Question

'' dietary fiber is indigestible in the human digestive tract", comment on the statement?

Answer 1

Dietary fibre is similar to a piece of metal or plastic when it comes to being digested - it just passes thru the digestive tract.

Dietary fibre is made of cellulose and provides “inert mass” to the food while it is moving down the digestive tract. However, the enzymes and acid present in our digestive system do not impact the breakdown of complex cellulosic fibre. Think of it as a cotton ball that traverses through your digestive tract, sweeping out and removing any detritus that remains stuck to the walls or inaccessible places in your intestines.

So, dietary fibre plays a key role in keeping you healthy, but it does not get broken down by the digestive juices and enzymes.

Farm animals (herbivores in general) have a much more elaborate and complicated digestive process, and they maintain a more diverse microbiome (bacteria in the digestive tract) as compared to humans. They have bacteria in their gut that are capable of feeding on cellulose and breaking it down into smaller units that are more easily digested. Therefore, herbivores and omnivores have the capability to digest complex cellulose substrates (e.g. grass and leaves) whereas humans do not.

Answer 2

complex carbohydrates,such as long chained sugars also called starch,oliggosachrides or polysachrides are sources of soluble fermrntable fiber.they have aquired resistance to digeztion andabsorbtion in human intestine.