I'm confused....Are Carbs really bad?

No

Carbs are not “bad” unless you have been diagnosed with a medical condition, such as diabetes, that requires you to limit carbs. There is a lot of anti-carb marketing on the Internet, and you should ignore it.

If you want to lose weight, you need only a consistent calorie deficit.

If you want to eat for good health, you should first follow your doctor’s orders for any medical conditions you have, and then you can make sure you get the minimum amount of protein and fat, as well as your micronutrients.

Other than medical conditions, carb intake is personal preference based on what makes you feel your best and what foods you enjoy.

Carbs are an essential part of nutrition! People need carbs, just like they do fats and sugars.

On MFP it's all about calorie counting. Let's make that clear. Unless there's a specific dietary reason enjoy your pasta and cookies as long as it's in your calorie budget.

However, simple carbs have a way of making weight loss harder. Eat a high carb food item, and there tends to be an energy drop a little while later, resulting in cravings for more simple carbs. The cycle tends to repeat over and over and has a way of creating a problem with overeating.

One of the benefits of a higher protein diet is that it tends to avoid this cycle. Hunger is not so much a problem and cravings aren't so much an issue. Food energy tends to be more even and longer lasting. And let's face it, hunger and cravings suck.

I like MFP because I don't have to give up pasta or anything, but I eat less of it and that's made a real difference.

There is no real evidence that carbs cause the diseases you mentioned, although controlling carbs can help control blood sugar.

What you're experiencing is information overload. Too much information and everyone claims they have the answer to your question. The solution is to simplify and filter. What are your goals? What does established science say?

If your goal is to lose weight, the simplest path is to control your calories. How you choose to control them is up to you. Established science has shown over and over again, including in metabolic chambers, that you gain weight by eating more calories than your body burns, and you lose it by eating fewer calories than your body burns.

If your goal is to avoid diabetes, your simplest path is to control your weight stay active. Established studies have shown that active people of normal weight are less likely to develop type 2 diabetes, including the healthiest people on the planet who eat plenty of carbs and grains and usually lead active lives.

If your goal is good nutrition, nutrient variety is important and vegetables (which are carbs) provide a lot of nutrition for not many calories.

Don't get distracted by the details that documentaries with agendas try to sucker you into, just focus on what you need, what you want, what you have, and what makes weight management easier for you personally, regardless of what others say. Finding a successful way to manage weight is a very personal and invdividualized project. You will find answers by experimenting with things yourself to find the most sustainable route, not by watching documentaries.

if carbs are bad, i don't want to be good

i lost 145 pounds in a year while eating, and continuing to eat, carbs at every meal.

nickvonogden wrote: »

'Carbs' in general aren't bad but there are good carbs and bad carbs. Avoid bad carbs as much as possible IMO (though treat yourself, for sure). One should avoid divulging in a diet full of simple carbs; weight loss will be more difficult. Personally, I think one should monitor carb intake along with calorie deficit. The general rule of thumb simply being 'everything in moderation'.

Anecdote: I'm currently doing a Keto diet where I eat very low carbs for a while, and it does work or weight loss. This is my second time on it However, I'm not going to do the hard core (less than 20g of carbs a day). I got myself into 'moderate ketosis' and I'll probably continue this (eating 30-40g of carbs a day), then increase my activity and focus on maintaining, doing whatever it takes to still take in 150g-200g of complex carbs a day but keeping my weight by being more active and burning calories.

Personally, I drink my carbs historically and cutting that out (soda) kind of helps accelerate my weight loss, and i feel much better now. I plan on keeping soda out of my life forever though, because it's too easy to get back into the habit of drinking 5+ a day.

I eat a lot of simple carbs (primarly, but not exclusively, from fruit). I find it great for weight loss. When my weight loss tends to be firing on all cylinders is when I am eating more simple carbs and less fats. Everyone is different and I am not saying this will be the case for everyone. But 200 caloriew of pineapple fills me a lot more than 200 calories of beef.

And sure, most people find giving up regular soda to be a weight loss benefit. But it is not because carbs are evil. Soda is highly caloric and doesn't really fill you and doesn't have any additional nutritional components, so it's easy to overindulge your calories by drinking a bunch of it. That can lead to obesity, which has negative health effects. But getting sugar from fruit, which is filling and also packed with nutrition, is a very different thing. But they are both sugar and simple carbs. It's not the sugar that is evil.

To echo what others have (mostly) said, no, carbs are not bad, and those saying they are usually have some financial stake in that claim.

Not all carbs are the same (just as not all fats are the same), and many foods people incorrectly call "carbs" are actually as much fat as carbs -- for example, cake=fat+carbs, chips=fat + carbs, pasta with a cream sauce=fat+carbs, pizza or a cheese burger = fat + protein + carbs. Unless you are eating lots of hard candies or soda or plain starches with nothing else, like plain pasta, bread on its own, dry cereal, most meals or snacks tend to be a mix of macros.

Re not all carbs are the same, some misunderstand the distinction between complex carbs (starches, whether refined such as white bread or not such as potatoes or whole grains) and simple (any sugars, including those that make up most of the cals in fruit) to mean one is good and one is bad. That's obviously not true. However, there are calorie and nutrient differences in carbs, and one type of carb (fiber) is extremely important to include in one's diet, as well as the nutrients that are most significantly found in many (low cal) carbs.

IMO, everyone should eat a significant amount of vegetables (which are mostly carbs), ideally some fruit, and the non animal sources of protein tend to be high in carbs (and often fiber in particular) -- beans and lentils are examples, and I think those are healthy foods to include in the diet.

Milk and yogurt are high-ish in carbs, as well as fat (depending on the type) and protein. I think those are helpful and healthy foods to have in my diet.

Whole food and lightly refined starches are also generally considered higher nutrient (and sometimes higher fiber) foods -- these are potatoes, sweet potatoes, and whole grains, including oats. I'm a fan and the vast majority of credible dietitians and nutrition experts won't be negative about these foods.

Other foods such as refined grains (white pasta, rice, bread) maybe offer a bit fewer nutrients and fiber but the differences aren't that significant and many (like me!) find these great foods to pair with vegetables, some good fats, and some protein for a very filling and satisfying meal. Some find them easy to overeat. I don't, but I suppose that's something to be aware of.

Many other foods that contain carbs (but typically as much fat, so I don't think they are properly called carbs, again) may be lower nutrient and higher cal (like cookies, cake, french fries, etc.). As with any high cal lower nutrient food (nothing to do with them being carbs), of course limit and watch portions, etc, so you don't eat too many cals or replace more nutrient dense foods.

Finally, there are a few lower nutrient high cal foods (or mostly, drinks) that you will find, like soda. I avoid these as I like diet soda and other beverages better and dislike wasting cals on these things, but they can fit into a healthy diet if you just don't overdo it -- overall diet is what matters, not "carbs" or avoiding specific foods. What you eat (whether it provides the overall nutrition needed) matters much more than what you don't.

No food is bad. Food doesn't have morality, it just is what it is and you can puzzle piece things together however you prefer and balance things out. Some people have intolerances or medical reasons for avoiding things, but that doesn't mean a food is bad.

But there's no such thing as bad foods. Not even sugar.