Thursday, July 10, 2014

Good vs Bad Carbs???

Is one carbohydrate truly better than another, apparently so. With multiple messages circulating about sugar, complex carbohydrates, fiber, low carb diets, and how sugar and bad carbs are making us fat and, it is hard to know the real truth behind carbohydrates. 

Carbohydrates:

To even begin this discussion you must first have a good understanding of what carbohydrates actually are. Many people tell me, "I have been cutting my carbs to lose weight" but in fact they are cutting out breads, rice and pasta and eating plenty of milk, vegetables and fruit, unaware that those items also contain carbohydrates.
So, what does the carbohydrate group include? Below is a rough breakdown of the carbohydrate group:
  • Starch such as bread, pasta, rice, cereal grains and starchy vegetables such as potatoes (white and sweet), beans and peas
  • Fruit and fruit juices
  • Non-starchy vegetables and vegetable juices such as spinach, carrots, tomatoes, onions, and eggplant
  • Milk and milk-type products such as milk, yogurt, pudding, soy milk and rice milk
  • Sweets and other carbohydrates including a variety of items with added sugars including baked goods, regular soft drinks, syrups, jellies, and even some condiments such as barbecue sauce, salad dressings and ketchup
With that being said, what is recommended by National Academies Institute of Medicine is that adults, to prevent chronic disease, should consume 45% to 65% of their calories from carbohydrates, 20% to 35% from fat, and 10% to 35% from protein.
With approximately half of your diet containing, carbohydrates it is no wonder that carbohydrates are a hot topic at the forefront of discussions concerning weight control, development of diabetes, heart disease and even cancer.
As I began to check the carb grams in food I realized that the foods I eat on a regular basis, are packed with carbs, banana 27g, One cup of milk 12g, one bagel 48g of carbohydrates.
Good carbs (whatever that means), still contain carbs, but are much less in the sugar content, therefore they are "good"for you.
Conclusion; we need to watch our sugar intake and choose "good" carbs over "bad", (no wonder i'm not losing any weight!!!) 

Picture by, PositiveMed.com

No comments:

Post a Comment