Carbohydrates

Good Carbs vs. Bad Carbs

Carbs are the body’s fuel source that provides energy, and helps keep everything going. It’s important to choose healthy carbs to provide just enough energy for the body to grow and maintain homeostasis, without storing excess energy as fat.

There are two main types of carbohydrates: simple carbohydrates (bad carbs) and complex carbohydrates (good carbs).

Simple Carbohydrates

Simple carbohydrates include sugars found naturally in foods such as fruits, vegetables milk, and milk products. Simple carbohydrates also include sugars added during food processing and refining (e.g. white flour). What’s the difference? Processed foods and those with added sugars contain fewer nutrients, and elevate blood glucose. Scrutinize food labels for the following terms and omit those with sugar as much as possible.

Complex Carbohydrates

Starch and dietary fiber are the two types of complex carbohydrates. Starchy carbohydrates must be broken down through digestion before your body can use it as a glucose source. Foods that contain starch and dietary fiber are breads, grains, and cereals. Starch is also in certain vegetables, such as potatoes, beans, peas, and corn.

Whole grains in moderation can be a good source of fiber and nutrients. Whole grains refer to grains that have all of the parts of the grain seed. If the whole grain has been cracked, crushed, or otherwise processed, then some of the dietary fiber and other important nutrients are removed.

Healthy Carbohydrate Choices

Remember a healthy diet includes complex carbohydrates as an energy source along with healthy fats and proteins. Carbohydrates play a key role in keeping energy levels high and protecting muscle mass from being used as energy after strenuous exercise. In the next section you will learn about the GI index as a tool for choosing healthy carbohydrate options.

Glycemic Index

We now present you with the Glycemic Index (GI) to guide you in choosing healthier carbohydrate choices. Foods will only appear in the GI Index if they contain carbohydrates. You will not find foods like meat, eggs, or cheese on GI lists. However, there may be some processed foods like sausages or chicken nuggets on the list because they contain flour.

 Individuals looking to maintain energetic, athletic body stature can avail themselves of the GI to reduce body fat and have plenty of get up and go throughout the day, as well as during and after exercise periods. For many of us who wish to lose weight, decrease body fat, retain lean muscle, and in general, enhance health, we can make use of the GI when making carbohydrate choices. The GI can assist with the path towards long term weight management.

Now we compare the difference between the Glycemic Index (GI) and the Glycemic Load (GL). The GI describes the quality or type of carbohydrate and its potential to raise blood glucose.  In short, the GI basically tells you how fast a food turns into simple sugar in the blood. It does not tell you how much carbohydrate is in the serving. That is where the GL comes in.  Both factors should be considered to understand the impact of food on blood glucose.  The GL is determined by multiplying the GI by the amount of carbohydrate divided by 100.  Example:

1 tsp of jam = 51 (GI)    51 x 5 gm of carb/100 = 2.5 We want to utilize low glycemic carbohydrates for three reasons. First, we want to minimize the availability of sugar, which will require the body to find other fuel, such as fat, for energy. Second, we do not want to over load the body with too much sugar at once, because it will cause the body to convert this excess carbohydrate to fat. Lastly, we want sugar and insulin levels to remain stable. Stable levels provide the necessary energy to protect proteins and lean muscle.