5 key steps to proper food combining

1. AVOID COMBINING FAT + SUGAR

If you can keep this motto in mind as much as possible, it will serve you well.

For many people, there will be a process of transitioning and that is fine. For example, combining a bowl of fresh fruit with a little coconut yoghurt or having a little avocado or coconut oil with potatoes is better than eating pork lathered in barbeque sauce or rice and chicken combined.

2. EAT MELONS ALONE  

Melons are best eaten alone as the first meal of the day or following your celery juice because they are pre-digested, meaning that melon flesh is so quickly assimilated that the digestive system barely needs to process it. Sometimes you can end up with a stomach ache after eating melon and that’s because as it moves through the digestive tract so quickly, it can get held up and start to ferment if eaten with denser foods, or if there is already food sitting in the gut.

3. EAT FRUITS WITH OTHER FRUITS AND/OR LEAFY GREENS  

As far as possible, enjoy your fruits alone or with leafy greens, especially if you suffer with digestive issues.

4. EAT STARCHY AND COMPLEX CARBOHYDRATES WITH LEAFY GREENS AND OTHER VEG

Starchy carbs such as potatoes and complex carbs such as grains are best eaten with other vegetables and WITHOUT fats. That said, potatoes and sweet potatoes with a little fat are more easily digested than grains with fats.

5. EAT ANIMAL PROTEIN WITH LEAFY GREENS AND VEGETABLES

Animal proteins combined with grains, or even potatoes, are hard going on the digestion. And sauces that contain sugar such chutneys or ketchup are not helpful because of their sugar content, which then combines with the fats.

Read on below for a better understanding of why these steps are so important.

PROPER FOOD COMBINING IS KEY TO HEALTHY DIGESTION & OVERALL GOOD HEALTH

There are alot of theories and ideas out there about what food combining should or shouldn’t look like, but in truth, it comes down to some very simple steps.
 
By implementing the steps that I share below, you give your body a far greater chance of both overcoming and preventing symptoms such as bloating, constipation, blood sugar imbalances, acid reflux and weight gain, which result from weakened digestion and an overburdened liver.
 
When considering food combining, it is important to have an idea of how a food is digested. For example, fruits are easily digested, as the valuable sugar in fruit enters the bloodstream and organs quickly, with most fruits absorbed and assimilated within one hour. Starchy carbohydrates such as potatoes or sweet potatoes are also easy to digest but need more breaking down than fruit, while complex carbohydrates such as grains take longer. And then there are fats and proteins to consider, which require a lot of energy to be broken down. 
 
When combining foods day to day, you want to think about making it as easy as possible for the body, especially if you are working towards overcoming symptoms. And the number one golden rule for this is:
 

AVOID FAT PLUS SUGAR

 
This is critical because fat plus sugar equals the path to insulin resistance and diabetes. Diabetes is not a disease that results from eating too much sugar, and although refined sugar is not helpful, it alone is not the cause of insulin resistance and diabetes. It is a diet high in fat alongside sugar that is the culprit. Take away the fats and a person is unlikely to have diabetes.
 
Let me explain why.
 
Insulin is a hormone produced by the pancreas gland that helps glucose move into the cells, to where it is needed. Sugars attach themselves to insulin in order to enter the cells but fat interferes with this process, causing more insulin to be produced. This in turn weakens the pancreas, and at the same time, the fat in the blood burdens the liver.

The result?

Blood sugar imbalances, hypo and hyper glycaemia, insulin resistance, diabetes and weight gain, or an inability to lose weight.

SO, WHAT FOOD COMBINATIONS INVOLVED FAT PLUS SUGAR?

• Fruit (sugar) plus fat (nuts, seeds, coconut, animal food, dairy, olives, eggs, avocado or any other food that has the majority its calories derived from fat)

• Starches such as potatoes (sugar) plus fat (as above)

• Complex carbohydrates such as grains (sugar) plus fat (as above)

• Animal protein (animal protein contains fat, even lean protein) plus sugar (rice, potatoes, bread)

KEEP IN MIND THAT SUGARS ARE NOT THE ISSUE.

Your body runs on glucose and mineral salts, it doesn’t run on fats and proteins. You cannot survive without glucose in your body. Fruits are healing foods. Potatoes are healing foods. Gluten free grains such as millet and oats are not inherently healing foods but they are healthy choices when eaten with vegetables and no fats.

So, really this puts into question some of our everyday choices such as oat porridge with nuts and seeds; rice and beans with avocado; avocado on toast; rice and chicken; potatoes with chicken; pork with barbeque sauce; lamb with potatoes.
 
You get the idea, right? Basically, a lot of what you choose everyday is likely to combine sugar and fat, which blocks glucose from entering the cells as efficiently. It also strains the pancreas, which is forced to produce more insulin, as well as the liver, which is forced to produce more bile to disperse the fats. All in all, this weakens your digestion.

IS IT OKAY TO EAT GRAINS?

This is question I get asked all the time. As I mentioned above, grains are not inherently a healing food, as they are not a fruit, vegetable, wild food, herb or spice. This means they don’t have the array of antioxidants, phytochemicals and other healing compounds that are so critical to your health. That said, gluten free grains such as millet, oats and quinoa are healthy foods when eaten without fats and can contribute to an overall healthy diet.
 
Gluten containing grains, on the other hand, such as wheat, rye, spelt and barley, are not helpful because the gluten feeds pathogens, which in turn leads to inflammation and disease in the body.  Grain, or any other food, does not itself create inflammation, the inflammation is created by the bugs feeding on the foods they love such as gluten, dairy and eggs.