It was about a year ago that our life took a drastic change. No one saw it coming or perhaps didn’t believe it would happen. Our lives came to a grinding halt, and with it came silence. The sounds of cars passing, airplanes flying, and people socializing were brought to an abrupt stop, followed by quarantine. We were thrown into a quiet solitude which left us able to do nothing but think. Our thoughts perhaps led us to reflection. How did we get here? How could we have made our outcome different? Covid-19 left us in despair, but with it came reflection. We probably reflected on many things but most importantly and at the forefront of everyone’s mind was our personal health and longevity. The question loomed, what can we do to take better control of our health and ultimately our lives? Nutrition is always standing center stage of health and wellness. After all, food is a basic human need to allow us to live and function. Good nutrition can help ensure good health while poor nutrition can cause many health complications.
This brings me to the significance of what the month of March brings. Not only does March now mark the onset of Covid-19 in the year 2020, but it is also traditionally marked as Nutrition Awareness Month. How timely and appropriate. This is significant because we can use this time to reflect and educate ourselves on the many aspects of nutrition and how to improve. In honor of this, Lift4Today will touch on a sensitive topic - good carbs, bad carbs, low carbs, which carbs, no carbs. Now, I am not sure how or when it all began, but it seems that carbs have gotten an unfair, bad rap. Almost daily, I have people ask me if carbs are bad for them, or people have proudly told me they have successfully eliminated them from their diet. I strongly discourage this approach and wonder where these ideas are stemming from. Let us take a closer look and see what carbohydrates are, what they do, and maybe why we should not ignore them. Let’s start at the beginning. What are carbs?
Carbohydrates (carbs for short) are macromolecules made up of glucose. It is our number one energy source for our body and, in particular, our brain. In fact, our brain ONLY uses glucose as an energy source. (1) When we consume carbohydrates, our bodies break them down into glucose and will either use them for energy or store it later in our liver, in a form called glycogen. When our bodies are deprived of carbohydrates/glucose, they will use the stored glycogen and process it into glucose so that our bodies can continue to function. When we are sleeping, eating, breathing, exercising, or even just thinking, our bodies use carbohydrates to make that happen. Our bodies efficiently use glycogen, making it the preferred fuel source. If it does all that, it sounds like a superfood! Right? So far, so good.
So, if carbs are good for us, why do people avoid them? Why do fad diets (don’t even get me started on those!) often limit them? According to The Dietary Guidelines of Americans 2015-2020, approximately 45-65% of our total daily calorie intake should be from carbs. (2) That is a significant percentage of our overall daily calorie needs. That is why when fad diets banish carbs; people find immediate results. They are simply drastically reducing their overall calories. But is this sustainable? We just discussed that our bodies NEED the energy (aka calories) to function. Deprivation of energy is sabotaging our performance both physically and mentally. The problem arises when we consume more than our fair share. From a young age, we are often told that too much of a good thing is not good. This is quite true. Carbs are good for us, and we need them, but too many starchy, sugary and ultra-processed carbs can cause problems. This problem isn’t exclusive to carbs. Too much of any nutrient is not good The result of too much of a good thing is that our bodies take in more calories than we need. We create a calorie imbalance.
In addition to the myth that carbs are bad for you, there is a misconception that carbs are exclusively starchy breads, potatoes, and desserts. This is not true. Glucose, which carbohydrates are made up of, can be found in almost every naturally occurring and processed food. Fruits, vegetables, beans, legumes, and grains are carbs, just to name a few. So that big salad you had where you strategically omitted the croutons was full of carbs. It’s pretty challenging to avoid carbs altogether. When a client tells me they have successfully excluded carbs from their diet, I immediately follow up by asking them which foods they are eating because of this. They are shocked to find out that the foods they considered carb-free are packed with carbs, ready to help them function well. Carbs come in many shapes and forms. Carbs offer us much more than just fuel for our bodies. They provide the necessary vitamins and minerals that our bodies need to function well. Additionally, it provides us with fiber to maintain a healthy gut and keep us satiated between meals. This helps prevent that habit of excessive snacking, which is often mindless, nutrient-poor, and high in calories.
I want to leave you with some food for thought (no pun intended). Consider making those carbs part of your meal plan. Whole grain bread, both white and sweet potatoes, vegetables, fruits, and grains need to be part of our regular meals. A well-balanced meal provides us with the necessary nutrients, vitamins, and minerals that our body needs. If we avoid them, we are doing a big disservice to ourselves. Omitting them will leave us feeling hungry, tired, and feeling ‘foggy.’ Eat your carbs!
Each Organ Has a Unique Metabolic Profile - Biochemistry - NCBI Bookshelf, n.d.
Dietary Guidelines for Americans | USDA-FNS. (n.d.). Retrieved March 23, 2021, from https://www.fns.usda.gov/cnpp/dietary-guidelines-americans
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