For centuries diets from around the world have used traditional food combinations, such as lentils with rice in India to pork with pineapple in Europe.
Now science reveals how these ancient food pairings could hold remarkable wisdom.
- Pineapple and Protein= Enzymes increase Protein Digestion.
Pineapple is a rich source of bromelain, a group of enzymes that digest proteins.
Bromelain has powerful anti-inflammatory activity making it popular in sports medicine. Bromelain can decrease pain and swelling in damaged or inflamed soft tissue and help joint health and repair.
Bromelain is strong enough to work in replacement of pepsin and trypsin, two of the chief protein degrading enzymes in the gut.
This is especially beneficial to exercise or bodybuilding enthusiasts who ingest high amounts of protein, desiring rapid metabolism and absorption back into muscle fibres. So have some fresh pineapple with your next high protein meal, to upgrade the effects.
- Fats and Vitamin D= Enhanced Absorption
Vitamin D is a fat-soluble vitamin. It aids calcium reabsorption within the gut to help maintain bone health. The inactive form of Vitamin D can be obtained from the sun and is also found in cod liver oil, salmon, milk, sardines, beef, egg yolk and some mushrooms. Science has revealed that dietary fat can greatly enhance absorption of the supplemental form. Because Vitamin D is a fat-soluble vitamin, its absorption follows a similar pathway to that of oils from the diet. Eating fats stimulate bile, which encourages small structures, called micelles, to form. The micelles transport the fat and Vitamin D together to be more easily absorbed by the gut surface. Foods to eat around your Vitamin D supplement to help intake are: raw nuts, flax seeds, avocado, herring and salmon.
- Eggs, Avocado, Full-Fat Dressing and Salad: Antioxidant Enhancing.
Did you know that the oils found in the diet are one of the most effective enhancers of carotenoid antioxidant absorption too?
The carotenoids are not only an antioxidant but are additionally the colour pigments found in fruits and vegetables that range from yellow to orange to red in nature.
Carotenoids, such as beta-carotene, are responsible for eye health, for decreasing risk of some cancers, and for boosted general health.
Journals from The American Society of Clinical Nutrition, found that while salad veggies can be packed full of carotenoids, the addition of full-fat salad dressing, avocado or whole egg with the salad, increased the antioxidant absorption far more than when the salad was fat-free.
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