One peculiar and puzzling aspect of this controversy, is that Paul Jaminet asserts that these safe starches are protective against the ravages of dysbiosis. He contends that safe starches facilitate mucous production in the bowel, thereby protecting the wall of the intestine. Without consuming safe starches, the gut wall is vulnerable to damage by pathogenic microflora.
This specifically contradicts the theory of dysbiosis according to Dr. Natasha Campbell-McBride of the GAPS healing protocol. Dr. Campbell-McBride, whose recommendations are in the tradition of the Specific Carbohydrate Diet, teaches that starches which are metabolized to disaccharides, such as all grains, sugar, and starchy vegetables, specifically feed the pathogenic microflora. These pathogens overwhelm the beneficial protective microflora, and thereby compromise the integrity of the bowel wall. This is the root cause of many disease states, as microflora, toxins, and food particles, which should remain within the bowel, diffuse out into the body causing inflammation and infection in the body and the brain. Both Jaminet and Campbell-McBride are addressing precisely the same issue, but are asserting the opposite. Hmmmm.
Upon initiation of the diet, if an individual habitually has consumed a diet high in starchy carbohydrates, there can be a period of metabolic adjustment, when she/he switches to a diet consisting of GAPS permissible foods. In those cases, Dr. Campbell-McBride recommends creating a mixture of equal parts butter or coconut oil and honey, and consuming a spoonful every 30 minutes or so to stabilize blood sugar, until an individual adjusts to the new diet. For those who have been on the diet for an extended period of time, and equate their fatigue with a need for more carbohydrate in their diet, there are GAPS legal foods which are high in carbohydrate, such as winter squash and carrots. I do not personally understand why grains or other non-permitted starchy vegetables such as potatoes or yams are necessary for energy, or for mucous production, for that matter. There are multiple sources of permitted carbohydrates on the the GAPS diet.
For those individuals who are not suffering from insulin resistance or a metabolic disorder, who do not have digestive, psychiatric or auto-immune issues, there seems to be no reason to leave these starches out of the diet. They are delicious, add variety and do not have the damaging effect that gluten has on so many individuals.
The GAPS protocol is not intended as a life long dietary prescription. It is meant to heal psychiatric, digestive and auto-immune conditions. After healing has occurred, an individual may return to eating properly prepared grains and starchy tubers. We all know that one size does not fit all, and that each individual needs to take any health protocol, and adjust it to her/his needs and monitor the effect. It would be wonderful if some omniscient doctor could tell us exactly what we need to do, but we all need to take responsibility for tailoring any dietary recommendations and adapting them to our own unique physiology.
