Basic Food Combining, Part 4

Here are the combinations that are best compatible with the human digestive system.  Although these combinations are commonly eaten, they are also often followed by the symptoms of indigestion.  Familiarize yourself with them, and soon, selecting compatible food combinations will be easily attained.

Acid/ Starch Combination.  All acids destroy the starch-splitting enzyme, salivary amylase.  This includes the acids contained in fruits and the acetic acid contained in vinegar.  Also, the fruits will be detained in the stomach, resulting in fermentation.

Protein / Starch Combination.  As stated earlier, salivary amylase is destroyed in the stomach in the presence of a highly acidic medium.  Since protein digestion requires such a medium, this combination is unacceptable.  Because this combination is commonly eaten, it may be a factor why food combining has not been recognized by conventional nutritionists as it contradicts many of our typical meals.

Protein / Protein Combinations.  Each type of protein food requires different timing and different modifications of the digestive secretions.  When one protein is combined with another protein, digestion becomes difficult.  As protein is the most difficult food nutrient for the body to digest anyway, we would benefit by consuming only one type of protein at a meal.  This would not include the eating of two or more types of nuts at a meal, as their composition is relatively similar.  Recent data concerning protein needs has shown that it is unnecessary to consume all essential amino acids at each meal.

Acid/ Protein Combination.  The renowned physiologist, Pavlov, demonstrated the influence of acids upon digestion.  The enzyme, pepsin, necessary for protein digestion, will only be active in the presence of one particular acid, hydrochloric acid.  Other acids may actually destroy this enzyme, including fruit acids.  Also, when fruits are eaten with proteins, the fruits will be detained in the stomach until completion of protein digestion, resulting in their fermentation.  There is an exception to this rule: The proteins such as nuts, seeds, and cheese, do not decompose as rapidly as other proteins, due to their high fat content. This distinction makes it acceptable to eat acid fruits with nuts, seeds, or cheese.

Fat / Protein Combination. As mentioned earlier, fats inhibit the flow of gastric juice, interfering with protein digestion.  Dr. Herbert Shelton referred to this in his book, Food Combining Made Easy (first published in 1951) by quoting from McLeed’s Physiology In Modern Medicine: “Fat has been shown to exert a distinct inhibiting influence on the secretion of gastric juice… the presence of oil in the stomach delays the secretion of juice poured out on a subsequent meal of otherwise readily digestible food.”  Since our need for fat is very little, and most protein foods already contain fat, any additional fat intake becomes difficult to digest.  Avoid combining butter, oils, etc. with protein foods.

(Fruit Eating will be our topic in Part 5 for posting next week – J.P.)

Basic Food Combining, Part 3

A second factor to consider in the digestive process is that each cavity contains its own distinctive secretions to carry on its specific work of digestion.  And at each stage of this process, digestion proceeds more or less efficiently depending upon the conditions present at each stage.  In other words, the efficiency of digestion in the intestines is dependent upon the work done in the mouth and stomach.  It is a sequential operation.  For example, if pepsin, the enzyme secreted in the stomach during the first stage of protein digestion, has not converted these proteins into peptones due to unfavorable conditions present in the stomach, then erepsin, the enzyme secreted in the intestine, will not be able to carry on the final stage of protein digestion – that of converting the peptones into amino acids.  Each stage of digestion must not be interfered with, if we desire efficient digestion.

A third factor concerns the emptying time of the stomach into the intestine.  Fruits remain in the stomach an hour or less when eaten alone.  Starches require two to three hours to complete gastric digestion.  And proteins require approximately four hours.  Complex foods, such as dried beans, are difficult to digest, requiring five to six hours to complete gastric digestion.  The important point is this: If a food remains in the stomach longer than is normally required, due to an incompatible combination, the food will likely decompose and nutrition is impaired.

Considering the factors of digestion, we may appreciate the importance of food combining and the potential of creating two very distinct situations when eating: one being digestion and nutrient enhancement; the other being decomposition of the food, a form of self-poisoning.

If carbohydrates are not digested, they ferment, producing poisons such as carbon dioxide, acetic acid, lactic acid, and alcohol.  And the most important thing to remember is that the alcohol produced has the same potential for destruction of the liver and other organs, as commercial alcohol. When proteins are not digested, they putrefy, producing poisons known as ptomaines.

Anytime two or more foods are eaten at the same meal, each one requiring opposite conditions for their digestion, the digestive process becomes less than efficient.  Sometimes digestion is totally suspended.

The responsibility for harmonious digestion rests with each of us.  Failure to observe the limitations of human digestion results in mild to severe indigestion and is very likely to be a contributing factor in causing disease.

(Incompatible combinations of food will be fully discussed next week in Part 4 – J.P.)

Basic Food Combining, Part 2

Let's discuss a common objection to "food combining," stated as follows: All foods are composed of various nutritive materials and yet the human body is capable of digesting them.  It seems that "nature" does not observe food combining principles.  

The answer to this objection is this:  The human digestive system is capable of adjusting itself to the digestion of individual natural foods, with appropriate timing of various enzymes and digestive juices.  However, when two or more foods are combined haphazardly, the digestive limitations are exceeded and digestion is inevitably impaired.

Digestion Explained.  Digestion is the process by which the complex materials of food are broken down into simpler substances in preparation for their entrance into the bloodstream.  For example, proteins are broken down into various amino acids; carbohydrates, composed of starches and sugars, are converted to glucose, a simple sugar; and fats are broken down into fatty acids.  The body is then able to use these simpler materials to build new tissue.

The digestive track may be conveniently divided into three cavities - the mouth, the stomach, and the small intestines.  Regarding the practical application of food combining principles, the conditions present in the mouth and stomach will be our primary concern.  However, the efficiency of digestion, as it continues in the small intestines, is greatly dependent upon the work done in the mouth and stomach.

When food enters the mouth, it is masticated and mixed with saliva, initiating the digestive process.  Appropriate digestive juices are also secreted here, according to the type of food ingested.  If the food contains starch, then an enzyme, salivary amylase, is also secreted at this time.  This enzyme is active only in the presence of starch.

After leaving the mouth, the food passes down the esophagus and into the stomach.  Here, gastric juice is secreted, containing primarily hydrochloric acid and digestive enzymes.  The concentration of hydrochloric acid varies, depending on the type of food ingested.  Protein requires a highly acidic medium for the digestive enzyme, pepsin, to be effective.  Starches and fats, however, require a nearly neutral medium for their digestion.  In fact, salivary amylase is actually destroyed in the presence of a highly acidic gastric juice.  And the enzyme, gastric lipase, secreted for fat digestion, is also inhibited in its work in the presence of a highly acidic medium.  These distinctions represent a significant factor in complicating digestion.

(In Part 3, we will be discussing other factors of digestion to appreciate the importance of food combining and its contributing factor in causing disease. - J.P.)

Basic Food Combining, Part 1

Food combining refers to combinations of food which are compatible with each other in digestive chemistry.  The goal of food combining is to aid the digestive process which starts in the mouth.

We will discuss both compatible and incompatible food combinations that will guide us in selecting compatible food menus.  By applying these principles, nutrition will be enhanced as only food which is digested is capable of nourishing us.  And we avoid indigestion, along with its unpleasant symptoms.

Efficient digestion has a good effect on the body's energy level.  The energy used up to digest three conventional meals has been estimated to be equivalent to eight hours of "working" energy.  By selecting compatible food combinations, the digestive task is lessened, allowing more energy for other activities.

"The discomforts of indigestion are so common that it's almost considered normal.  And the incidence of various diseases of the digestive tract are increasing at an alarming rate," says researcher, Dennis Nelson, who suffered much from indigestion.  "Rather than use drugs to suppress the symptoms of indigestion, it would be wiser to remove the causes of the indigestion.  And then, apply those practices which favor good digestion," Nelson advises.

The Rationale For Food Combining.  Throughout the century, physiologists have been conducting experiments relating to the digestion of food.  They observed that the efficiency of digestion is dependent upon the types of food combined at a meal.  However, this information needed to be transferred from the laboratory to the kitchen if people were to benefit from it.  This was accomplished by the doctors of the "natural hygiene" philosophy.  They concluded that the human digestive system works best when meals are simple and combinations are minimal.  This results in the principle of "food combining," which stresses the importance of both simplicity and compatibility in meal planning.

The good thing about food combining is that everyone may benefit from it.  The digestive system works fundamentally the same for all of us.  This is not to deny the fact that individuals vary in their capacity to digest food, but rather to dispute the argument that food combining principles are only helpful to particular people.

Although food combining will aid the digestive process considerably, it will not guarantee good digestion.  There are other factors which may reduce our digestive capacity, such as overeating, eating under stressful conditions, eating when fatigued, eating just before or soon after strenuous exercise, and eating during strong emotional experiences, all hinder the digestive process.


(In Part 2, we will discuss a common objection to food combining and how the digestive process works. - J.P.)

Emotion: Factor In Heart Disease

“When a man dies, he does not just die of the disease he has – he dies of his whole life,” said the philosopher.  And now, from Britain, Dr. Alastair U. Mackinnon offers evidence to show that, with heart disease at least, that old proverb is true.

Writing in the Journal of the Royal College of General Practitioners, Mackinnon showed that the “anguished inner life of a patient” can be a prime factor in coronary thrombosis.  For more than three and a half years, he took photographs of all the coronary disease patients who visited the outpatient clinic at the General Infirmary at Leeds.  He also interviewed some 70 patients.

Dr. Mackinnon came up with shocking evidence that heart disease is often the final stage of emotional problems.  In more than half of the photographs he took, severe tension was obvious.  Interviews showed that the lives of the coronary victims were hectic – they lived at fast pace and were under emotional turmoil.

Some of the younger men worked 60 hours or more a week.  About 25 percent held down two jobs.  The emotional pressure such a schedule causes apparently produces biological and pathologic changes in the blood and the blood vessels.  Any incident which produces severe emotional stress at this time can trigger a heart attack and perhaps death.

What’s The Best Age To Have A Heart Attack?  Certainly, not when you’re young, reports Fitness for Living.

A 15-year study by the National Academy of Sciences reveals that the younger man who suffers a heart attack undergoes more severe cardiac damage, and is more likely to die suddenly or within the first 24 hours than is the man in his 40’s or 50’s.

The one advantage the younger men have:  if they survive the first year, a slightly larger proportion of them continue to live for 15 years than do the older men.

Discovering Potential Heart Victims.  Col. Loren F. Parmley of Walter Reed Army Medical Center claims that an electrocardiogram taken after moderate exercise may be able to pinpoint potential heart victims.  Electronic squibbles on the “EKG” chart indicate that the heart wasn’t receiving enough oxygen, a malfunction called ischemia.

Tests have shown that people with ischemia have high percentage of developing coronary artery disease.

Stomach Pains Can Be Stress-Related

It is not just what you eat – but what’s eating you – that may cause stomach distress.  This is what internist James Fitzgerald of Georgetown University, Washington, D.C. wants to emphasize when he says that stress and tension can lead to acid indigestion.

“A happy mind should produce a happy stomach,” he adds, and in order to keep the stomach happy, Dr. Fitzgerald offers seven rules:

• Don’t oversleep, creating a morning “time crisis.”
• Eat foods that act as “blotter paper” when drinking coffee or colas.  Just coffee and cigarette are a deadly combination for unleashing acids to gnaw on stomach.
• Don’t squeeze too much business into business lunches.  Intellectual activity at meals may divert blood flow to the brain and away from the stomach.
• Avoid controversy at meals.
• Frequent smaller meals help the “nervous” stomach.
• Skim milk is the best snack and neutralizer of stomach acids.
• Don’t drink alcoholic beverages on an empty stomach.

Diarrhea And Dysentery.  When a person has loose or watery stools, he has diarrhea.  If mucus and blood can be seen in the stools, he has dysentery.

Diarrhea can be mild or serious.  It can be acute (sudden and severe) or chronic (lasting many days).  Although diarrhea has many different causes, the most common are infection and poor nutrition.

With good hygiene and good food, diarrhea could be prevented.  The prevention of diarrhea depends both on good nutrition and cleanliness.

Healing With Water.  Another eye-opener for us is that if people simply learned how to use water correctly, this alone might do more to prevent and cure illness than all the medicines they now use – or misuse.

The daily practice of drinking pure water upon arising in the morning (say two, four, or even six glasses) can actually flush your system from accumulated poisons of the previous day; your kidney and bladder will be greatly benefitted – not to mention you stomach, too.

Tidbits.  What’s the best thing to drink before, during and after strenuous exercise?  Water, says the American College of Sports Medicine.  Dr. Edward L. Fox recommends “frequent water breaks (every 10 to 15 minutes)” to keep the body’s water table from approaching 3% deficit.

  

Making Progress Through Regular Exercise

After two or three weeks of regular exercise, you will begin to improve your physical fitness level, and after four to six weeks, there should be some measurable improvement.  You will be able to carry out the exercise easily; you will begin to sleep better, be less tired at the end of the day, and you will often find that you miss the invigorating feeling you get from a workout if you skip your exercise for even one scheduled day.

Once you attain physical fitness, you must maintain it by regular workouts.  Exercise training should become a part of your lifestyle.  Like money in the bank which will stand you in good stead only for a short time in an inflated economy, accumulated exercise benefits become insignificant if exercise is stopped.  If you cut back to exercising once a week, half of your fitness increase will be lost in a mere 10 weeks.  If you discontinue your program completely, all your gains will be lost in five weeks!

If temporary illness or unavoidable circumstances keep you from exercising for a few days to a few weeks, then resume your program at a lower level, taking approximately as much time as you missed to work up to the level you were at prior to your absence.  This plan will help you to avoid “too much, too fast” when you resume exercising, taking the deconditioning effect of time into account.

How Much Time For Exercise?  How long one should allocate each day for an exercise routine is an important decision to make.  The minimum amount of time, according to most doctors and physical fitness experts, is 20 minutes a day.  It could be more than this, but any amount of exercise is good.

If you want an effective exercise program that will really help you keep fit, feel better and upgrade your physical and mental performance, then you need at least 20 minutes a day – everyday.

How Much Exercise?  Psychologists agree that to maintain fitness, you need to exercise at 65 percent of your maximum capacity for 15 minutes a day, three times a week.  A heart rate of 220 minus your age – so if you’re 40, a pulse rate of about 120 (220-40 x .65) is what should be tailoring your workouts to sustain.  There’s no need to kill yourself so long as you’re consistent.

What should you do?  Something you enjoy.  A lot of the agony of exercise for many people is mental.  It’s really a matter of attitude and self-motivation.  Take brisk walks.  Play with your children or grandchildren.  Anything to get your mind off your muscles.

Studies have shown that layoffs as brief as 2 ½ days can begin to reverse the effects of exercise – so if you do take a weekend off, be prepared to get back into the swing of things first thing Monday morning.