Carbohydrates: Matter of Choice

Introduction:

Keto diet and Atkins diet are low carbohydrates plans that are rich in protein and fat. But do keeping carbohydrates away is really healthy? As your diet plan is lacking of main nutrients that are vital to your body?

Carbohydrates cover a wide variety of foods

Carbohydrates are defined nowadays as unhealthy food group that cause weight gain. This bad reputation has decreased carbohydrate consumption while neglecting that no all carbohydrate food are equal.

Carbohydrates cover a broad spectrum of foods starting with sugary snacks and meals including pizza or white pasta with creamy sauces at one end, then foods such as oats, brown rice and pulses at the other.

Food lacking of fiber and high in sugar will lead to hunger as they lead to rapid spike in blood sugar while food rich in fiber like whole grains, oats and brown rice have low glycaemic index and eventually they keep you feel more satisfied for longer period. So as we see not all carbohydrates are equal. You just need to choose the right food.

Studies show fiber from carbs lowers disease risk

Fiber is one of the key nutrients found in wholegrains such as brown rice, bread and pasta. It is a type of not-digested carbohydrates that have many health benefits. Studies have been shown that diet rich in fiber-whole grains reduce risk of developing heart disease, stroke, type 2 diabetes and colorectal cancer in people who ate the highest amounts of fiber in their diet (25g-30g per day). In addition fiber has low glycaemic index and lower body weight, systolic blood pressure and cholesterol.

Fiber is good for digestion and gut bacteria

Fiber is essential for a healthy digestive system and it also keeps bacterial health environment. Soluble fibres: beta glucans are found in carbohydrate foods such as oats and barley and have been shown to help reduce cholesterol on the blood and may help to promote bacterial growth in the gut. In addition studies have been shown that consumption of whole grains carbs will boost gut bacteria and enhance immune system.

Carbohydrate foods like potatoes and white pasta keep gut bacteria healthy as they produce resistant starches after cooking process and act s prebiotic so they should not be demonized.

What micronutrients can you find in carbohydrate food?

In addition, carbohydrates provide a source of B vitamins (help to maintain healthy skin, eyes, nervous system and release energy from food), selenium (antioxidant that helps to protect cells from damage and supports the immune system), zinc (helps make new cells and promotes wound healing) and magnesium (helps to release energy from food and maintain a healthy nervous system).

You can increase your carbohydrate intake cereals, potatoes, wholegrains and bread, but you can find them in fruits, vegetables, pulses and beans, which all offer an abundance of other health-giving nutrients.

Do you have to eat brown carbohydrate foods to be healthy?

Not necessarily as some white carbohydrate foods are either fortified or shown to have a low GI compared to other similar foods. Another thing to remember is that you can team quickly digested foods such as white bread and pasta with a source of protein and fat, which will slow down the release of sugar into the bloodstream.

Brown bread is the best option, as it is rich in fiber and fortified with vitamins and minerals such as calcium, iron and B vitamins. If you don’t like brown rice you can switch to basmati that is a good option as it has a low GI and of course you can also mix white and brown together for different tastes and textures whilst still getting a useful source of fiber.

White potatoes are a valuable source of vitamins C, B and potassium. They showed how a single jacket potato (about 300g) contains nearly half of the RDA for vitamin C and vitamin B6. By leaving the skins on also helps to retain their fiber content.

Focus on real food and not nutrients

Focus on real food and choosing the right food is really important and this is really true when it comes to carbohydrates.

So what you need to do is to choose the right food, so focus on whole grains and reducing sugary food is really important while you are still eating carbohydrates food but switching from one bad choice to healthier one.

Same will happen when you choose between fat healthiest choices.

Nutrients come with true food choices and don’t forget that small changes make big ones.

Sources:

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-6633347/Are-finally-falling-love-carbohydrates.html

https://www.heart.org/en/healthy-living/healthy-eating/eat-smart/nutrition-basics/carbohydrates