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Proponents of food combining divide foods into four major groups: starches, flesh, nuts and dried fruits and fruits. Starches include breads, grains and root vegetables like potatoes. Flesh refers to all meats including fish, eggs and all dairy products. Lentils, peanuts and beans are not included in the above groups because they are both a starch and a protein, nature's own miscombined food.
Following the food combining approach, these four groups cannot be mixed together at meal times. In other words, fruit cannot be eaten with nuts, meat with potatoes, breads with meat or nuts and so on. Non-starchy vegetables, however, are neutral and can be eaten in combination with any of the above groups. - The principals of food combining are best explained through digestive chemistry. For digestion, starches need an alkaline digestive medium and proteins require an acid medium. Eating starches and proteins are problematic because acids and alkalis neutralize each other. Therefore, if a starch is eaten with a protein, digestion will be impaired, slowed or stopped. The undigested food will then ferment and decompose rather than digest, causing a wide range of digestive issues such as bloating, gas and constipation.
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Eat only one kind of protein at a meal and do not combine protein with starches, fats or fruits. Melons should always be eaten alone and do not combine other fruits with starches. Lastly, avoid desserts after meals.
Non-starchy vegetables that can be combined with all other foods include broccoli, brussle sprouts, cabbage, cauliflower, celery, chard, cucumber, eggplants, lettuces, okra, peppers, sprouts, sea vegetables and most leafy greens.
