Sunday, January 30, 2011

Starch in Human Nutrition

Starch is a widely distributed and abundant constituent of vegetable tissue.

Starch are by far the most significant polysaccharide in the diet. They are are found in grains, legumes and other vegetables and some fruits in minute amounts.

In human nutrition, starch is by far the most significant polysaccharide. It is a relatively large complex compound made up of many coiled or branching chains of single glucose unit.

It yield only glucose in digestion.

After cooking starch is highly digestible by human beings, raw starch often resists digestion.

Many cooks use starch for such diverse properties as thickening gravies and soups, making a sweet pudding or dusting pastry before cooking.

The major food sources of starch include grains in the form of cereal, pasta, crackers, bread and other baked goods.

Starch is used to produce food extenders and sugars syrups such as maltodextrins, glucose, dextrose, fructose, maltose and hydrogenated derivatives.

The extent of starch breakdown within the small intestine varies, depending on the physical form of the food, therefore a substantial amount of the total starch, called ‘resistant starch’ can escape digestion in the small intestine and enter colon.
Starch in Human Nutrition
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