Please explain the nature of carbohydrates and can they be left out of our diets?

[StoryOfaGirl]

Can someone please explain to me about carbohydrates? Do they store fat and is it best to count them out of your diet? thanks!

[VASH THE STAMPEDE]

Her's a link,hope it helps

 

 

http://encarta.msn.com/encnet/refpages/refarticle.aspx?refid=761577934

[Tony T]

"Do they store fat and is it best to count them out of your diet?"

 

Your question indicates you are like most people and need to know a lot more about diet and nutrition before you set out on a weight loss program, if that is your goal. I need to know a whole lot more myself, frankly.

 

Carbohydrates, both simple...such as food containing simple sugars such as cookies, candy, etc., and complex...such as those containing starches (potatoes, rices, etc.,) which the body ultimately breaks down into sugars, are a necessary part of the diet and give us energy. However, if you are overwieght or live a sedentary life you should certainly minimize your intake of these.

 

Carbohydrates are broken down into sugars and, if not burned by the body's activity, are then stored in various forms of fatty tissue where the body holds them for future use. If you don't do sufficient activity to burn off or consume the energy stored in the fatty tissue it won't go anyplace. If you continue to be sedentary and don't cut down on your intake of carbs they will continue to be broken down and ultimately stored as fat whereupon your body will get bigger and bigger.

 

Ryan, our resident sex symbol and fitness expert, will be along later to tell you more about carbohydrates. They are a necessary component of a rounded diet but must be eaten according to individual needs.

[StoryOfaGirl]

well see I've lost pretty much 13-15 kilos (that's around 30 lbs I'm guessing..) just by cutting out fast foods and sodas i.e. coca cola. but instead now i pretty much live off of bread. i have it for breakfast, lunch and dinner! i'm guessing this won't help my weight loss huh?

[EnigmaXOXO]

Never been much on bread, pasta & sweets myself, but its the MASHED POTATOES I can't do without!

 

Another problem with this low-carb stuff, is that my favorite veggies (carrots & corn) are high on the carb list. And I always thought fresh fruit was healthy, but apparently that's a no-no too.

 

For me, it's better to just cut back on the portions and eat a balanced diet. But if I have a Mashed Potato relapse, I'll just put in an extra 30 minutes on the cardio.

 

Hope you're also supplementing your diet with protein shakes & vitamins!!

[StoryOfaGirl]

eh, I've never even thought about having a "protein shake"

[Ryan]

Ryan, our resident sex symbol and fitness expert

 

HEY! I thought the sex symbol thing had died DOWN.

 

Tony gave a pretty sound overview. I'll try to add to it without being too redundant.

 

Carbohydrates are absolutely essential part of our diet and where the majority of people will derive calories for energy. The simplest of simple carbohydrates (glucose) is exactly what blood sugar IS. To suggest that these compounds are unnatural or unhealthy is just silly.

 

Some more terminology that you may hear whipped around is glycemic load and glycemic index. These terms, while scientifically valid for analysis, have been twisted to further villify carbohydrates. Glycemic Load (GL) refers to how much "sugar" is dumped into the blood stream from a given portion of a given food. Glycemic Index (GI) refers to how fast "sugar" is dumped into the blood for a given food. These numbers have been used to supposedly prove that certain carbohydrates MAKE you fat because they go into the blood stream quicker.

 

The kicker is that they don't consider the overall calories involved. You can't avoid the simple thermodynamics of it: you MUST consume more calories than you burn in order to increase bodyfat. Those calories can be carbohydrates, fat, or protein. It doesn't really matter. 5000 calories a day of flank steak will increase your bodyfat; 1000 calories of table sugar will make you lose bodyfat.

 

The best diet is one that consists of fairly unprocessed foods from a variety of sources. This may work out to 60% carbohydrates, 20% protein, and 20% fat. It may work out to equal amounts of carbohydrates, protein, and fat. Neither is inherently healthier than the other.

[hoopsy32]

All I know about carbohydrates is that I try to stay away from them, but not completely because I know of some girls who landed themselves in the hospital for cutting carbs completely out of their diet...

 

Just a tid-bit I thought I'd throw in

[Holly]

I have to agree with Tony and Ryan. I am a soon-to-be-registered dietitian with five years of nutritional science under my belt, so I have a little clout!

 

I would add that low-carb (often high-protein and high-fat) diets tend to negatively harp on the action of insulin within the cells after a meal containing carbohydrate is consumed. The popular "Zone" diet, for example, claims that insulin stimulated by carbohydrates forcibly causes the storage of body fat.

 

This is untrue. Insulin is the hormone that allows for glucose to be taken up by the body’s cells for use. If there is not a current need, sure, the excess glucose will be stored in adipose tissue, just as excess energy (calories) in the form of amino acids (protein) and dietary fat (fatty acids) will be stored as fat. The amount of insulin secreted by the pancreas is directly proportional to the level of glucose available for uptake into the cells, so it is an excess of calories, not insulin itself, that results in an accumulation of body fat.

 

Why are carbohydrates significant to the human diet? The brain uses glucose as its primary energy source, which is supplied by several sources, and most significantly by dietary carbohydrate. Why make your body work harder than it needs to in order to function optimally? I'd say, eat your carbohydrates. Eat minimally-refined (whole-grain or bran-containing) carbohydrate foods for the benefits of fiber. Include foods supplying protein and fat (ideally monounsaturated--think nuts and fish) too. Don't cut any major nutrient out of your diet. Learn portion control, learn balance, learn moderation, and learn self-efficacy and self-control. Feel free to keep eating carbohydrates. Just don't eat the whole loaf of bread, box of snack crackers, sack of sugary candies, batch of cookies...you get the idea.