The substance broken down by amylase in the mouth is starch , which is converted into simpler sugars such as maltose (a type of sugar).

Quick Scoop

In your mouth, salivary amylase starts the chemical digestion of carbohydrates by attacking starch in foods like bread, rice, and potatoes.

It breaks long starch chains into shorter sugar units, mainly maltose and other small glucose chains, which taste slightly sweet as you keep chewing.

So, to match your question exactly:

  • Substance broken down: Starch
  • Type of product formed: Simple sugars (especially maltose, made of two glucose units)

In many school exam questions, the expected answer is: “Amylase breaks down starch into maltose.”

TL;DR: Amylase in the mouth breaks down starch to form the sugar maltose.

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