Sugar, whether a monosaccharide or disaccharide, is one of the simplest foods to digest. Even water dissolves it. It requires only vitamins and enzymes and spends very little time in the stomach. Starch spends more time in the stomach; but the problem with combining these two food elements begins in the mouth. As we discussed, starch depends on ptyalin in the saliva to start its digestion. But sugar inhibits the secretion of ptyalin. The signals read by the nerve endings and taste buds on the tongue become confused in the presence of sugar. Thus, even though you chew and mechanically break down your bread and pasta, little or no chemical digestion takes place. The bread has to wait until it gets into the small intestine before amylase can complete the process of starch digestion. This is a bad combination for the sugar food as well, since its passage is slowed down by the presence of the starch food. The longer sugar stays in the stomach, the greater the chance fermentation will take place. Fermentation is the breakdown of sugar into alcohol and carbon dioxide. Carbon dioxide causes gas and distention and alcohol robs the body of B-vitamins.
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Food Combining And Digestion
101 Ways To Improve Digestion
by Steve Meyerowitz
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