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Carbohydrate digestion transforms complex polysaccharides and disaccharides into absorbable monosaccharides—glucose, fructose, and galactose. This process begins in the mouth with salivary amylase breaking down starch into smaller chains and halts in the acidic stomach environment. In the small intestine, pancreatic amylase further hydrolyzes starch into oligosaccharides and disaccharides, while brush-border enzymes (maltase, sucrase, lactase, isomaltase) complete digestion into monosaccharides. Glucose and galactose enter enterocytes via secondary active transport (SGLT1), fructose via facilitated diffusion (GLUT5), and all three exit to the bloodstream through GLUT2 before delivery to the liver for metabolism or storage
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The Incredible Carbohydrate Adventure: From Carbohydrates, commonly referred to as "carbs," are one of the primary forms of food They exist in many different forms, ranging from the sugar found in your fruit to the starch
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These are the only ones your body can take up
These require a single "snip" from an enzyme
chains of numerous single sugars attached
potatoes, rice, wheat), Glycogen (the way animals, including us, store glucose), These need to be broken down extensively by enzymes. Starch, for example, has two kinds
secrete saliva, which has a vital enzyme called salivary amylase. How it works: Salivary amylase begins breaking up long chains of starch (polysaccharides) into short chains such as
an extended period of time will cause it to
like ball known as a bolus) goes down your
stomach is highly acidic because of
This acid is perfect for breaking down proteins, but it prevents salivary amylase from Therefore, carbohydrate digestion effectively
This is where most of the carb digestion and When the partially digested food (now referred to as chyme) reaches the small intestine, two The pancreas secretes a potent enzyme called pancreatic amylase into the small
It hydrolyzes any remaining starch and dextrins into shorter oligosaccharides (short
Special one! Some individuals lack sufficient lactase. When they drink milk, the lactose is not It passes to the large intestine, where bacteria ferment it, producing gas, bloating, This is a textbook example of what occurs Now we have our basic sugars (glucose, fructose, galactose), which are small enough to be absorbed from the small intestine into These are absorbed into the cells of the intestine through secondary active transport
Imagine it as a revolving door that requires both a sodium ion and a glucose/galactose molecule to rotate and admit them into the It takes advantage of the energy of a sodium gradient (low sodium within the cell, high without) that is kept up by another pump (the This is "active" because it depends on the Fructose is taken in through facilitated diffusion with another transporter protein It is similar to a special door just for fructose. It doesn't require energy directly, but it When they are inside the intestinal cell, glucose, galactose, and fructose all leave to
Fiber also provides bulk to stool, promoting From the starchy potato to the glucose fueling your brain, carbohydrates are subject to a sophisticated and effective process of breakdown and uptake, whereby your body is
