Starch Digestibility of Foods: a Nutritional Perspective

Dietary starch varies greatly in digestibility and its effects on the utilization of other nutrients. The variation appears to be due to differences in starch components and their crystallinity. Processing treatments, storage conditions, chemical modification, and genetic breeding influence the digestibility of starch. Cereal starches are generally more digestible than root/tuber and legume starches. Although cooking often significantly improves the digestibility of poor and intermediately digestible starches, some foods such as bananas with starches of these types are consumed uncooked. The efficient digestion of starch is especially important to specific groups of people such as infants under 6 months of age. Ruminants must also be provided with highly digestible starch to assure maximum production efficiency. Poor digestibility of starch may have negative effects on the utilization of protein and minerals but is likely to have positive effects on the availability of certain vitamins. Decreases in the rate of starch digestion may have therapeutic application. Most clinical studies have reported that starch blockers do not elicit a significant decrease in the digestion of starch in humans. Much remains to be learned, clarified, and understood about starch digestion and its effects on diabetes and weight control.