Is carb totally harmful for your body?
Carbohydrates have long been the subject of debate among researchers, particularly with regard to what they are and whether they are healthful. It’s become popular to think of foods as either good or bad, something to eat or something to avoid. Carbohydrates, which had their moment as a good food back when fat was the bad guy, are now being blamed in part for the epidemic of obesity, diabetes and heart disease. And a slew of diet books propose that you will feel better and be healthier if you never eat bread, pasta or sugar again. But are carbs really so bad? Science makes the answer pretty clear: no. Carbohydrates, fat, and protein make up the three macronutrient groups that are essential components of any diet. There are, however, different types of carbohydrates and it is essential to know the difference between them in order to understand which ones to eat and which ones it is best to avoid.
Carbohydrates are one of the body’s primary sources of energy and represent an essential part of any healthful diet. The different types of carbohydrates vary in terms of the impact they have on a person’s health. There are three broad groups of carbohydrates:
- Monosaccharides: This is the most basic form of carbohydrate. Examples of monosaccharides include glucose and fructose.
- Disaccharides: These are two monosaccharide molecules bonded together. Examples include lactose and sucrose.
- Polysaccharides: This refers to chains of more than two monosaccharide molecules bonded together. Examples include fiber and starch.
The biggest beef against carbs is that it’s easy to eat too much of them, which is a problem because it can lead to weight gain and because they can crowd out more nutritious foods. There’s also speculation that the way our bodies digest sugar and certain processed grains such as those found in white bread and white rice makes us hungry again soon after eating. Carbohydrates run the gamut from very simple molecules that your body breaks down easily to very complex molecules that your body breaks down more slowly, or not at all. Since carbohydrates that you eat are mainly converted to glucose, the sugar that every cell of your body can use for energy, the faster the carbohydrate is digested, the quicker it’s turned into blood sugar. Because the carbohydrates in refined grains — bread, white rice, pasta — come packaged with some fiber, some protein and even a few other nutrients, their calories aren’t quite as empty, and the speed with which they’re digested varies. When carbohydrates in a food get converted quickly, that causes a spike in insulin, which your pancreas releases to prompt cells to absorb the glucose. The hormones that your body releases in response can make you feel hungry. The higher the GI the higher will be the blood sugar level. If you eat high-GI foods often, the repeated stressing of your insulin-producing machinery may have other effects, such as increasing your risk for diabetes.
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