Food Synergy
What is Food synergy?
Food synergy means pairing certain food together to enhance their beneficial effects such as:
Increase bioavailability
Increase antioxidant protection
Improve digestion and gut health
Increase satiety
Form complete protein
Vitamin C + non-haem iron
Vitamin C helps breakdown non-haem iron (iron from plants) so it’s easier to absorb.
Vitamin C - Berries, citrus fruit, red bell pepper, broccoli, brussels sprouts, tomato…
Iron - Lentils, dark chocolate/ cocoa powder, soy, chickpeas, dark leafy greens , sesame…
Healthy fat + fat-soluble vitamins
Fat-soluble vitamins dissolve in fat and are absorbed along with fat.
Healthy unsaturated fat - nuts, seeds, olive oil, avocado…
Fat-soluble vitamins (A,D,E,K) - carrot, kale, spinach, cabbage, pumpkin, mushroom…
Turmeric + black pepper
Piperine in black pepper makes curcumin in turmeric more bioavailable, which means the anti-inflammatory and antioxidant effects are made more powerful.
Even better if include some fat because curcumin is fat-soluble
Legumes + wholegrain
Also known as ‘protein complementation’, meaning you can get all 9 essential amino acids when consume legumes (low in methionine) and wholegrain (low in lysine) together.
E.g. Brown rice + lentil curry; peanut butter + multigrain bread; Falafel + wholemeal pita
Probiotics + prebiotics
Probiotics refers to the ‘good microbes’ in your gut that produce beneficial compound support your health, whereas prebiotics refer to the ‘food’ (non-digestible carbohydrates) the microbes need to eat in order to produce those compounds.
When probiotics and prebiotics are eaten together, the good microbes are more likely to survive through upper gastrointestinal tract and reach large intestine (where most good microbes live), and ensure the microbes have food to eat so that they can grown in numbers.
Probiotics - Fermented food like kimchi (non-pasteurised!), miso, yogurt, kefir, natto, sauerkraut…
Prebiotics - Garlic, onion, banana, oat, beans, apple, avocado, asparagus…
Vitamin D + calcium
Vitamin D helps body absorb and use calcium better.
Vitamin D - Mushrooms (you can put your mushrooms under the sunshine to let them absorb more vitamin D!), fortified plant milk, oily fish, egg, sunshine (main source!)…
Calcium - Tofu, kale, sesame, chia seeds, pak choi, dairy…
Tomato + fat + heat
Lycopene (antioxidant) in tomato is fat-soluble and heat makes lycopene easier to be absorbed and used by the body.
Other tips:
Chop your cruciferous vegetables (e.g. broccoli, cabbage…) and let them sit for about 10 min before cooking / + mustard
Allow beneficial compounds to form before heat slows down the reactions
Mustard contain enzymes that help formation of beneficial compounds
Meat + acidic marinate
Acidic substances such as wine and vinegar can reduce formation of AGEs - compounds formed by cooking over high heat which can cause inflammation and oxidative stress.
Reference:
Ancient Nutrition (2026) Food Synergy. Available at: https://ancientnutrition.com/blogs/all/food-synergy?srsltid=AfmBOoolI0zCKwDk5FLuJcpALKo2-r2AFRHWmwVPP0len_tnoPF5x0Li (Accessed: 5 June 2026)
Anticancer Lifestyle Organization (2021) Food Pairing: Combining Foods to Improve Your Health. Available at: https://anticancerlifestyle.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/11/Food-Pairing_-Combining-Foods-to-Improve-Your-Health.pdf (Accessed: 5 June 2026)
E-bookshelf (n.d.) The Complete Guide to Nutrition in Primary Care. Available at: https://download.e-bookshelf.de/download/0000/5778/18/L-G-0000577818-0002359477.pdf (Accessed: 5 June 2026)
U.S. Department of Education (n.d.) Nutrient Information Chart. Available at: https://www.uen.org/cte/facs_cabinet/downloads/FoodNutritionI/S5Web_NutrientInformationChart.pdf (Accessed: 5 June 2026)
