Why do so many people hate carbs?

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  • kcrxgirl
    kcrxgirl Posts: 114 Member
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    This thread kind of went in 2 different directions: limiting carbs for weight loss & limiting carbs for medical conditions. I personally do not agree with low carb diets for the sake of weight loss.
    Your brain primarily relies on the energy from carbs (a very simplified statement from what I learned in Human Biochemistry) therefore your body needs plenty of them, though there is no minimum recommendation that I am aware of. I do limit some carbs though, like pasta and rice, because sometimes the number of calories I get from them do not balance with the amount of protein and fiber I get from them (yes, even brown rice and whole wheat pasta). I try to balance calories, macros and satiety. So for me a spaghetti dinner would be ~1/2 of the serving (according to the box) of noodles, ~2 oz of ground turkey and ~1/2 cup of a no-sugar-added spaghetti sauce. Then on the other half of my plate I have a salad. This is my attempt at balance while still being able to eat pasta, which I love.
    For diabetics, carbs do matter as they directly impact blood sugars. The American Diabetes Association recommends 45-60 gms of carbs per meal. However, this does vary on an individual basis according to other dietery factors, exercise, and other (medication) treatment for diabetes. The type of carbohydrate, in a sense, does matter. Dietary fiber is one of the main forms of carbohydrates. It is not digestable and does not get absorbed and therefore does not increase blood sugar. This is where that Glycemic Index comes in handy.

    For those who question credentials, I am a healthcare professional that has taken human biochemistry, as previously mentioned, and nutrition classes and does diabetes education from time to time. (Not saying that means I have all the answers, just saying that in hopes you feel my input is accurate). Regardless, best of luck to everyone in their attempts to be/get healthy.
  • FitnessBeverlyHills
    FitnessBeverlyHills Posts: 189
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    I don't think carbs are the enemy at all. I think there are many great carb options that are healthy, contain nutrients, proteins, and fiber. Choosing better carb options and limiting them to a serving is really the issue. If it says a serving of rice is 1/4 cup uncooked, then eat 1/4 cup..which is plenty. If you have a choice between processed carbs and unprocessed carbs, choose unprocessed. Not that some yummy italian bread is going to deter your goals, but there is a difference between having a slice or two and an entire loaf. Moderation is important.
  • Carnivor0us
    Carnivor0us Posts: 1,752 Member
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    Carbs rock. I used to eat them.

    Then I had to grow up and realize that I couldn't do that on a daily basis anymore, the blood sugar spikes were killong me.
  • lithezebra
    lithezebra Posts: 3,670 Member
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    Your brain primarily relies on the energy from carbs (a very simplified statement from what I learned in Human Biochemistry) therefore your body needs plenty of them, though there is no minimum recommendation that I am aware of.
    Gluconeogenesis is the pathway for generating glucose from fat and protein, so you can make glucose without eating carbohydrates. Also, the brain can't use fats directly, however the brain can use ketone bodies. It is possible to function on a very low carb diet, if you have to, and, historically, people in some cultures have thrived on very very low carbohydrate diets. (I'm not saying that everyone should go to that extreme).
    For diabetics, carbs do matter as they directly impact blood sugars. The American Diabetes Association recommends 45-60 gms of carbs per meal. However, this does vary on an individual basis according to other dietery factors, exercise, and other (medication) treatment for diabetes. The type of carbohydrate, in a sense, does matter. Dietary fiber is one of the main forms of carbohydrates. It is not digestable and does not get absorbed and therefore does not increase blood sugar. This is where that Glycemic Index comes in handy.

    The relatively small amount of fiber that is in grains doesn't seem to matter nearly as much, for the glycemic index, as how "whole" the grain is, literally. Wheat berries, i.e. whole kernels of wheat, have a much lower GI than whole wheat bread, which has about the same GI as white bread.
  • anniegail1961
    anniegail1961 Posts: 116
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    AMEN!!!
  • MsEndomorph
    MsEndomorph Posts: 604 Member
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    I don't think carbs are the enemy at all. I think there are many great carb options that are healthy, contain nutrients, proteins, and fiber. Choosing better carb options and limiting them to a serving is really the issue. If it says a serving of rice is 1/4 cup uncooked, then eat 1/4 cup..which is plenty. If you have a choice between processed carbs and unprocessed carbs, choose unprocessed. Not that some yummy italian bread is going to deter your goals, but there is a difference between having a slice or two and an entire loaf. Moderation is important.

    I agree - the problem is people love carbs way too much! And for good reason...they pack a nice big caloric punch. Very efficient. If you don't eat ALL the carbs.

    I did really well on a low carb diet back when South Beach and Atkins were all the rage. All it did really was reduce my caloric intake and my insulin release - both of which you can do without totally eliminating carbs. But it was easy. No portion control needed. No counting anything unless you upped your carb intake to a higher maintenance level. You're depriving yourself of something, but you get the reward of eating ALL the fat! I was busy and not into a lot of in depth meal planning, and it worked. For as long as I did it.

    I realized I didn't want to be low carb. I like carbs. I like fat. I'm from Texas! Deep fry it, cover it in cheese, and put it in a tortilla and I'll eat the hell out of it.
  • afreelandgti
    afreelandgti Posts: 73
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    My simple approach is to eat only complex carbs and eat just enough that I need for energy. A quarter a cup of brown rice won't do any harm. Find how much your body needs to get you through a day feeling energized and alert and don't overindulge. Those of us who strength train need carbs for muscle growth as well.

    Personally I have not heard anything about carbohydrates now being an unnecessary macro nutrient, so I'm gonna keep eating them
  • littlepinkhearts
    littlepinkhearts Posts: 1,055 Member
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    check out my diary for today and tell me if i hate carbs....
  • AlabasterVerve
    AlabasterVerve Posts: 3,171 Member
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    Personally I have not heard anything about carbohydrates now being an unnecessary macro nutrient, so I'm gonna keep eating them
    I think there's a role for carbs in the diet just like fat and protein. I just don't think it's been identified yet since I frequently hear we don't need carbohydrates at all -- which might be technically true but I think there's probably more to it than that. I thought this excerpt from an article on fat soluble vitamins from Weston A. Price was interesting:

    While dietary fat is clearly important, there may be a role for dietary carbohydrate as well. Once vitamins A and D stimulate the production of vitamin K-dependent proteins, vitamin K activates those proteins by adding carbon dioxide to them. Once added to a protein, carbon dioxide carries a negative charge and allows the protein to interact with calcium, which carries a positive charge. The greater the supply of carbon dioxide, the better vitamin K can do its job.25 Carbohydrates are rich in carbon and oxygen, and when we break them down for energy we release these elements in our breath as carbon dioxide. Because carbohydrates are richer in oxygen, burning them generates about 30 percent more carbon dioxide per calorie than burning fat, and low-carbohydrate diets have been shown to lower blood levels of carbon dioxide (Figure 3).26 Ideally, we should study this further by determining whether dietary carbohydrate affects the amount of activated vitamin K-dependent proteins in humans.

    http://www.westonaprice.org/fat-soluble-activators/nutritional-adjuncts-to-the-fat-soluble-vitamins?
  • Kristine7813
    Kristine7813 Posts: 19
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    I don't hate carbs at all but I'm selective about which foods I obtain them from.

    This! :)
  • willdob3
    willdob3 Posts: 640 Member
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    One might as easily as why do so many people love carbs? I ask, "Who cares?"

    I don't waste my energy "hating" anything or anyone. Different strokes for different folks. It does not bother me at all when I see someone eating differently than the way I eat.
  • jaysonhijinx
    jaysonhijinx Posts: 663 Member
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    I used to low carb (<100g a day at times) and lost weight. Now I'm consuming anywhere between 200g (low day) and 450g and still able to lose weight so I'm not a hater of carbs. They're too delicious to hate.
  • rachseby
    rachseby Posts: 285 Member
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    Are we living in a world where carb is a four-letter word, or have we finally understood it's really about balance? I'm on the Glycemic Index Diet basically for life now and its philosophy is about how it's the *kind* of carbs you eat that make the difference, along with balanced eating. Can we all just understand that carbs aren't bad?

    How are different kinds of carbs different?

    I'll try to explain, but it's better if you read a book or well-researched article on it. All carbs are not created equal. Some almost immediately go to sugar -- the usual culprits, lots of white flour, crackers, white bread, regular pasta, white rice, giant russet potatoes are all high-glycemic and you see a spike in blood sugar that usually lasts, for me, a while (Refined sugar is only medium-glycemic.) Lower-glycemic choices are more complex carbs like whole wheat bread, new or fingerling potatoes, whole-grain pasta, brown rice, etc. which I assume is because of the dietary fiber. They don't spike your blood sugar as much and eaten with 3 oz. of protein and then the rest fruits/veg, that's your life from now on. It's been the only "diet" that I could see myself eating for life, so that's why I'm on it.

    Much of the emphasis is cutting out processed foods and "poor nutrient" choices such as potato chips, diet drinks (trying to quit!) and crackers. There's also a little bit of nutritional alchemy going on that allows sourdough bread (which seems like a white bread, but apparently is OK), encourages spicy foods and up to 1 oz. of chocolate (preferably dark) a day. The thing is the GI system isn't necessarily low-fat or low-calorie, so you have to watch your fat/caloric intake so you lose weight.
    This^^ Also, I had gestational diabetes, and so I don't know if this applies to diabetes in general, but my body seemed to process different carbs better or worse from others. Rice was a real blood sugar trigger for me, but I was okay with pasta and baked potatoes. The one time I had chips my BS really shot up. One of my doctors told me that things just affect different people in different ways--you have to find what works for you.
  • KANGOOJUMPS
    KANGOOJUMPS Posts: 6,473 Member
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    NOT ME! LOVE MY CARBS
    I do 2 to 3 hours cardio a day, so I need that fuel!
  • lithezebra
    lithezebra Posts: 3,670 Member
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    oops.
  • willnevergiveup
    willnevergiveup Posts: 138 Member
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    I don't hate carbs. I'm just wary of them. Some cause me no problems at all (most vegetables with the exception of potatoes). Some cause some problems (multi-grain cereals). Some cause me huge problems (desserts, most fruits). What kind of problems? They make me hungrier. And they cause blood glucose spikes. So I'm careful about how much and what carbs I eat. I limit myself to 60 net carbs a day. Net carbs are carbs minus fiber. This works for me. I'm losing 1-2 pounds a week and my fasting blood sugar is now in the 80s instead of the 130s it used to be.
  • amandatapar
    amandatapar Posts: 246 Member
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    I just feel better without all the processed carbs in my body. I still eat whole fruits and vegetables and two slices of whole wheat bread a day on a sandwich for lunch but that is it. No other bread except for that, no pasta/potatoes/rice. I am steadily losing weight eating more protein and carbs from a direct source like the fruit and veggies. I am not craving the processed carbs either. The first few weeks I did but not after that. I was much sleepier as well when I ate a lot of processed carbs. I just don't think my body is hard wired to eat all those processed carbs and lose weight.
  • lithezebra
    lithezebra Posts: 3,670 Member
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    I don't hate carbs. I'm just wary of them. Some cause me no problems at all (most vegetables with the exception of potatoes). Some cause some problems (multi-grain cereals). Some cause me huge problems (desserts, most fruits). What kind of problems? They make me hungrier. And they cause blood glucose spikes. So I'm careful about how much and what carbs I eat. I limit myself to 60 net carbs a day. Net carbs are carbs minus fiber. This works for me. I'm losing 1-2 pounds a week and my fasting blood sugar is now in the 80s instead of the 130s it used to be.

    Those are great results!
  • candylilacs
    candylilacs Posts: 614 Member
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    This^^ Also, I had gestational diabetes, and so I don't know if this applies to diabetes in general, but my body seemed to process different carbs better or worse from others. Rice was a real blood sugar trigger for me, but I was okay with pasta and baked potatoes. The one time I had chips my BS really shot up. One of my doctors told me that things just affect different people in different ways--you have to find what works for you.

    In my GI handbook/bible they actually call commercial cereals "low-nutrient" because they aren't high enough in fiber and have too many additives -- and spike the blood sugar. They are about steel-cut oats all the way -- which is too bad because I think I'm the only person on this board that doesn't like oatmeal! Also nothing but plain yogurt. You can add honey or fruit, but nothing flavored.

    Pasta does it for me....and I LOVE it, but it doesn't love me back. I've had luck mashing new potatoes (small potatoes), they seem to keep my blood sugar from spiking rather than regular potatoes.

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