Is food combining a myth?
There is a whole eating strategy based on the belief that certain foods should not be mixed and eaten together in one meal.
Supporters of this theory worldwide swear by food combining to reduce risks of digestion problems and weight gain. But is that the truth, or is it a myth that found its way into the modern-day diet industry?
One of the forms of food combining diet is based on dividing foods into categories such as protein, carbs, and fat and not mixing them. According to supporters of this idea, we should not eat certain food groups together (par example, starches, protein, or fat and protein). Instead, eating foods like fruits just by themselves and on an empty stomach helps prevent digestion problems. The idea is that our digestive system takes different amounts of time to digest various types of foods, and by combining certain foods, we slow down our digestion.
That means if you eat foods with different digestion speeds, your body struggles with digesting everything simultaneously. As a result, parts of those foods are not fully digested and stay in your system, which doesn't sound good. The results are digestion malfunction and other health problems, as these foods 'rot' in your system, building up toxins.
The second theory is based on the differences between the PH level of foods. It is pretty similar to the first one, as it also includes the idea of some 'competition' in food digesting. According to this idea, foods with different PH levels require other enzymes to break them down and start digestion. As your body can't properly digest everything at the same time, various digestion problems appear.
What does the study say?
Food combining is an ancient thing, it has roots in Ayurvedic practice, and it exists as an idea for almost 100 years.
But is there scientific proof of these claims? According to a study from 2016. there's no correlation between weight loss and food combining. However, there are certain advantages. As explained so far, scientists do not accept food combining, but that doesn't mean that certain food combos are nasty for you. They might be great!
Good tips for food combining:
1) Iron and foods rich in vitamin C
Combining foods such as citrus fruits or bell peppers with a lot of vitamin C with iron from plants such as spinach or beans is an excellent choice. This is because vitamin C helps absorb plant-based iron, which is usually very low, instead of meat-based iron. So if you have a plant-based diet, this is an excellent tip for you!
2) Carrots and fat
We all know how good veggies are for our health, but sometimes they also need a little help from other foods to give their best. Par example, fat-soluble vitamins, and carotenoids need fat to be absorbed by the body. Carotenoids can also be found in veggies other than carrots, such as broccoli, red peppers, tomatoes, and spinach. So next time when you are having a nice salad or cooked veggies for lunch, remember to add some healthy fats. A bit of cheese or olive oil on top of the salad will help all the vitamins from vegetables get exactly where they should!
3) Bananas and yogurt
Adding a banana to yogurt makes a quick and delicious post-workout snack. Potassium from bananas combined with protein from the yogurt will help build muscle and replenish amino acids depleted during workouts.
Bonus tip: banana is an excellent go-to smoothie ingredient
4) Eggs and cheese
Vitamin D found in egg yolks maximizes the absorption of calcium from the cheese. Having enough calcium increases your focus and positively influences your mood.
Bonus tip: calcium helps with PMS symptoms and weight loss
Using food combinations to improve the absorption of nutrients from different foods is excellent when combined with a healthy balanced diet.
*Content and products on Holistic Living are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease.
