Why are Carbs bad?

You've been mis-informed. They aren't bad. They're actually necessary to have in your diet.

I love carbs, from veggies.

I have a gluten sensitivity. I'm not cealiac (allergic to gluten), but i know what gluten (from bread/pasta) do to me when I eat them. So I simply don't eat them.

I suggest you read the book "it starts with food", it will give you a real eye opener on food.

Reasons Below as to why Low Carb is not a fad.

Low carb is better for insulin resistant people, a real medical issue. One third of the American population is insulin resistant. Having 30 pounds of extra fat greatly raises your chances of being insulin resistant. People who are overweight don't bother to get tested because they are in denial and often say something along the lines of, "I'm fat, i know I have something so why bother getting tested?". Because once insulin resistant, always insulin resistant.

Not true.
Insulin resistance can be reversible.

It can be managed, not reversed. The websites you visit that claim reversal all have one thing in common, changing your diet. That is a form of management, not a true reversal in that you can ingest carbs and never see a spike above 140.

Low carb and diabetic diet are not the same thing. Don't get them confused. Diabetics have to eat carbs, protiens and healthy fats to maintain their blood glucose levels. So, a diet based on whole grain, fruits, veggies and nuts is ideal for a diabetic. What they have to stay away from are refined carbs and sweets, and animal products.

A low carb diet is something like Atkins where essentially you stay away from the majority of carbs, even those that are healthy for you like many types of fruits. (Atkins really only allows one to consume berries for fruits).


The honest to God mania of this low carb craze is that carbs are calorie dense foods. I mean, one slice of whole grain bread from Pepperage Farm packs 100 calories. Most sandwiches are 2 slices of bread?! However; carbs aren't the problem. The problem is our ridiculous idea of the amount of food we believe should be in one serving size. A lot of people who follow a low carb diet don't understand the importance of carbs, the difference between simple and complex carbs, and the importance of carbs. It's a quick way to lose weight because by cutting most carbs from your diet you can easily cut calories, but it's not sustainable and it's not healthy. Your best best is to avoid low carb and stick to whole grains and practice portion control.

On to a different note,

It's a bit assenine to say "I'm fat I know I have something so why bother getting tested?" Especially considering at least 4 different types of diabetes. Believe it or not a lot of overweight people don't have diabetes and even people will well managed diets who are thin are susceptible to the disease. All things considering people with a BMI of over 25 should be getting checked for type II diabetes and considering they're more likely to have health problems and go to the doctor it's probably not the fat, overweight lazy people who hate themselves enough to die, like you implied that are more likely to catch their diabetes.

Carbohydrates are necessary for brain function.
Your brain cannot function without glucose.
Complex carbohydrates are better than simple carbohydrates in relation to metabolism.

This is a bit of a lengthy article but answers your question quite well:

http://www.fi.edu/learn/brain/carbs.html

Especially of interest is the glycemic index table at the end of the article.

Nice link, now to cross reference data...learning is fun

carbs aren't bad carbs are but carbs in general convert to sugars and thus fat easier that's all nothing wrong with them specifically, you need carbs they are the fastest source of energy, eat enough protein (20-45% 1g per lb of body weight to maintain muscle) and good fats about .5g per lb and the rest is filled with carbs, eay macro to use,

then cycle around, somedays have more proteins, some days have more fats, some days more carbs, mix it up and your body wont get use to it.

lastly as others ad aslong as it's a good mix and nutritional it's all good.

I take a common sense approach to life so I am just going to say it..... You lost 42 lbs. eating carbs so why would you not eat them now... It comes down to eating in a caloric deficit to lose weight... You eat over your caloric intake and you will put the weight back on... I was insulin resistant and a full blown type 2 diabetic when I started this journey back with A1c over 10.0 and 4 years later after losing the weight (and exercising) my diabetes is in remission with A1c averaging 5.3 and I eat over 400 grams of carbs a day... Carbs are not the enemy, not knowing when to put the Knife and Fork down is........... Best of Luck

Carbs are good OR bad. Neither is fat, and protein is not EXCLUSIVELY good.

You need all of them for your body to work right.

The most important thing about weight loss is calories-in/calories-out. And you can optimize it by using them in the proportions that work best for you.

Based on the research I've done over the years, I've built my diet around a breakdown of my diet, with the ideal being:

45% of my daily calories from carbs
28% of my daily calories from protein
27% of my daily calories from fat.

Carbs and proteins are 4 calories per gram, and fat is 9 calories per gram.

Based on a 2,000 calorie/day diet, that would be 900 calories per day from carbs, 560 per day from protein, and 540 calories per day from fat. That's 900/4 = 225g per day carbs, 140g per day from protein, and 60g per day of fat.

I'm never, ever, dead-on. But those are my targets.

The carbs give me the energy I need, gets me through the day, etc. The fats and proteins help my body stay healthy. I found when I ate to few carbs, I didn't have the energy at the end of the work day to do my exercise routines, and my weight loss slowed.

When I am looking for a snack or something, I try to figure out what I'm craving. (Chips? Crackers? Toast? A hamburger? Chicken?) Then I look for something similar that's healthy to eat (chips/crackers/toast, means I'm craving carbs, so I might have a banana (high in carbs), or a piece of whole-grain toast or English muffin, etc. If I'm craving a hamburger, or a "slim jim" or something like that, I might have a greek yogurt (high in protein), or beef jerky.

I am NOT saying this is what you need to do. I am only saying, this is what worked for me.

-David / BootJockey
-257 pounds

I'm so glad I saw this thread as I've been thinking about carbs & if I should cut down on them. I usually go for whole grains & carbs from fruit & veg, so I will continue eating carbs. Thanks for the info everyone.