Many experts attribute the large-scale epidemic or obesity in the United States, where 1/3 of all adults are largely obese, to a steady increase over an extended period of time in the intake of unhealthy carbohydrates, including but not limited to table sugar and all items made from it, refined starch, processed food and even too much fruit sugar.
According to one study (Cohen E, et al., Statistical Review of U.S. Macronutrient Consumption Data, 1965–2011), overweight and obese Americans rose from 42.3% to 66.1% from 1971 to 2011 and during this time:
The fat intake decreased from 44.7% to 33.6%
· Carbohydrate consumption increased from 39% to 50% from 1965 to 2011
Researchers believe these statistics imply a link between high carb intake in our diets and societal-scale obesity.
Before making judgments, it is important to understand the major differences between the two carbohydrates, and if one is particularly advantageous over the other. It's also important to consider your dietary goals, want to lose weight, are you prediabetes, or have diabetes, or are you fit and healthy?
Complex reference points
Complex carbs or multi-chain sugars are believed not to result in a sudden burst of blood glucose, but rather a gradual, more prolonged release over several minutes or hours.
The outcome?
Insulin is better able to handle the glucose load (although not in all individuals), reducing the likelihood that excessive sugar remains in the bloodstream.
Focus on the following:
• Whole grains: wild rice, brown rice, whole wheat, spirulina, rye and other unprocessed grains like white rice , pasta and white bread.
• Potatoes
• Maize
Simple carbs
Simple carbs are single-chain sugars, and the name is obvious, they don't take long to process throughout the body and cause unpredictable blood sugar spikes.
This includes:
• Sucrose is old table sugar.
• Glucose in some citrus and starchy vegetables
• Fructose is sugar in all fruits and honey and is also used in many processed foods due to its high sweetness.
• Galactose is the natural sugar in dairy, such as milk and yogurt.
Strong carbohydrates
Maybe useful to manage blood sugar levels in diabetics
Type 2 diabetics, in particular, have insulin that is both impotent and quantity-deficient. As such, the body is ill-prepared to properly metabolize or store blood sugar, causing an abnormally high circulation in the blood. Complex carbs are often recommended to people with insulin issues and diabetes over simple carbs to help control blood sugars and reduce glycemic load.
It should be remembered, though, that not everyone with diabetes or prediabetes responds well to complex carbs, where they cause the same uncontrolled spikes in blood sugar as simple carbs.
Best for weight loss and maintenance
Hormones play an extremely important role in the body's weight control mechanism. Again, our friendly neighborhood insulin will cause you to gain hundreds of pounds, as opposed to maintaining your body weight. Insulin is a "holding" hormone.
It needs to pump as much sugar and fat as possible into the cells, thereby reducing fat use (also known as lipolysis). This fat breakdown inhibition and enhanced preservation of the same is one big explanation why sugars lead to weight gain.
Slow digestive carbs do not cause a very acute spike of insulin, so its duration of action is shorter and may not contribute to weight gain as simple carbs do.
Nevertheless, while all of the above may be theoretically accurate, not everyone tolerates carbs well, particularly in terms of weight loss and this includes complex carbs, and some experts disagree that merely using the "complex" mark to determine the effect of a food on weight gain or loss is a much better predictor.
Assessing glycemic load
The Glycemic Index ( GI) is a scale of 1 to 100 measuring the impact of a food on raising blood sugar or glycemic load, the higher the load.
• A white skinless potato has 98 GI, while a raw apple has 34 GI.
Potato is considered a complex carb, while apple is considered a basic carb. As you can see, potato is more likely than apple to cause unpredictable increases in blood sugar and weight gain.
One study showed this ...
Doctors and other researchers in the Harvard Nurses Health Study (the largest epidemiological study conducted in the US on risk factors for major chronic diseases in women and has been going strong since 1976) noticed that baked potatoes and cold cereals were foods that led most to an unhealthy level of blood sugar, known as "glycemic load."
Low carb diets, like Ketogenic and Atkins, therefore take the view that all complex carbs are weight loss inhibitors due to their high glycemic load, and to induce ketosis (the goal of these diets) the ability of the body to burn fat for energy instead of dietary carbs.
Complex carbs are omitted in a strict low carb diet or the body can continue to turn them into glucose and use them to counteract the entire purpose of strict low carb, which is to induce ketosis where the body uses stored fat for energy instead of dietary carbs.
· Sustain energy levels
One of the common myths floating around is that carbs are the body's only source of energy and one typically hard to replace.
WRONG! WRONG!
If you adopt a very strict low carb diet and avoid carbohydrates, the body will enter a metabolic state known as Ketosis, where it burns stored and dietary fat for energy, a perfectly healthy cycle, and why low carb helps people lose weight.
The body is highly adaptive, and many studies have shown that the body is more than capable of running on stored fats and maintaining energy levels. It may take a few weeks for the body to adjust, but ultimately those who succeed in eating low carb find they lose a lot of weight and look and feel better than ever.
Additionally, by decreasing carb consumption, you remove a fat accumulation cycle that comes from consuming them. When you consume carbs, they convert into bloodstream glucose to be used as energy, but any that is not immediately consumed is stored as fat.
Simple carbohydrates are beneficial
Most people object to simple sugars having zero value in the real world, but this is not exactly correct. Simple sugars have some unique uses under very specific circumstances and are therefore relevant in conditional scenarios.
• Pre-Workout Energy – Those who engage in physical exercise , weight lifting, and endurance training need simple carbs to get through grueling workouts. Bodybuilders, for example , require carbohydrate glucose because that's what muscles use for energy during exercise. There are two special types of ketogenic diet targeted to fitness enthusiasts and athletes.
• Cyclical Ketogenic Diet or CKD – This method is commonly used by athletes, bodybuilders, weight lifters and anyone interested in high-intensity exercise and includes short periods of 5 ketogenic days higher-carb refeeds accompanied by 2 days of high carb consumption.
• Targeted Ketogenic Diet or TKD – This method is also used by bodybuilders, athletes and those who work regularly to fuel intense workouts, including high carb consumption depending on workouts.
• Pre-Workout Nutrition- Simple carbs may play a critical role in nutrition after your workout, although many people do not take advantage of it at this time and skip essential recovery. After workout (especially weight training) muscle fibers are weakened and in desperate need of recovery nutrients. Nevertheless, nothing will suffice at this time; to kick-start muscle recovery.
• Ease of digestion- Simple carbs are important sources of energy for people with digestive difficulties or children unable to handle complex digestion. In these cases, simple carbs are not only useful, but also likely essential for their health and well-being.
• Emergency Fuel - simple carbs can be a lifesaver in persons suffering from acute hypoglycemia, such as is possible if a diabetic has overdosed on his medication, or mistook an insulin shot. Athletes performing at a high level may experience periods of acute blood sugar drops, resulting in dizziness, nausea and fainting, simple carbs are important, as they can literally save your life.
Concluding
As you can see, a definitive verdict can not be reached that is superior because each has distinct advantages. However, if you fall within normal health parameters, chances are your needs for simple carbs will be much less.
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