The prices of these zong (糭) are over HK$200 each.
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Rachael Link wrote . . . . . . . . .
We all know that loading up on the cookies, candy and soda can skyrocket blood sugar levels and lead to adverse effects on health. But did you know that the same could be true for certain types of starch as well? Thanks to amylopectin, a type of carbohydrate found in starch, some starches may actually have a similar effect.
Amylopectin digestion may raise blood sugar and insulin levels, causing an increase in triglycerides and cholesterol and leading to fat accumulation.
This carbohydrate is widespread throughout the food supply and is the main component of starches, including rice, bread and potatoes.
However, by opting for foods lower in amylopectin and increasing your intake of high-fiber, low-glycemic foods instead, you can sidestep the negative side effects of this carbohydrate.
The official amylopectin definition is: “a component of starch that has a high molecular weight and branched structure and does not tend to gel in aqueous solutions.”
To put it more simply, though, amylopectin is a type of carbohydrate found in the starches that we commonly consume, such as rice, potatoes and bread.
Starch is made up of two different polysaccharides, or carbohydrates: amylose and amylopectin. Each starch molecule is about 80 percent amylopectin and 20 percent amylose.
Amylose is made up of long, linear chains of glucose units while amylopectin is highly branched. In fact, it is composed of between 2,000 and 200,000 glucose units, and each inner chain comprises 20–24 subunits of glucose.
Amylopectin is also considered insoluble, meaning that it does not dissolve in water.
This starch molecule has a very similar structure to glycogen, a type of branched polysaccharide that is used to store glucose, or sugar, in your liver and muscles. When comparing amylopectin vs. glycogen, both are highly branched and made up of alpha glucose units, but glycogen has more branches.
While starch molecules are considered the main storage form of energy in plants, glycogen is the primary storage form of energy in humans and animals.
Amylose and amylopectin share some similarities but are also drastically different in the ways that they are digested and processed in the body. As mentioned previously, the differences between these two starch molecules starts with their physical structure. Amylose is long and linear while amylopectin is made up of thousands of branches of glucose units.
Although starches contain both of these carbohydrates, the ratio can make a major impact on the way it’s digested and processed. This is because amylopectin is more easily digested and absorbed than amylose. While this may sound like a good thing, it actually means that eating foods rich in this carbohydrate can lead to spikes in blood sugar, insulin and cholesterol levels as well as increased belly fat. A high amount of amylopectin can also increase the glycemic index of foods, which is a measure of how much blood sugar levels increase after consumption.
Meanwhile, foods high in amylose tend to have higher levels of resistant starch, a type of starch that isn’t completely broken down or absorbed by the body. Resistant starch has been shown to reduce fat storage, increase satiety, lower cholesterol levels and blood sugar, and improve insulin sensitivity.
Therefore, it’s best to minimize your intake of foods high in amylopectin and instead focus on selecting starches that have a higher ratio of amylose to ensure you’re getting the most health benefits possible from your diet.
Amylopectin makes up the majority of the starch molecule, which is the primary storage form of energy for plants.
Much like humans, animals and all living organisms, plants need energy so they can grow and function. Plants use a special process called photosynthesis, which involves using chlorophyll to convert sunlight, carbon dioxide and water into sugar, or glucose, to be used as energy. Any extra glucose is stored as starch, which the plant can then convert back into glucose when it needs an extra bit of energy.
In humans, when we eat starch, it is converted to sugar, or glucose, which can also be used for energy. The cells in our bodies depend on this energy to function, making sure that we are able to build and maintain healthy tissues, move our muscles, and keep our organs working efficiently.
Like plants, we are also able to keep unused glucose for use later in the form of glycogen, which is mainly stored in the muscles and liver and can be easily converted to glucose when needed.
1. Spikes Blood Sugar and Insulin
Foods with a higher amount of amylopectin have a higher glycemic index, which means they can cause a quick increase in blood sugar and insulin levels.
Insulin is the hormone that is responsible for the transportation of sugar from the blood to the tissues where it can be utilized. When you sustain high levels of insulin over a long period of time, it can decrease the effectiveness of insulin, leading to insulin resistance and high blood sugar.
A study from the Beltsville Human Nutrition Research Center in Maryland published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition fed 12 participants a diet composed of either 70 percent amylose or amylopectin for five weeks. Compared to amylose, amylopectin led to a greater increase in blood sugar and insulin levels.
Another animal study from Australia showed that feeding rats a high-amylopectin diet for 16 weeks resulted in a 50 percent higher insulin response as well as insulin resistance.
Conversely, another study published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition showed that higher amounts of amylose delayed carbohydrate digestion and absorption and caused decreased blood sugar and insulin levels.
2. Raises Cholesterol Levels
In addition to increasing blood sugar levels, a diet high in amylopectin could also negatively impact blood cholesterol levels. Research shows that eating foods with a higher glycemic index, such as those that are high in amylopectin, could decrease triglyceride and good HDL cholesterol levels.
Studies have also found that insulin resistance, which can occur as a result of an a high-glycemic diet, may be associated with an increase in cholesterol production. The Beltsville Human Nutrition Research Center study mentioned above, in particular, found that eating a diet high in amylopectin led to increases in cholesterol and triglyceride levels compared to a diet high in amylose.
Meanwhile, multiple animal studies have found that resistant starch from higher concentrations of amylose could lead to lower blood cholesterol and triglyceride concentrations in rats.
3. Increases Belly Fat
One of the most visible side effects of amylopectin is its effect on your waistline. That’s because eating lots of amylopectin can increase insulin, leading to an increase in visceral fat.
Insulin plays a major role in fat storage and metabolism. It blocks the breakdown of fat and increases the uptake of triglycerides from the blood into the fat cells. Sustaining high levels of circulating insulin can cause insulin resistance as well as an increase in fat storage and a decrease in fat burning, as noted in research out of the University of Toronto in Canada.
Additionally, eating foods with a high glycemic index, such as those with a higher ratio of amylopectin, can increase hunger and the risk of overeating, as research from the Jean Mayer USDA Human Nutrition Research Center on Aging at Tufts University shows.
On the other hand, studies have shown that amylose and resistant starch can enhance fat burning, promote satiety and reduce fat storage.
Although all starches contain some amylopectin, certain types may have a higher ratio of amylopectin than others. Simple carbs that have a high glycemic index are likely to be higher in amylopectin while foods with a lower glycemic index are likely higher in amylose.
High-amylopectin foods include:
Instead of filling your plate with these foods, consider swapping in a few foods that are higher in amylose instead. These foods can help you maintain normal blood sugar levels, keep cholesterol levels low and prevent fat accumulation.
Low-amylose foods include:
Source: Dr. Axe
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Dennis Thompson wrote . . . . . . . . .
Folks who take their coffee with a little cream and sugar have reason to rejoice, health-wise.
A new study shows that coffee’s potential health benefits persist, even if you add a bit of sugar to your java.
People who drink any amount of unsweetened coffee are 16% to 21% less likely to die early than those who don’t imbibe, based on data drawn from more than 171,000 British participants without known heart disease or cancer.
And even folks who take their coffee with sugar saw some health benefits, researchers found.
Sweetened coffee drinkers who downed an average 1.5 to 3.5 cups a day were 29% to 31% less likely to die during an average seven-year follow-up than non-coffee drinkers, according to findings published in the Annals of Internal Medicine.
“On average, even when your coffee is a little bit sweetened, it still seems to be potentially beneficial and at least not harmful,” said Dr. Christina Wee, the journal’s deputy editor, who wrote an editorial that accompanied the study.
Don’t rush out to order that caramel macchiato just yet, though — people in the study tended to add modest amounts of sugar to their brew, experts noted.
On average, people put about 1 teaspoon of sugar in each cup of coffee, said Wee and Anthony DiMarino, a registered dietitian at the Cleveland Clinic’s Center for Human Nutrition.
“This is roughly only 16 extra calories, which is not significant,” said DiMarino, who wasn’t involved with the study. “In contrast, most specialty coffees run hundreds of calories from sugars and fats.”
For this study, a team led by Dr. Chen Mao of Southern Medical University in Guangzhou, China, analyzed dietary data provided by participants in the UK Biobank, a database with health information from a half-million people in the United Kingdom.
Participants were tracked for an average seven years to see whether coffee drinking affected their overall risk of death, as well as their risk of death from cancer or heart disease.
Researchers found that unsweetened coffee reduced participants’ risk of death regardless how much they drank, with a “sweet spot” of maximum benefit around 2.5 to 3.5 cups a day.
Sweetened coffee also had health benefits, as long as the person drank fewer than 4 cups a day. Folks who drank more than 4.5 cups of sugary coffee a day had a slight increase in their risk of early death.
Sweetened or unsweetened, coffee also appeared to consistently reduce the risk of death from specific causes such as cancer or heart disease, the researchers found.
There are lots of theories about why coffee might be good for you, experts said.
“Coffee contains nearly 1,000 botanical compounds, most of which have not been studied yet,” DiMarino said. “Coffee does provide nutrients such as B vitamins, potassium and riboflavin, which are essential to health. Moreover, coffee provides different anti-inflammatory compounds, which help reduce our risk of cancer.”
Finally, he added, coffee has been shown to improve alertness, memory and mental function. “These effects would certainly help us be more aware and make less mistakes,” DiMarino said.
Wee noted that coffee also contains chlorogenic acids, which have an anti-clotting effect in the blood. That could potentially prevent heart attacks or strokes caused by clots.
Other research teams are looking at ways in which coffee might help people by improving gut health, enhancing efficient fat storage, and protecting the liver, said Dr. Alan Rozanski, a cardiologist with Mount Sinai Morningside in New York City.
“These are pathways that are being elucidated and we need more work to define them, but the interactions are there and there are good solid reasons to understand why this drink is OK for your health,” said Rozanski, who wasn’t part of the study.
Still, Wee noted, doctors remain somewhat concerned about the caffeine in coffee, which can increase your heart rate and alter your metabolism in other worrying ways.
“But we have studies that show if you’re a regular caffeinated coffee drinker, your body sort of develops a tolerance to it,” she said. “When you first start to drink coffee or other caffeinated beverages, you may have a more pronounced physiologic response. But after a while, like with all things your body sort of acclimates, so it doesn’t seem like the harm of moderate amounts of coffee drinking persists.”
At the same time, a study like this shouldn’t prompt people who don’t like coffee to start drinking the stuff, Wee added.
“We can cautiously conclude there doesn’t seem to be harm, and so if you’re already a coffee drinker, no need to change,” Wee said. “Now whether or not you should start drinking coffee to get its benefits, that’s less certain.”
Source: HealthDay
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Ingredients
3 unwaxed thin-skinned lemons, quartered lengthways
3 tablespoons sea salt
2 tablespoons sugar
12 large vine leaves in brine
12 fresh sardines, scaled and gutted
salad leaves, to garnish
Stuffing
4 tablespoons chopped fresh coriander
4 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
2 cloves garlic, crushed
salt and freshly ground black pepper
1/4 cup olive oi
Method
Makes 4 to 6 servings.
Source: North African Cooking
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Cooking with Kathy Man 