GLOSSARY

Amylose is the mainly linear component of starch, largely made of alpha-linked glucose units. Its proportion differs between starch sources and may affect digestion, but does not independently determine a food's final response.

Starch contains mainly linear amylose and branched amylopectin. Its predominant chain linkages are alpha bonds, unlike cellulose's beta linkages. Their proportions, starch-granule organisation and placement within food tissue interact with preparation to influence enzyme access. A composition label alone cannot describe all of these structural features.

Carbohydrate structure involves more than the number of sugar units: bond type and molecular arrangement also matter. Starch and cellulose both contain glucose, yet human enzymes do not break them down in the same way. Polymer status or chain length alone therefore does not determine digestion rate or nutritional value.

Cooking starch with water can increase enzyme access through gelatinisation. Milling and disruption of grain structure may also alter digestion rate. Being 'complex' therefore does not guarantee slow availability, and there is no single fixed glucose response for every starchy food regardless of preparation and structure.