Why Ezekiel Bread is Not Allowed on Kaufmann 1

Many of the questions that we get in the comments on the blog center around what foods are allowed on the Kaufmann 1 diet; these are all good questions, and they are certainly welcome here. The general guidelines for the Kaufmann 1 diet can be found HERE, or in any of our books, which you can purchase HERE. A more comprehensive listing of foods will probably be found in the cookbooks.

The general outline for the Kaufmann 1 diet is this: most meats are allowed, but preferably organic and grass-fed or wild caught, fruits limited to berries, grapefruit, avocados, lemons and limes, most vegetables, nuts, seeds, and limited dairy (limited amounts of certain cheese [no blue cheese], heavy cream, sour cream, and plain yogurt). Under no circumstances are grains, sugar, corn, peanuts, pistachios, potatoes or alcohol allowed.

While this is a solid outline, it does leave a few things in question. Obviously, it would be too difficult to list every kind of vegetable on planet earth here. But here is another general guide to follow when on Kaufmann 1. The Kaufmann 1 diet seeks to limit mycotoxin exposure, which is why corn, grains, alcohol and the rest of the forbidden foods are excluded. These foods are commonly contaminated with mycotoxins because of the way they are processed, stored, or manufactured. But the reason most fruits aren’t allowed is because they contain fructose; fructose is essentially sugar, which will feed pathogenic fungi that might have colonized in your body. Even though many fruits have some health promoting nutrients, they may not be worth eating because of the sugar content.

So when assessing whether something not specifically mentioned is safe for Kaufmann 1, it is a good idea to find out how much sugar is in it. Something like a melon, banana or even an orange probably has too much for someone starting on Kaufmann 1, even though those are technically “healthy” foods. Truth be told, there are lots of foods not permitted on Kaufmann 1 that have some sort of nutrient that has been shown to be healthy – resveratrol in red wine, fiber in whole grains, etc.  Regardless, you can find those nutrients elsewhere, be it in supplement or other kinds of foods.

Many longtime followers will note that there have been some changes to the diet in recent years. Doug wants to keep his diet flexible and open to new research. Quinoa and amaranth – two pseudo grains – are now allowed and even encouraged on Kaufmann 1. But, if you’ll recall from 9th grade biology latin terms, “pseudo” means not genuine, or fake. It is the same word that is in pseudonym, or a false name. Quinoa and amaranth aren’t real grains; if they were, they wouldn’t be allowed on the diet. Grains simply will not be allowed on the Kaufmann 1 diet, ever, because of their propensity towards mycotoxin exposure.

Ezekiel bread is made out of grains. It is made from sprouted grains, so its ingredients have never been stored in a silo, which means the risk of mycotoxins contamination is much lower. But those same ingredients that could potentially feed a fungal infection are still there, and it is still often made with yeast. Even if it was yeast free, consuming grains can contribute to a fungal infection. For these reasons, Ezekiel bread is not on the Kaufmann 1. This isn’t to say there aren’t good things about it, but all those benefits you’ll find in Ezekiel bread can be found in other foods on the Kaufmann 1 diet.

I hope this helps clear up some confusion!