Part 1: Farewell to carbs or low carbs?

Part I    Farewell to carbs or low carbs?

Let us get sweetness from love, not from sugar… M.C Abadia

First of all, it is important to begin on what seems to be the root of the misunderstanding.

To find an early point of reference, in 1991, the United Kingdom Department of Health published the Dietary Reference Values for Food Energy and Nutrients for the United Kingdom. These records, Dietary Reference Values (DRV) which recommended nutritional intakes for the UK adults population, state that the Reference Nutrient Intake (RNI), whereby 97.5% of the population's requirement is met in terms of carbohydrates, should be 50% of the total daily intake. That means half of the content in your plate at any time, in theory should be made of these. There is no further indication as to what type of carbohydrates should be part of it. Increasingly, evidence amounts that these guidelines need a serious revision.

For the sake of basics and as a reminder for us all, I will explain that the way our bodies turn food into energy is systematically the same. The body uses carbohydrates available first, following by fat and finally protein. If the critical point arises when the body is forced to use its protein, all muscles will suffer with the final result in death. This of course, would be the case of severe starvation, more usually heard of in developing countries.

To follow this trend it is safe to assume that the more fat reserves a person has the more that person could endure starvation without dying.

When it comes to the ordinary day to day diets it is crucial to bear in mind the actual needs of the person, the weight proportional to height, the waist circumference, amount of exercise or lack of it, medical conditions, genetic predisposition and other markers.

For instance, an athlete would use carbohydrates for fuel first, with ease, followed by fat as everybody else. However, body performance running on fat becomes harder and tiresome so professional athletes tend to have a diet higher on carbohydrates, at least while training and competing. So for them a diet higher in carbohydrates could be contemplated.

If there is one carbohydrate that even athletes could do without, it would be table or granulated sugar, sucrose, as it is known within the carbohydrates category. It would appear safe to say that it is completely unnecessary and harmful as part of any diet. To make matters worse, it is well known for causing tooth decay, throwing insulin production into disarray and accelerating the development of diabetes, the type II. It is involved in cardiovascular disease, macular degeneration, dementia, lowering the immune system and it creates addiction. This to mention a few contraindications. Finally, it has no nutritional values other than the highly calorific one. To conclude, it serves no positive purposes at any stages of life development.

What is the fate of carbohydrates?

Carbohydrates are the category of food which includes potatoes, pasta, root vegetables, rice, bread, flour, refined sugar (sucrose, the white stuff that we used in cakes).

In their research to look for best food for diabetics, carbohydrates were divided in 1981 by Dr. David J Jenkins and colleagues into two groups; High Glycaemic Index (GI) and Low Glycaemic Index (GI). They signify a measure of the effects of carbohydrates in food on blood sugar levels.

The so called Glycaemic load goes from GI of 1 to glucose with a GI of 100. Foods with carbohydrates that break down quickly during digestion and release glucose rapidly into the bloodstream (like potatoes or white bread) tend to have a high GI; foods with carbohydrates that break down more slowly, releasing glucose more gradually into the bloodstream, tend to have a low GI. Hence anything to do with refined sugar and white flour is bad news when it comes to the body having to produce huge quantities of insulin to cope with it.  

So to give you a bit of direction the carbohydrates with Low GI and therefore more recommended for a healthy diet are;

Low GI 55 or less

Most fruits and vegetables (including carrots); legumes/pulses; some whole, intact grains; nuts; fructose; kidney beans; beets; chickpeas.

Following the Medium GI which would advise moderate consumption would be;

Medium GI 56-69

whole wheat products, pita bread, basmati rice, grapes, sucrose (refined sugar), raisins, pumpernickel bread, cranberry juice and regular ice cream.

And finally, with the highest GI hence to be considered in very small amounts or none at all would be;

High GI 70 and above

White bread, most white rice, corn flakes, the majority of breakfast cereals, glucose, maltose, maltodextrins (food additive used in sodas and candy), white potato, pretzels

As I mentioned before, carbohydrates are a first port of call for the body’s need of fuel. Furthermore, they are the brain’s favourite source of energy. When carbohydrates are consumed as a part of the diet they get used as the first available energy and the remaining gets stored in the form of fat.

According to the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, the average person consumes about 24 kilograms of sugar each year, equivalent to over 260 food calories per person, per day.

The time has come when the Eatwell graphic representation in UK needs to be redesigned. As a matter of urgency!

Next time how to succesfuly consume carbohydrates.