Konjac, whose name is Konjak (Jǔ Ruo), has been cultivated in China for many years.
Konjac powder is extracted from the root of this konjac. Its main ingredient is a polymerized carbohydrate called glucomannan.
For example, the starch in steamed bread and rice noodles is the same as glucomannan, which belongs to polymeric carbohydrates. However, if starch is the main source of heat, why doesn’t glucomannan provide any?
The secret is that, unlike starch, glucomannan cannot be digested by the body, so it cannot be absorbed and metabolized to provide heat. These substances in plants that cannot be digested and absorbed by the human body are collectively called cellulose.
Here’s a small example to explain why starch can be digested but cellulose can’t. Let’s imagine the structure of starch and cellulose as a group of children holding hands. The digestive process of the body is to let the hands loose between the children, and then only a single child can be absorbed by the body.
The problem is, the way that shake hands handshandle between children is different, and our body can untie some specific shake hands way only. Starch handles can be unwound, but cellulose does not, so it cannot be successfully broken down and absorbed by the body.
Therefore, the chemical properties of cellulose make konjac powder zero calorie effect.
So the glucomannan in konjac powder is zero calories because it cannot be digested and absorbed by the human body. Zero calories Konjac noodles can ensure zero calories, will not cause changes in blood sugar, will not cause obesity.