Written By: Kriti Saraswat | Updated : March 10, 2014 11:44 PM IST
Eating healthy is a concept which can be tricky to grasp. Not everyone can make the right choices by themselves but a little help from experts can go a long way in ensuring you have good health. Unfortunately, you cannot just assemble healthy food and believe that you shall remain in the prime of your health. A lot depends on on the food combinations you make. Pairing the right foods go a long way in ensuring a smooth digestion process. Eat the wrong food combos and you can have gas and indigestion even if you've eaten healthy stuff. Nutritionist Elizabeth Montgomery gives an overview on why certain food combinations hinder digestion and which food combinations one should opt for.
Faulty food combinations
Fruit with carbohydrates: Fruit digests much more quickly than any other food. Many people think that adding fruit to porridge is a healthy breakfast option. However, it will only hinder the digestive process. It's better to always eat fruit on an empty stomach and ideally early in the morning.
Animal protein and carbohydrates: Different enzymes are required to breakdown these very different foods. When eaten together, the foods do not get properly digested. That leads to indigestion, fermentation and putrefaction in the digestive tract. Legumes and beans are food items that contain 25% protein and approximately 50% starch which explains why they're so hard to digest.
Acidic fruits and starch: Acidic fruits like lemon, tomato, tamarind, etc destroy ptyalin, a salivary alkaline enzyme and inhibit starch digestion. In the presence of acids, no alkaline juices are property secreted which causes gas and fermentation.
Dairy with fruit: Smoothies are a breakfast favourite for many people. The problem is that yoghurt is an animal protein and when mixed with fruit, it can cause inadequate digestion which leads to acidity, and fermentation in the digestive tract.
Don't combine different types of protein: Our body has different kinds of mechanism to digest different food items and if we eat proteins of different combinations, only one of them will be efficiently digested by our body. Another point is that the body secretes a particular kind of enzyme at a given time so spreading out your protein intake over the day will result in better digestion.
Avoid drinking with meals: It's best to avoid drinking large amounts of any fluid with meals, otherwise the digestive enzymes will become diluted. It's best to stop drinking 30 minutes before food intake and and wait two hours after eating before drinking water to ensure adequate digestion. Read more on why you shouldn't drink anything while eating.
Useful food combinations
Melon is the one fruit that must be eaten alone, or left alone, as it takes slightly longer than other fruits to digest.
Carbohydrates and vegetables such as brown rice and vegetables are also good options.
Animal protein and non-starchy vegetables make for easy digestion which will enhance one's ability to breakdown the nutrients and eliminate efficiently. Prawns on a bed of green leaves with cucumber and fennel or grilled fish with lightly steamed green beans.
Have a bowl of seasonal fruit salad first thing in the morning. This is a gentle way to wake up the system.
Aim to ingest denser proteins, especially animal-based ones earlier in the day to ensure adequate digestion.
With inputs from IANS/femalefirst.co.uk and NK Sharma
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