Have you ever heard of Resistant Starches?
The were first discovered (by accident)
In 1982. And have been making waves ever since.
Resistant Starches are sometimes left over
after the liver gleans the monosaccharides
from the carbs we eat.
They also sometimes bypass "regular" digestion (small intestine)
altogether and go directly to the colon (large intestine)
to be broken down there.
This is a good time to mention gut flora. (link)
"WE" don't digest some of our own carbs - per se!
The bacteria and microbes in our intestines do that for us.
The microbes then excrete Short Chain Fatty Acids,
which go on to do all kinds of great and wonderful things.
For example.
Lab Rats who lack this process typically eat 30% more calories.
Lucky Rats who have the process have better lab values
in almost every area tested. (link)
The work that E Coli (and their Brethren) do is vital to all life and health.
Perhaps this is one reason why some long term
Very Low Carb or Zero Carb Diets
can fail after a certain amount of time. My thinking.
They say that artificial sweeteners can change these flora, too.
It takes 2 years for a newborn baby to fully develop the flora.
Maybe this is (in part) why the ever-mystical "Two-Year Fail"
occurs in Atkins so much. Many LoCarbers and Paleo/Primal people
eat a Fermented Sauerkraut to help with the process.
Like Bubbies Brand (link) or Kimche.
Don't confuse PREbiotics with PRObiotics.
PRObiotics are actual microbes we ingest,
like Lactobacillus and Bifidobacterium.
Learning all the way!
