TRACY DOYLE WELLNESS

Carbs, are they good or bad?

With so many Low carb diets out there it's easy to think carbs are bad. But I think the bigger question is what is a carbohydrate?

Not all carbohydrates are equal.

When you eat carbs, they are digested and broken down to glucose (sugar). It's then used for fuel for the body. The more refined the carbohydrate the faster it enters the blood stream. This is because the body does not have to break it down much in order to absorb it. This may not seem like that big of a deal but when you add in that many refined carbs also often have sugar added to them that's a lot of sugar going directly into the blood stream quickly. When this is a steady part of your diet the body has a hard time keeping up with the sugar regulation. This can contribute to insulin resistance and other problems.

You can't talk about carbs without talking about fiber.

Whole foods contain fiber, glucose and nutrients. We are talking about foods that are in their natural state. Whole grains, whole fruits and vegetables beans and legumes. These are all high in carbohydrates but also high in fiber.

Processing carbohydrates takes fiber and nutrients out. (turning wheat grain into flour, brown rice into cereal etc.)

What does fiber do in the body?

Fiber takes longer to digest; the process slows the glucose absorption time into the blood stream. This means a slow and steady fuel for the body. Fiber is also needed for a healthy colon, the fiber moving to the colon takes some of the glucose with it, so less is going into the bloodstream.

You are probably familiar with the glycemic index. This chart tells us how much glucose is in various foods and is widely used for diabetes patients. However, there is a less known chart called the glycemic load chart. This chart takes into consideration the fiber in the food. Functionally speaking this is a more useful chart.

We want and need fiber and many whole foods that are high in carbohydrates are also high in fiber, and nutrients.

All fiber has carbohydrates, but not all carbohydrates have fiber!

When you are looking at labels on processed foods look for the carbs but also look for the fiber. You can take the fiber number away from the carb number and what you have left is the carbs that will be converted to glucose. (sugar)

You can translate 1gm carb = 1 gm sugar

Add that to the amount of added sugar in the product and that can add up to a lot of sugar.

Even products sold as the "healthy" version can be carb heavy with little to no fiber, really not healthy at all. You must read the labels.

Bottom line, there are healthy carbohydrates. They are in whole foods that have a lot of fiber in them such as whole unrefined grains, fibrous fruits, vegetables, beans and legumes.

Diabetic and prediabetic people have to be especially careful on their carbohydrate intake but they are not the only ones.

You will also have to watch your carb intake If you have:

Sugar that is not regulated (high or low)
Chronic inflammation
Autoimmune issues
Memory problems
Anxiety
Kids that struggle with ADHD, or behavior issues

I personally feel this last category (kids) is so overlooked. We just except that kids eat a lot of sugar and refined carbs. They even have a category of food all their own "kid food" it's highly processed with a lot of sugar low fiber and very little nutrients. Is it any wonder why childhood diseases like diabetes, obesity, ADHD and anxiety are on the rise?

I can help you get to your health goals so don't wait any longer. I work hard with my clients to balance blood sugar and get the nutrients that their body needs.

There are so many reasons to put off making health changes,

I'm too busy life is hectic; I'll do it when I have more time
I don't have the energy; I'll do it when I feel better
I want to feel better, but I don't want to change what I eat or how I live.
It cost more to be healthy, Coach, trainer, food.

Let me ask you this, what does it cost if you don't make a change?

More days of feeling bad with no energy
Watching your kids or loved ones struggle
More trips to the doctors, trying all the medications just to try to feel better.
Missed time with loved ones.
Wishing you could be living your best life

Of course, we humans don't like change.

We like convenience and instant gratification.

But

Anything worth having is worth working for.

We often overthink how hard making a change will be. Taking the first step and making the decision to put your health top priority is often the hardest step. But it's the best decision you will make. I guarantee it. Hiring a health coach may seem out of the budget but if you are going to take the step to be healthier don't you want to get there as quickly as possible? Wouldn't it improve your odds of success by having the support to help you navigate through it rather than trying to figure it all out on your own by trial and error?