Why does blood sugar spike after a meal if food is digested in the stomach for several hours before it starts getting absorbed in the small intestine?
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Great question! Disclamer, I am not a professional at all, but I’ve had advanced/expanded biology classes in a polish highschool so i know a thing or two.
Your body digests food by breaking it down into its basic components with enzymes. Fats are broken mostly in the small intestine with bile from your liver, protein is broken mostly by stomach juices which contain an enzyme called , and sugars are mostly broken down with pepsin, an enzyme in your stomach juices, and sugars (carbohydrates) are mainly digested by saliva amylasis which is an enzyme secreted in the mouth and carried by your saliva.
You know that feeling of your mouth watering when you look at/smell something delicious? That’s the first stage of digestion preparing itself for the work ahead.
If you want to check saliva amylasis in action, try a piece of something you wouldn’t consider sweet, but contains carbs – a piece of bread for instance. Hold it in your mouth and let it get saturated with your saliva. In a few seconds you’ll start feeling a sweet taste in your mouth – that’s sugars from the bread being broken down and absorbed into your body.
I tried to keep it as simple and as through as possible, but if any professional would like to add anything, feel free to comment 🙂
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