You must have heard the terms “good carbs” and “bad carbs”. What are they exactly and how do you understand them? Before exploring the types of carbohydrates it is necessary to know what are carbohydrates and why are they important. A substantial part of our daily diet should include carbohydrates for our body to function normally. When we consume carbohydrates, our body breaks them up and converts them into glycogen or sugar which is a useful source of energy. When we don’t have carbohydrates in our diet we feel weak and lethargic and have a hard time performing daily activities.
There are two types of carbs – the “complex/good” carbs and the “simple/bad” carbs. The complex carbs provide long-term energy and break down slowly in the system. They consist of fiber which helps in digestion and makes us feel fuller post meals. Whereas, the simple carbs provide quick energy and leaves us hungry and tired sooner and as a result we end up eating more food. Keeping these aspects of carbs in mind, it is essential to meet the needs of our body and avoid eating the carbs that are bad. The below mentioned bad carbohydrates list will help you identify, understand and eliminate the bad carbs from your diet:
1. Sugars: Most people understand that eating candy and other forms of sweets is not good, but what they don’t know is that carbs too can be broken down into sugars. Candies and soft drinks are foods that have sugar in large quantities and should be clearly avoided. One should try to stay away from sugar in its natural forms such as powdered sugar and brown sugar. Also sweet syrups such as maple flavored syrup and corn syrup are full of bad carbs.
2. Refined foods: These are basically refined grain products which elevate the blood sugar fast but do not provide the long term energy that is provided by the complex/good carbs. The foods that one should avoid in this category are
- White flour (and the things made from it such as donuts, bagels, tortillas, cakes and pastries)
- White bread
- White rice
- White pasta
- Refined cereals
- Milled corn
3. Vegetable carbohydrates and grains: Apart from the vegetables which contain bad carbs, vegetables in general are essential elements of a balanced diet. Potatoes are notoriously bad and are one source of carbohydrates that everybody tries to avoid. Potato in its natural form is a very innocuous vegetable providing many nutritional benefits but the more processed it is, the more ‘bad’ it becomes. For example French-fries and potato chips. Other bad carbs in this category are
- Sweet potatoes
- Peas
- Corn
- Beets
Thinking about how far the product in your hand has come from its real form is a rule of thumb when analysing what a bad carb is. Don’t get stressed about having to change your diet so as to eliminate the bad carbs. You can opt for whole grain substitutes for the above mentioned bad carbs which are easily available in the market nowadays and taste great too! As a matter of fact, many people eventually develop as taste for unrefined and whole grain foods. Once you’re aware of how your body reacts to carbohydrates of different types, you will be able to make better dietary decisions for yourself and your family!