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You are here: Experts > Health/Fitness > Eating Disorders > Nutrition & Dieting > Where and how carbohydrate and proteins are digested
Nutrition & Dieting - Where and how carbohydrate and proteins are digested
Expert: Tanya Zilberter, PhD - 10/21/2009
Question
Hello,
There is a theory out there about the human body not being able to efficiently digest animal proteins with any kind of starchy vegies or Carbs like rise, pasta.....Based on the assumption that Proteins are broken up easier in the stomach by acids and Carbs will be digested by alkalies. When you put them in the stomach together acids will mix with alkalies and will cancel each other out giving out indigestion. I'm suspecting there is a flaw in that assumption. What is your opinion?
Also if you could tell me. How does the digestive process vary in digesting complete and incomplete or complemented plant proteins.
Thank you.
Answer
Dear Robert,
In fact, proteins are digested by enzymes trypsin and chymotrypsin that break down a protein into single amino acids. If protein is consumed in quantities exceeding body needs, the excess is converted into glucose (carbohydrate), which, in its turn, if is not used for energy, goes into the body fat depots.
Very little carbohydrate digestion occurs in the stomach, with or without proten. When the sugars reach the small intestine, they are in dissacharide form and still too big for absorption by the small intestine. In the duodenum, the pancreas releases amylase, which breaks disaccharides down into monosaccharides.
The speed of starches' digestion depends on the chemical nature of the carbohydrate itself, on the activity of the enzymes, on the gastric juices. Gastric juice includes pepsin, gastrin, bicarbonates, and hydrochloric acid. The last fact makes me question the theory of carbohydrate digestion by alkaline - non-acid substance with a pH greater than 7. Compare with real Ph value of the gastric juice: it varies from 1 to 3.
More on acidity of foods:
http://en.allexperts.com/q/Nutrition-Dieting-939/2008/9/Acidity-apples.htm
http://atkinszone.com/faq/2008/10/which-foods-are-acid-and-which-alkaline.html
pH balance diet
http://en.allexperts.com/q/Special-Diets-768/PH-balance-diets-truth.htm
Protein digestion and absorption
http://en.allexperts.com/q/Nutrition-Dieting-939/2008/9/Protein-digestion-absorp...
Tanya Zilberter
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Authored 3 academic print books and two popular diet print books as well as about a hundred scientific and popular articles