Weight Management Program With Carbohydrates
Whether you're trying to lose weight or just want to eat
healthier, you may be confused by the news you're hearing
about carbohydrates. With so much attention focused on protein
diets, there's been a consumer backlash against carbohydrates.
As a result, many people misunderstand the role in healthy
weight management programs that carbohydrates play.
Carbohydrates aren't all good or all bad. Some kinds promote
health while others, when eaten often and in large quantities,
may increase the risk for diabetes and coronary heart disease.
What are carbohydrates?
Carbohydrates come from a wide array of foods - bread, fruit,
vegetables, rice, beans, milk, popcorn, potatoes, cookies,
spaghetti, corn, and cherry pie. They also come in a variety
of forms. The most common and abundant ones are sugars, fibers,
and starches. The basic building blocks of all carbohydrates
are sugar molecules.
The digestive system handles all carbohydrates in much the
same way - it breaks them down (or tries to break them down)
into single sugar molecules, since only these are small enough
to absorb into the bloodstream. It also converts most digestible
carbohydrates into glucose (also known as blood sugar), because
cells are designed to use this as a universal energy source.
This is why carbohydrates can make us feel energetic. Carbohydrates
fuel our body. Your body stores glucose reserves in the muscles
in the form of glycogen ready to be used when we exert ourselves.
Carbohydrates are the highest octane - the most desirable
fuel source for your body's energy requirements. If you don't
have an adequate source of carbohydrate your body may scavenge
from dietary protein and fat to supply glucose. The problem
is when you've depleted your stores of glycogen (stored glucose
in muscle and lean tissue) your body turns to burning muscles
or organs (lean muscle tissue) and dietary protein or fat
to provide blood glucose to supply energy needs. When this
happens, your basal metabolic rate drops because you have
less lean muscle tissue burning calories and your body thinks
its starving and cuts back on energy requirements.
So in your weight management program you should continue
to eat carbohydrates discriminately selecting those which
have the greatest health benefits.
The carbohydrates you consume should come from carbohydrate-rich
foods that are close to the form that occurs in nature. The
closer the carbohydrate food is as Mother Nature intended,
the greater the density of other vital nutrients. If you
are looking for health-enhancing sources of carbohydrates
you should choose from:
Fruit: rich in fiber, vitamin A, vitamin C, folate, potassium
and often vitamin E.
Vegetables: fiber, protein, vitamin A, vitamin C, often
vitamin E, potassium and a wider variety of minerals than
fruit.
Whole grains and grain foods: rich in fiber, protein, and
some B vitamins and are very rich in minerals.
Legumes: an excellent source of protein, fiber folate, potassium,
iron and several minerals.
Dairy foods: protein, vitamin D, calcium, phosphorus, potassium,
riboflavin, and vitamin B12.
You can also source carbohydrates from processed foods such
as soda pop or soft drinks, snacks such as cookies and chips,
and alcohol. These generally are considered to be a poor
food choice and should be consumed rarely. The carbohydrate
source (sugar and flour) in these food choices has been highly
refined processed. A diet rich in refined carbohydrates and
processed foods has been associated with heart disease and
onset of type 2 diabetes.
Why are these sources of carbohydrates to be avoided?
- They are calorie dense and contribute a large number
of calories in a small amount of food. For example a 7oz
bag of potato chips or corn chips have approximately 1000
calories. Most women on a weight management program will
be aiming for 1200 daily calorific intake. So, this is
what we mean by calorie dense and nutritionally scarce.
- They offer little appetite-holding
power because they have no fiber or
protein. As a result you end up searching
for food again soon after your first
serve.
- They
contribute nothing to your
nutritional profile except
calories. This means you
have fewer calories left
for foods that your body
requires for good health.
Whenever possible, replace highly processed grains, cereals,
and sugars with minimally processed whole-grain products
and ensure you have at least five serves of fruit and vegetables
daily.
Rather than cut out carbs completely for a very short-term
gain (usually weight loss), there are greater long-term health
benefits in learning how to distinguish good carbs over bad
carbs and incorporating healthy carbohydrates into your weight
loss program.
Authors
Details: Weight Management Program With Carbohydrates
Kim
Beardsmore Web
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