Myth of the month

Did you ever know that fruits should never be consumed with other foods Yes, some health myths never die, and the Internet and e-mails only amplify them. The idea that fruit, unless eaten by itself on an empty stomach, will ferment or rot in your stomach has gained wide circulation again. It is the foundation of many odds food combining diets.

The fact is, you can eat fruit any time as part of a meal, as dessert, or as snack. Raw or cooked, it does not ferment inside you. The human digestive system handles all food combinations very efficiently. As foods are broken down into their various components, they pass into the small intestine, where bacteria are naturally present.

The bacteria sometimes act upon certain compounds in fruits and vegetables and give you gas, but this has nothing to do with rotting or in what combination you are the foods. The overwhelming weight of evidence is on the side of varied, balanced diet. In fact, most vitamins and minerals are best absorbed and utilised when consumed as part of a complex mixture of food. For instance, the vitamin C in your fruit will help absorb the iron in the grains you eat at that meal.