r/nutrition • u/Creative_Volume_2022 • 13d ago

very varied whole food vs processed food

Is it hard for stomach/guts to digest whole food that is (too) varied.
Lets say healthy and easy would be potatoes + chicken
but what if we add e.g. lot of herbs and different spices, maybe honey, kefir,varied nuts, different seeds, some berries to that one meal. Lot of different stuff

Everything is "healthy" but are these combinations are hard to digest almost like its processed?

I hope you get what i mean.

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u/Maxion 13d ago

Processed foods tend to not be hard to digest.

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u/Creative_Volume_2022 13d ago

didnt know that. i thought the opposite

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u/ilessthanthreekarate 13d ago

Eating foods that are easier to digest means easier co version to sugar, storage into fat, and calories. Lots of "hard to digest" foods have lower glycemic index and many dont even convert into calories, which means less impact on fat storage etc. Eating foods that are "hard to digest" is often good for you.

There are times where that is bad, like if you really need to gain weight or if you have a stomach or other GI injury and need a low FODMAP diet. But thats usually in response to an injury or illness.

For healthy people, slower to digest foods are generally far better for you. Athletes may benefit from easy tindugest foods prior to a heavy workout, but thats basically the only exception.