On Wednesday, March 30, 2005, at 09:50  PM, freebyrd wrote:

> Are sunflower seeds ok to eat?  And I am a bit confused about the bean
> issue
>   I grew up in a family where people grew and ate peas and green beans
> and
> ate them raw also.  What makes them unedible?
>

Legumes in nature are nearly all poisonous. Even the domesticated ones
still have some poison remaining before cooking. A raw bean or three
won't cause any problem, but a diet of raw beans sure would.

It is one of the general principles of Paleo, don't eat anything that
can't be eaten raw in the wild. You can ignore this rule to some
extent, at the edges, but eventually you end up right back in the place
you were trying to escape from if you ignore it too much.

I eat some sunflower seeds and peas, for what it is worth.