Interesting article on maltodextrin and dextrose...

Maltodextrin and Dextrose...

I was reading about malto and dex, and the importance of the 2 combined together. Can some1 confirm this pls. Some of you may have come across this article before...

"Why a combination of dextrose and maltodextrin? Both are high in Gl rating, and easily digested right? True, but there is more logic than Gl rating to stacking these two powerhouses. Read on for the answer.

Our goal post workout is to maintain a prompt digestion rate so nutrients can transport swiftly, and efficiently to our muscles. With that said, it has been shown that this process slows when the ingested fluid contains a high osmolarity concentration. Osmolarity again is dependent on the number of particles in a solution. That is, a100-milliliter solution with 20 glucose molecules will have a higher osmolarity then a100-millileter solution that only contains 10 molecules. The shorter chain length a carbohydrate has, the higher it raises the solution's osmolarity. Therefore, it is no surprise that a pure glucose solution (or dextrose, a monosaccharide) induces very high concentrations of solute

Fortunately these negative effects become greatly reduced when the drink contains a glucose polymer stacked with dextrose. But we still want a carbohydrate that is easily digested, and has a high Gl. Hence we use a combination of dextrose and maltodextrin. Osmolarity will be decreased, and glucose will still enter the blood stream at a proficient rate, thus maintaining its anabolic nature.

A second factor concerning osmolarity must now be examined. From a clinical standpoint it is vital to take into consideration the fact that plasma (the liquid portion of blood) has an Osmolarity of 300 mOsm. This means that if one were to inject a solution with a greater concentration of solute into their blood, it would cause water from inside their red blood cells to leave by Osmosis (water always travels down its concentration gradient) and move into the plasma, in turn shrinking the erythrocytes (red blood cells). This is because the cells are iso-osmotic to the plasma (both have the same concentration of solute).

A similar concept can be applied to your post workout meal. If a competitor were to consume a solution that was hypertonic or had a higher concentration of solute then 300 mOsm it could dehydrate them (showing why digestion is rightfully slowed in a high concentrated solution). The addition of maltodextrin once again solves this problem.

The next question is, why not just use maltodextrin, and eliminate dextrose since it is so proficient? Ah, once again it is not that simple. Shi. X et al. in an outstanding study tested the digestive effects of two substrates (any substance acted upon by an enzyme) as opposed to only one substrate in the small intestine. What they found was quite fascinating. The solution containing two substrates stimulated the activation of more transport mechanisms in the intestinal lumen, then did its singular counterpart. Therefore more carbohydrates were transported out of the small intestine (absorbed into the blood), which additionally aided a greater absorption rate of water into the blood stream (by osmosis). Thus, the higher activation rate of transport mechanisms, even with higher osmolarity facilitated faster energy uptake and hydration".

Going by the article above it looks as dex and malto is a great mix. So when using Insulin how much would you use of these 2 ingridients? Lets just say you were having 10IU, would you have 50g of dex and 50g of malto? You wouldnt really want to have a 100g of each, that would be a bit too much wouldnt it? And the last thing we want is extra carbs, as they will be strored. Most people dont even use malto when using slin. Usually they use dex instead. Shoould they use both.

Usually you do sometin like, 10g of creatine and l-glutamine, and 100g of dextrose when taking 10IU. Where can we fit the malto in and how much should we take? Reduce the intake of dex maybe and make up the rest with malto perhaps? I dont know any1 know?

I thought I might post this coz I am curious as no1 here has ever mentioned the use of malto and dex together when on Slin. Its always dex on its own.