You have probably heard me discuss resistant starch before, but did you know just how easy it is to incorporate into your diet? In fact, you can find resistant starch in up to 50 different foods.
Here’s a helpful update on the science behind the power of resistant starch. Then, I will introduce you to some new ways to get more of it into your diet starting today.
Let’s begin with a brief overview of what resistant starch is and the benefits it can provide. Fibers are among the most beneficial food constituents that we know of, and they only come from carbohydrates. So, we have to start this conversation off by dismissing the idea that we should avoid carbohydrates.
Resistant starch is not quite fiber and not quite a carbohydrate. In fact, it has the best properties of both. Unlike carbohydrates, it is not absorbed in the small intestine and it does not demand insulin.
Instead, it is absorbed in the large intestine after good bacteria have had their first chance at it. Because it is absorbed in the large intestine, it ends up giving us 7 to 9 hours of stable blood sugar.
Key Insight: When it comes to carbs in your diet, you can do your body a lot of good – in the right amounts. It is all about balance, variety, and ensuring that you know what you are doing.
Typically, the bad thing about “bad carbs” is that they absorb really fast, and they make your body work harder. This leaves us with a good clue about what we might end up doing with “good carbs” in our diet.
What we can see from good carbs is that they:
This is especially true for the group called the anaerobic protective bacteria. Resistant starch is fuel for these bacteria, those which are not typically as influenced by probiotic supplements.
Bottom Line: Resistant starch has the best of fiber and the best of carbohydrates. Fiber is good for your flora, but it is not digestible, while carbs do not feed the flora but give it nutrients. Resistant starch gives a little bit of nutrient, but it is so slowly absorbed so that it grants you 7 – 9 hours of slow and stable blood sugar.
As it concerns energy and body weight, it all boils down to your blood sugar being in that “good range” and not being high or low (while not moving fast, up or down).
The truth is, what we do know about resistant starch is that it stays longer in that curve, more than any other known food.
Here’s how it all works. Basically, starches are made of two polysaccharides:
This long, straight chain of amylose, because there is a long single straight chain, it becomes harder to break down. Your body has to cover it one bite at a time, which ultimately leads to slower digestion.
With the branched versions, like amylopectin, you can take many bites at once – leading to faster digestion, but more surface area being covered overall.
Bottom Line: Resistant starch is such a long, singular chain, that your body is only able to break it down in the large intestine. It’s not “small intestine insulin,” it is “large intestinal good bacteria.”
What are some of the overall benefits of resistant starch in our diets? Well, the key benefits include making more short chain fatty acids in our body.
When we have more of these, we are better able to:
Ultimately, the things included here are called:
Resistant starch also plays a big role in improving:
There are so many foods that are high in resistant starch! Here is the most comprehensive list I have seen to date of foods (which contain more than 4 grams of resistant starch per serving).
Do note that active ingredients in foods can vary from batch to batch. This is especially true for resistant starch extract or flour products.
Key Insight: If you do have a sensitivity to wheat, you do want to ensure that you are eating resistant starch foods that do not include wheat. Stocking up on bananas, plantains, and others help because, thankfully, there are many options for those who want more resistant starch in their diets.
Have you been thinking about more resistant starch in your diet? Is it because you have been feeling less energized, or that something might not be right.
1 – http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.1467-3010.2005.00481.x/full
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Dr. Alan Glen Christianson (Dr. C) is a Naturopathic Endocrinologist and the author of The NY Times bestselling Adrenal Reset Diet, The Metabolism Reset Diet and The Thyroid Reset Diet.
Dr. C’s gift for figuring out what really works has helped hundreds of thousands of people reverse thyroid disease, lose weight, diabetes, and regain energy. Learn more about the surprising story that started his quest.
