A type of starch breakdown product that gives a red or reddish color when treated with iodine, formed during the partial digestion of starch.
From Greek erythro- (red) + Latin dextrin (a starch derivative that turns right). Dextrin itself comes from Latin dexter (right) because its molecules rotate polarized light to the right; erythro- was added to describe its characteristic red color with iodine.
Erythrodextrin is what starch becomes when you start breaking it down—it's like the middle child in a family where grandpa starch breaks into dad erythrodextrin and then baby glucose! Scientists use the iodine-color reaction (which turns red-brown) to track starch digestion in your gut.
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