Food-combining: Bringing metabolism into balance

Food-combining: Bringing metabolism into balance

By Melinda J. Hewitt

JAKARTA (JP): While the concept of food-combining is
relatively new to Indonesia, nutritionist, author and chief
editor of popular natural health magazine Majalah Nirmala Andang
Gunawan has a lot to share on the subject.

Andang's interest in food-combining started in 1994 from her
determination to find a natural diet for her husband, who was
suffering from liver disease and several other ailments over a
period of six years.

She was introduced to food-combining and within a two-and-a-
half-month period her husband lost eight kilograms. His liver
problem and all other ailments, such as asthma, gastric problems
and chronic fatigue, vanished and he became healthy, slim, and
energetic.

Empowered by her experiments with food-combining, Andang
recommended it to friends who also enjoyed similar success.

"Because I wanted to prove that food-combining was right, I
decided to study nutrition ... I wanted to be responsible for
what I said.

"It was a process. When I was writing my book, I was still
studying and I had to study many natural health books as well as
medical books.

"If I wrote a book I could not share all my knowledge. Then a
friend said to me 'why not start a magazine?' I thought why not.
Science is dynamic, it is in constant renewal. So I thought a
magazine is the answer to follow the dynamic nature of things, it
can have continuity."

Thus Majalah Nirmala was born. The magazine now enjoys a niche
market with a growing following of readers who zealously digest
its contents.

Andang describes food-combining as the art of eating. It is
the art of combining food so that it is in harmony with the way
our digestive system works, maintaining the correct Ph. balance
and in sync with the cycles of digestion of our bodies.

She explains the cycles of digestion as follows. There are
three cycles within a 24-hour period. For example, from 4 a.m.
until noon is for elimination. 12 p.m. until 8 p.m. is for
digestion, then from 8 p.m. until 4 a.m. our body concentrates on
absorption or assimilation.

The goal of food-combining is to cooperate with the mechanism
of digestion. If digestion is functioning well, our metabolism
will function well.

"Over the past 150 years our eating habits have changed
totally. Why do so many people fall sick nowadays? The change in
our dietary pattern is too fast for the evolution of our own
body. For thousands of years human beings only ate fruits,
vegetables and seeds, then we suddenly changed ... The process
was too fast, our body could not adjust."

Andang recommends that people eat a lot of vegetables and
fruits and that different foods be combined according to the time
required for digestion.

In brief, fruit must be eaten alone either at least 15 minutes
prior to meals or by itself. Vegetables may be eaten either with
protein or with starch but starch and protein cannot be eaten
together.

There is a rationale behind this. Fruit remains in the stomach
for between 10 minutes and half an hour. Meat eaten with
vegetables requires four hours in the stomach. If starch is eaten
with vegetables it needs three hours. If protein foods are eaten
with starch, six or more hours are needed depending on the type
of protein. If that protein contains a lot of fat it delays the
process of digestion. It would remain in the stomach for six to
eight hours.

Feeling hungry

When you feel hungry that does not mean your stomach is empty.

"I may, for example, have just eaten a meal of meat and rice,
but after a few hours I feel hungry again. Why? Because the body
has not received the required nutrients, so it sends a signal to
the brain which in turn tells us we are hungry."

Andang emphasizes that the combination of foods from the
various food groups is very important. It is true that our body
needs the four food groups: protein, starch, vitamins and
minerals, and fats, but they all cannot be digested at the same
time.

There are a total of 45 types of nutrients, but those whole
foods must be digested and become nutrient components. These
components then transform into energy. After the process of
digestion is completed, when they transform into nutrient
components, then they look for a partner.

For example, iron needs vitamin C in order to be absorbed by
the body. If you eat without combining foods properly then the
process of digestion does not run efficiently and you receive
fewer nutrients, or in some cases none at all. If we consume a
lot of protein but less food rich in vitamins and minerals, it is
not effective.

According to Andang, too much protein may be harmful to our
health.

If there is too much protein in our body it putrefies due to
the long process of digestion required. Over a period of time the
accumulated food becomes toxic. Toxins enter through the small
intestine into the bloodstream and accumulate in the blood
vessels in a similar way to plaque.

It is just like rubbish accumulating in a drain, the blood is
circulating in the body carrying the rubbish with it. Then the
blood cannot flow and provide nutrients to other parts of the
body. This will be manifested in allergies or flu. Sometimes our
behavior is also affected and we feel stressed because not enough
nutrients are reaching the brain.

Later the organ tissues which do not receive enough nutrients
start to degenerate, then the cells become abnormal and this can
lead to cancer.

Bad bacteria

"Doctors say disease is caused by harmful or 'bad' bacteria.
Bad bacteria will not be able to live within our body if the
place is healthy and clean.

"We all have both good and bad bacteria in our body but if our
immune system is high then the bad bacteria become inactive or
leave -- it is not their habitat. But if there is putrefying food
or undigested food (in our colon), that is the ideal place for
them to develop. Why don't doctors ask why does the bad bacteria
predominate? Why is it multiplying? Something must be amiss.
Natural health practitioners will say, "It is not the virus or
the bacteria, but the soil."

While the effects of poor food-combining and poor diet in
general take years to take their toll on the body and the immune
system, the upside is that the effects of a well-combined and
nutritionally balanced diet are quickly visible.

From Andang's experience as a nutritionist, someone who
practices food-combining will feel the benefits within two weeks.
Their face will look radiant, clean and clear. The whites of the
eye will become very clear and clean. They will feel more
energetic and will sleep well. The first benefit usually
experienced is increased energy. Later we stabilize at our ideal
body weight.

"Losing weight is just a side effect. If your weight should
decrease it will, if it is not supposed to reduce it will not. I
emphasize that the aim of food-combining is to bring the
metabolism into balance."

Andang assures that food-combining does not have to dampen our
social life. "If once or twice a week we are unable to eat a
properly combined meal it will not ruin our total regime. When
eating out, it is best to ask the waiter about the menu in detail
and if necessary something can be omitted or added where needed."

There are no health risks for someone who follows food-
combining according to Andang. The only thing that frequently
concerns her is that people may not understand how to implement
it. Therefore, in her book Kombinasi Makanan Serasi - Pola Makan
untuk Langsing & Sehat (Food-combining - a diet pattern for
health and slimming), she has provided a shopping guide in one
chapter as well as practical and simple recipes.

She suggests, however, that anyone suffering from a serious
illness should plan a diet with a nutritionist skilled in food-
combining along with the patient's own physician. From her
experience it is also safe for pregnant women and young children.

Eating as ritual

Cigarettes and alcohol while not "food" as such, influence
digestion too because they are toxic. The chemicals and compounds
can affect food absorption. The program will be less effective,
for example, if someone smokes and follows food-combining.

Andang says eating has to become a ritual. Our state of mind
also influences digestion and therefore we should create a happy
and peaceful mood at meal times and eat together as one family.

"Eat slowly, chew slowly and peacefully. Don't speak too much
and don't eat while reading. There should be concentration on
eating. Don't get up straight away from the table. We should give
time for our digestion, it has to work hard! And don't push the
food down straight away with a lot of water. We should eat and
drink calmly."

Andang feels that most people lack education in leading a
healthy lifestyle and eating natural foods. Even though Indonesia
has an abundant variety of fruits and vegetables, she hopes that
Indonesians will be more industrious in planting vegetables.
"They think that Western food or fast food is better, then they
forget what we already have ... I tell them let's go back to what
we have."