plasma concentrations decreased by >40%."


"Adequacy of Nutritional Intake in a Canadian Population of Patients with Crohn’s Disease" in Journal of the American Dietetic Association (2007)
"Micronutrient intakes were suboptimal most notably for folate, vitamins C, E, and calcium. ...  In conclusion, in this population sample, a large number of ambulatory patients with Crohn’s disease have suboptimal dietary patterns despite a normal BMI and inactive disease. Dietary counseling and supplementation may be warranted in this patient population."



"The serum concentrations of zinc, copper and selenium in children with inflammatory bowel disease" in Cent Afr J Med (2002)
"Children with IBD in this study show abnormalities of the trace elements which is probably a result of inadequate intake, reduced absorption, increased intestinal loss due to impairment of the absorption as a result of the inflammatory process. The reduced free radical scavenging action of zinc and selenium as a result of their deficiency may contribute to the continued inflammatory process of IBD. The recommendation of the supplementation of these trace elements in IBD is further supported by the findings of this study in children."