Be Careful with Food Combinations
Another important consideration for healthy stomach function is the
rate of digestion of different foods, the main issue underlying the
notion of proper food combining. The worst foods to combine in the
stomach at the same time are proteins and carbohydrates.
Concentrated protein foods, such as meat, fish, eggs and cheese,
digest at much different rates than concentrated carbohydrate foods
such as grains, potatoes and most sugars. Since fruit, honey and fiber
don’t require chemical digestion, they won’t interfere with protein
foods in the stomach during digestion. Common combinations of
foods in our society contribute to the epidemic of gut problems: eggs
and toast, a cheese sandwich, spaghetti and meatballs, a sugary
dessert after a protein meal, and so many other unhealthy habits.
Instead of these meals, have a vegetable omelet, a salad with
cheese, spaghetti squash with meatballs, and fruit or a honey-based
dessert. Or, if you’re eating a carbohydrate meal such as beans and
brown rice, mostly carbohydrates with little protein, combine it with
vegetables and avoid the cheese.
When food completes its digestion in the stomach, which may
take up to two hours depending on the foods, with high-fat meals tak-
ing longer, it enters the small intestine.
The Small Intestine
The digestion of food continues in the small intestine, where most
nutrients get absorbed into the bloodstream. In addition to enzymes
made in the small intestine, pancreatic enzymes and bile from the gall
bladder are added to the food to help in the process. Poor digestion in
the stomach usually produces poor digestion in the small intestine.
And poor digestion results in poor absorption of nutrients called mal-
absorption.
Malabsorption is not an uncommon problem stemming from
stress, antibiotic use, poor stomach function or other causes. The
diminished ability of the small intestine to absorb nutrients, from cal-
cium and zinc to vitamin B12, iron and protein, leads to numerous
health issues.
Many patients who consulted me through the years showed a
need for additional nutrients. While it was tempting to urge my
264 • IN FITNESS AND IN HEALTH