@Barry: We love coconut and coconut products! Not all saturated fat is the enemy, and the type of saturated fat found in coconut gets two thumbs up from us.

@Warren: Almond butter will do (in moderation, of course), but skip the added flax, as it adds no real benefits (and has a few pro-inflammatory down sides).

@Susannah: Again, it’s the lectins that are far more problematic than the aflatoxins (although given the way peanuts are raised and shipped, that is a more serious concern for that one particular “nut” than others). And the lectins in pistachios or sunflowers aren’t the troublesome kind.

@Fixed Gear: Lectins are notoriously resistant to breakdown, via either cooking or digestive enzymes in the body. Some lectins may be partially broken down by soaking, sprouting, cooking or fermenting, but it’s not a complete process, so they still arrive in your digestive tract mostly intact (and provoke the same kind of damage).

@Roger: The PUFA content of sunflower seeds is a huge concern – which is why Sunbutter isn’t a staple in our diets. As a fun addition, in small quantities, it’s a good substitute for peanut butter, but we are careful to make better fat choices on a daily basis, and counsel our clients and workshop participants to do the same. However, not all lectins are the gut-binding, immune-provoking type. Those found in sunflower seeds aren’t a concern in our book – although there are some (like the Blood Type Diet guy) who may say differently. Bottom line? Decide for yourself whether to include nuts and seeds in your daily diet.

Best,
Melissa

Also, I am highly suspicious of this sunflower butter idea. Sunflowers are seeds. As such, they not only have an abysmal n-3/n-6 ratio (as a previous commenter mentioned), but it appears they contain lectins as well. Reading this article (http://www.drpeterjdadamo.com/wiki/wiki.pl/Lectins), however, it’s not clear to me whether all lectins are bad in all circumstances.