they contain large amounts of carbohydrates
that human digestive enzymes can’t convert
into absorbable sugars. These carbohydrates
therefore leave the upper intestine unchanged
and enter the lower reaches, where our
resident bacterial population does the job we
are unable to do.
One kind of troublesome carbohydrate is
the oligosaccharides, molecules consisting of
three, four, and five sugar molecules linked
together in an unusual way. But the latest
research suggests that the oligosaccharides are
not the primary source of gas. The cell-wall
cements generate just as much carbon dioxide
and hydrogen as the oligosaccharides — and
beans generally contain about twice as much
of these carbohydrates as they do
oligosaccharides.
The Cures: Soaking, Long Cooking A
commonly used method for reducing the
gassiness of beans is to boil them briefly in