Food Combining

In Mary-Ann's Book, Perfect Health the Natural Way she outlines 5 steps that allow you to maintain your body in an akaline state 75% of the time. The idea behind an alkaline forming diet is that our body's pH level is slightly alkaline, with a normal range of 7.36 to 7.44 - therefore our diet should reflect this and also be slightly alkaline.

An imbalanced diet high in acidic foods such as animal protein, sugar, caffeine, and processed foods tends to disrupt this balance. It can deplete the body of alkaline minerals such as sodium, potassium, magnesium, and calcium, making people prone to chronic and degenerative disease.

Food combining refers to the combination of foods which are compatible with each other in terms of digestive chemistry. It is a basic component of optimal nutrition because it allows the body to digest and utilize the nutrients in our foods to their full extent = a balanced diet.

The discomforts of indigestion are so common in today’s society that indigestion is almost considered normal. The fact that over 2 billion dollars are spent each year on antacids is proof of this. Rather than using drugs to suppress symptoms (YES, Antacids are Drugs) wouldn’t it be wiser to remove the causes of indigestion?

Food Combining is based on the theory that different food groups require different digestion times. Digestion, one of the largest body processes (Parts of the nervous & circulatory system also play a role in digestion.) is helped the most by using foods which have roughly the same digestion time.

Different foods require different digestive enzymes to aid in the digestive process - some acid, some alkaline. As any student of chemistry will tell you, acids & bases neutralize each other. When acids and alkalines come in contact, they neutralize each other and this retards digestion.

Protein foods require a highly acidic environment for digestion while carbohydrates (starches & fruits) and fats require a more alkaline medium. Anytime 2 or more foods are eaten at the same time, and those foods required opposite conditions for digestion, the digestive process is compromised.

When carbohydrates and proteins are combined their stimulation to the digestive juices generates a conflicting response and produces a medium which does not digest either food very well. This situation often leads to indigestion, bloating, gas, abdominal discomfort, and poor absorption of nutrients.

Any quick digesting foods, such as fruit, must wait until the slowest digesting foods leave the stomach before they can leave, a process which can take up to 6 or 8 hours.

For more information on Food Combining please read Chapter 4 - The In's & Outs of Digestion, in Perfect Health -The Natural Way.