Which Vegetables Are OK On The Kaufmann Diet?

Vegetables are always encouraged, but here is what you should know.

“Eat your vegetables!” It has likely been pounded into your head since you were a child, and with good reason! Vegetables are where you find an abundance of nutrition that gives your body the things it needs in order to enjoy optimal health.

Eating vegetables is the best way to ensure that you receive a broad-spectrum array of nutrients necessary for promoting good health; nowhere else will you find such a concentration of valuable nutrients. From Vitamin A to K, and a million phytonutrients in between, eating vegetables is like eating a multivitamin in food form. We could call them nature’s multivitamin, except vegetables also serve as real food and fuel for your body and brain.

Knowing this, all vegetables must be ok on The Kaufmann Diet, right?

For the most part, all vegetables are permitted on the diet; the problem becomes how we label certain foods. There are many foods that are considered vegetables when they are, in fact, something very different.

Mushrooms are a good example of this. Most people know mushrooms are fungi, not vegetables. Yet, they are often considered vegetables. Similar to how tomatoes are fruits, mushrooms are something entirely different from vegetables, and something you should avoid on the Kaufmann Diet. The purpose of the Kaufmann Diet is to avoid fungi, not intentionally consume it.

Corn, too, is another example of a food commonly considered a vegetable. Corn is in fact a grain, not a vegetable. Like mushrooms, grains are something you want to avoid on the Kaufmann Diets. While they may be rich in fiber, grains are also rich in carbohydrates that might feed an underlying fungal infection. Grains are also at risk for being contaminated with mycotoxins; corn is especially likely to be contaminated with these poisons according to some researchers.

Other foods like beans––even green beans and peas––are technically legumes, not vegetables. These are eliminated on Kaufmann 1 and reintroduced during Kaufmann 2 in moderation.

Potatoes are tubers, and while many consider them a healthy vegetable, the starch (and subsequent sugar content) of potatoes keep them from being permitted on Kaufmann 1 or 2. Sweet potatoes are included in this, however these are reintroduced in moderation on Kaufmann 2 because of some of their inherent nutrition.

Beets are another root vegetable that should enjoyed cautiously and likely relegated to Kaufmann 2. Beets are high in a number of potent, health-promoting nutrients, but their inherent sugar might make them not fit for Kaufmann 1.

So should you enjoy your vegetables? Absolutely! Keep in mind though which foods are and are not actually vegetables, and avoid those that are high in carbohydrates and sugar, particularly while on The Kaufmann 1 Diet.