Are there different types of carbs and sugars?

neil4ad

I'm wondering if someone knowledgeable might be able to answer: are the carbs in beans the same as the carbs in (for example) wheat bread? Also, are the sugars in (for example) an apple the same as the sugars in refined, processed sugar? I tend to hit the limits, but mainly due to eating unprocessed carbs and sugars (beans, lentils, fruits)...I've heard the argument that sugar is sugar no matter what you put into your system, but is this true for both sugars and carbs?

jo_nz

Well, there are simple carbs and complex carbs - as I understand it, the complex carbs are basically longer molecules so take your body a bit longer to break down and release the energy.

Overall they might give you the same calories, but over a different time period. e.g. I used to suffer from low blood sugar and would carry a pack of sweets in my bag so I could get a fast burst (and during that burst I would need to find something else to eat). Normally I will try and eat more complex carbs so I will feel satisfied longer.

lemurcat12

Carbs as defined in the US are starch (complex carbs), sugars (simple carbs), and fiber. In some other countries, fiber is not counted as a carb.

There are also different types of sugar: sucrose is a combination of fructose and glucose, milk has (among others) lactose, HFCS is a different mix of fructose and glucose (55% fructose rather than 50%), and fruit have a mix of sucrose, fructose, and glucose, as well as some others, in different amounts depending on the fruit.

Starches and sugars have 4 calories per gram. Fiber has less because it mostly goes through the body (depends on the type of fiber, however).

As for whether it matters, depends why you ask. Fiber will slow down digestion (so will protein and fat, though). Starch in theory digests less quickly than sugar, but a refined (low fiber) starch may digest much more quickly (think white bread) than sugar combined with fiber (think berries or oatmeal with some sugar in it). Also, since we don't eat foods in isolation (and many foods are a mix of macros), you would want to take that into consideration.

The recommendations by the WHO, etc. are about ADDED or FREE sugar (the WHO refers to "free" sugar which includes not just added, but also things like juice, honey, syrup) and keeping them to 5-10% of calories. If you read the reasoning, this is not about sugar being bad, but because lots of free sugar in the diet tends to come with extra calories and not that many nutrients (often many of the calories are actually from fat, not sugar, as with something like a cookie). So no, the type of sugar isn't the issue, but the food it comes with can be, again depending on the purpose.

If you want to avoid hunger, it matters what you eat (fiber helps); if you are fueling before or during a race, it matters what you eat (here, as noted above, simple sugars are good).

Do the "carbs" in beans differ from those in whole wheat bread? Not really, both are starches in large part, but the beans do come with more fiber (beans are quite high fiber), so may be more filling. Unrelated to the carbs, the bread with have a little protein, but the beans more, and they will have different nutrients. You also may eat them with different foods, and it's the whole meal or day that matters (or overall week), not one specific food. Focusing on "carbs" rather than the overall content of the foods you choose seems to me not the right focus for most, but whatever floats your boat, of course.

The only problem with going over your carb limit (assuming you aren't low carbing) is if you are too low on protein or essential fatty acids (you can get in your necessary fats quite easily if you prefer to eat more carbs, assuming you are making good choices as to the source of the fat, however). Beyond that, there's a huge range of reasonable macro breakdowns, and I happen to think that eating an overall balanced and nutrient-dense diet is what matters.