Inulin is Magic?

Is Inulin magic?

 

No.

Pretty simple article, see you tomorrow.

But seriously, inulin is just one of the probably thousands of chemicals that you need to survive. Inulin does have some undeniably good properties, but it seems to be the on the verge of being touted as the next diet break through. Its simply not that case. It never is the case.

Think of it from an evolutionary perspective (novel since this is a Paleo site), how could any one micronutrient, macronutrient, or chemical compound be that important in isolation?

Humans are successful because they can adapt to a multitude of environments. Dependency on any one element would have prevented humanities successful migration and colonization of the planet. Think of water and oxygen in its gas form. Now think about how many human colonies live under water or the population of the Arabian desert. Water and oxygen do not have a substitute and therefore are a limiting factor to human expansion.

Inulin as  a chemical compound is found in a wide variety of foods, but the absorption quality, availability, and concentration would have varied greatly from location to location and time period to time period. While garlic and onions may be common in modern southern Europe, but when that region was covered in ice cap I do not think they would have been that available.

I am not trying to knock Inulin here, but it is a great example of how modern medicine tends to focus on a single chemical, compound, pill, or product (pomegranate or acqi berries). While Inulin is important to healthy living, it is not a cure all or even cure diabetes. A holistic, balanced approach is much more appropriate for whatever your goals are.

Do not put all your eggs in one basket. Pandas are endangered because they can only eat bamboo, if humans relied that heavily on Inulin for optimal survival than desert and arctic regions could not have been settled by humans.