Interview with a Carbohydrate ...

We continue our pretend interview with Mr. Carbohydrate, trying to shed some light on whether or not we will ever be able to eat anything starchy again. Today Mr. Carbo seems to bring us some hope and perhaps even some good news ....

(Jennifer) Are there any other GOOD types of carbohydrates?

(Carbohydrates) Yes. Fiber is A carbohydrate found in plants that cannot be digested. Fiber comes in two forms: soluble and insoluble. Soluble fiber, found in beans, fruit and oats, dissolves in water. Insoluble fiber, found in whole grains and vegetables, doesn't dissolve in water. Both types of fiber help with digestion, lower cholesterol and help control blood sugar.

(Jennifer) How can I get some fiber?
(Carbohydrates) Fibrous Carbohydrates are derived from roughage such as green leafy vegetables, broccoli and skins of various fruits and veggies.
(Jennifer) How do carbohydrates help us?

(Carbohydrates) Glucose (simple carbs) flow to the blood stream and becomes available to every cell in the body. Cells then absorb glucose and convert it into energy through cellular production. The energy created is known as ATP (adenosine triphosphate) (Bounds, L , et el, 2003)

(Jennifer) Ok so can you explain this to make it a little more understandable?

(Carbohydrates) Yes (see How Digestion Works Blog) Also-- A person eats a carbohydrate like a cookie. When in the mouth, the saliva which contains the enzyme amylase, mixes with food and breaks some starches into smaller units. However, amylase is no good once the carbohydrates reaches the acidic environment of the stomach. So, the carb enters the small intestine. Here is where key digestive enzymes are secreted from the pancreas and the small intestine (most digestion and absorption occur). (Bounds, L , et el, 2003)

(Jennifer) So then what happens with the pancreatic amylase?
(Carbohydrates) Pancreatic amylase breaks starch into disaccharides (a sugar composed of two monosaccharides, which is a simple carbohydrate composed of one sugar molecule, such as glucose and fructose ) and small polysaccharides (A molecule with multiple units of sugar). (The Library of Cancer, 2006-2009)

In a nut-shell, the pancreas secretes the hormone insulin and it will then either store carbs in the muscle or store them as fat. It also takes the amino acids (protein) and shelters them inside the muscle cell for recovery and repair of every day activity.

We will see that in the small intestine the enzymes break any remaining disaccharides into their monosaccharide components.

NOTE: Dietary fiber is not digested by the small intestine; instead, it passes to the colon unchanged. (Bounds, L , et el, 2003)