Posts Tagged ‘Carbohydrates’
A Simple Guide to Complex Carbohydrates
A Simple Guide to Complex Carbohydrates
Here is a dietary guide to the good carbohydrates.
Potatoes. As they come from the ground, potatoes are relatively low in calories (150 for a large baking potato) and high in nutrients, including some protein. An adult could derive nearly all needed nutrients from potatoes. Baked, steamed, or boiled, they are an excellent food. But a single pat of butter or margarine increases the calorie content of a medium-sized potato by a third.
Deep-frying destroys some vitamins and adds astronomically to calories. Of the calories in french fries, 70 percent are from fat. Potato chips are also mostly fat (and high in salt) – 150 calories per ounce, 90 of them from fat. About nine chips add up to 100 calories.
The Body’s Main Fuel
The Body’s Main Fuel
Carbohydrates, both simple and complex, are the body’s main source of energy. They are readily digested and converted into the blood sugar glucose, which fuels the brain and muscles. Without carbohydrates, the body must rely on fats and protein for energy. Fats bum inefficiently in the absence of carbohydrates and leave the kidneys with the burden of excreting large amounts of toxic metabolic chemicals called ketone bodies. These can build up in the blood and cause nausea, fatigue, and apathy, a common effect among those who adhere to the faddish lowcarbohydrate diets.
When protein is used for energy, the body is deprived of this crucial nutrient for building and replacing tissues, and the kidneys have to get rid of the unused nitrogen that’s left over. That’s why on high-protein diets you must drink lots of water to help flush out your kidneys.