Debunking Carb Myths: Essential Guide to Carbs for Healthy Aging
Why Carbohydrates Aren't Making You Fat and How to Choose Nutritious Options
As we age, understanding nutrition becomes crucial for maintaining health and wellness, and one area filled with misconceptions is carbohydrates. Despite the popularity of low-carb diets like keto, which have painted carbs as the enemy, it’s essential to recognize that carbohydrates themselves are not directly responsible for weight gain or poor health. Carbs are a primary energy source, and their effects on our bodies depend on how we consume and metabolize them. The aim is to dispel common myths about carbs, clarifying their true role in our diet. I’ll also explore why carbs are not inherently fattening and address how mainstream diets have skewed their reputation. Additionally, I’ll provide a practical guide to understanding carbs and how they work for you, focusing on high-fiber options and minimizing added sugars and processed foods. By the end, you’ll have a clearer understanding of how to include carbohydrates healthily in your diet, supporting overall well-being.
Debunking Myths: Carbs Aren't the Enemy
Carbs are increasingly viewed as the enemy in many diets and taking in any carbs to be responsible for gaining weight. This misunderstanding is largely pushed by people trying to push their solution to the problem as opposed to viewing it as a possible solution. It is significantly easier to just say don’t eat this certain thing or put a label on something as bad to stay away from. In reality, the issue is more straightforward than it seems. This fear of carbs comes in cycles, one year it is the Atkins Diet, then the next year it is another diet, then it circles back to the keto diet which is largely the exact same as the Atkins Diet. All of them with the target of making the larger public scared of carbs or put on their specific plan to sell on their product. It does seem so far that the keto diet has taken over a lot stronger and the messaging is very overwhelming with the vilification of carbs taking over.
The idea that carbs cause weight gain stems from a misunderstanding. It's not that carbs immediately turn into fat; rather, weight gain happens when we consume more calories than we burn. Carbs aren’t readily available to be stored as fat to begin with, if the surplus is large enough then they will become stored as fat but this surplus is much more important than them being carbs. It is the amount of food that you eat going over your expenditure that will cause the weight gain. The original thought was that because carbs are so easy to take in they’re going to cause you to gain weight which then over time has been muddied down to all carbs are making you gain weight. People have gone so far as to say that fruits are bad because of the carbs. The thing that is important here is the sheer amount of food as opposed to them being carbs themselves. There is a grain of truth here that comes from simple carbs and added sugars. The simple carbs and added sugars offer little to no nutritional value and take significantly longer to fill you up making the total amount of calories eaten significantly higher. This is where we come to the nutritional density versus the caloric density of the carbs. This is the piece that is missing when people make carbs the enemy. If you eat fibrous vegetables that are very nutrient-dense and very filling, it is significantly harder to overeat as opposed to when you eat cake to fill you up where you can be taking 20x the amount of calories to just feel full.
Another common myth is that carbs make you feel sluggish. In reality, it depends on the type of carbs you consume. Nutrient-dense, high-fiber carbs like fruits and vegetables provide sustained energy, while simple carbs can lead to quick spikes and crashes. If we are taking fibrous carbs like fruits and vegetables or brown rice even, the fiber that is attached to the carb will slow the digestion and release of energy into your bloodstream giving you a longer increased amount of energy throughout the day. As opposed to going to the cake or candy where it’ll give you a quick spike but then your body will have a compensatory drop making you feel more sluggish. It isn’t the fact that it is the carbs that are making you feel sluggish, it is the drop following the consumption of quick-digesting carbs that does it.
The last one that I want to touch on is breads and pastas. There seems to be a lot of hate centered around breads and pastas in particular right now. This hate is similar previous myths in which it lies in the nutrient density and the caloric density of it. A lot of people have a fear of breads and pastas because white options have increased greatly and become significantly more available. The difference between the white option and the whole grain option is that the white options have had the fiber removed making them more simple carbs causing that spike and then having the dip following it. If we go for the full fiber options, not only are we going to be feeling fuller; it takes more energy to digest, feeds your gut bacteria, and smooths out your energy release. This has manifested in people feeling guilty for enjoying bread and feeling or that they are off course when taking in these foods. Breads and pastas if we are taking in the whole grain options are fantastic filling foods that are also cheap and very healthy for you!
Key Point: Carbs are not your enemy, eating fibrous carbs will help make sure you’re feeling full and avoiding the crash. Carbs do not make you gain weight but may enable you to overeat.
The Essential Role of Carbs: Fueling Your Body and Brain
Carbs, like all macronutrients, are essential for a balanced diet. we can’t simply omit them from our diet because a nutritional piece said that not eating them would cause you to shed weight. Your body utilizes carbs as its fast-acting energy source, this fast-acting source is anywhere from 30 seconds to 5 minutes of activity and will largely be fueled by carbs. As you get past that your body transitions to a lower intensity energy source that it can sustain for far longer being fats. When you think of this it helps understand how your body reacts when you put this demand upon it. If you intake a large amount of carbs, your body either needs to find a way to use the energy or it is going to get ready to store it away. As those are the only options and the bigger the spike, the faster your body will want to store it away. Your body will store carbs as glycogen within your muscles and liver. Glycogen is the fancy name for the stored form of glucose within your body. The part that scares people is increasing your glycogen stores causes water to be drawn in, overall increasing the weight. Especially if you’re coming from a place where you weren’t eating nearly enough carbs. The increased storage and increased water intake to pair with it can be scary when you are purely concerned with the scale. However, knowing that it isn’t fat gain will help with your confidence in eating more carbs.
The other major way that your body utilizes carbs is as fuel for your brain. This is where people who follow the keto diet for a long period of time have issues. Carbs in the bloodstream are the brain’s primary energy source, necessary for clear thinking Not having carbs in your bloodstream can quickly lead to a mental fog, slowing your thoughts, and making thoughts less clear. I am sure that if you have tried these low-carb diets you have felt that brain fog set in a bit. Finding yourself a bit more forgetful of things, blanking on things you should be sharp on. This is in large part a byproduct of forcing your brain to use a resource that it isn’t the most efficient at using. When you force it to use fats as a fuel source for thoughts, it needs to jump through hoops to process the fats into a source that it can effectively use as a fuel for thoughts.
None of the processes of carbs are to be stuffing you and making you gain weight. We like carbs because our body wants the fuel that they provide. We need it to keep our brain functioning well, give it the power to process complex topics, and most importantly, keep a good store of liver glycogen to maintain high levels of activity. It isn’t the carb stores that make you gain weight. There may be a slight hesitation of glycogen is filling up due to water retention, but if you are gaining weight it is going to be from eating too much.
Key Points: Carbs function to keep your fast-acting energy stores, glycogen, full to keep blood sugar levels from dropping too low and give energy to your brain. The most efficient energy source for your brain is carbs and we should think of it as fuel for your brain.
Choosing the Right Carbs: Simplifying Your Approach
Now let’s put it all together and make it easy so you can be confident in eating your carb sources without feeling guilty or needing to do something completely unnecessary. We understand that carbs are just a fuel source, aren’t going to make us gain weight, and are essential for proper brain function. Hopefully, we are a bit less scared of carbs now. We still want to be making some good decisions when it comes to the world of carbs. This goes with all foods but since carbs are such a hot topic people are learning more about which foods have carbs in them and decide they want to avoid them. This is the wrong thinking that we want to employ. Learning more about carbs is amazing and shouldn’t be discouraged. Making the wrong things the villain is what should be discouraged though. If you have ever heard the idea that a banana and a candy bar have the same amount of sugar in them and thought that was a reason you need to avoid the banana this is where I want you to pay attention. The banana versus the candy bar both might have 20g of carbs within them, but they are not made equal. The 20g from the candy bar is going to be coming strictly from added sugars with little to no nutritional value or fiber being paired along with it. This is leading to that spike in blood sugar and then the compensatory drop following shortly after. The banana on the other hand is loaded with micronutrients that your body needs, carbs that your body can use, they may be more simple carbs in nature yes, but it is also encased with fiber that your body needs to digest and break down to get that release of energy into your bloodstream. This ensures that not only are you getting the additional energy over a longer period of time so you don’t experience that drop, you’re feeling more full as it is going to be sitting in your stomach for a bit longer, and you’re also getting a great amount of nutritional value from it. So while the amount of sugar may be equated. One is a natural sugar that has nutritional value, and the other is a simple processed sugar that comes from a factory with no other nutrients.
This is the most important piece of it all when it comes to picking carbs. Choosing to have whole grains, fibrous carbs both fruits and vegetables, and brown rices. Any of those options will fulfill your carb needs while limiting your ability to overconsume them. The hyper-processed foods that we have nowadays are made to be tasty, so you continue to buy and overeat them is leading to this spiral. It isn’t the carbs themselves, it is the processed nature of many of the foods that we consume leading to overconsumption. When you eat the candy bar you don’t get any sense of being filled but you know that candy bar has 300 calories. To get 300 calories of fruits would be equivalent to eating 3 apples. If you eat 3 apples you’re going to be feeling quite full. In large part from the amount of fiber and nutrients within the apple.
To simplify it to the simplest components, when choosing your carbs, always opt for the whole grain option, eat the whole fruit (where possible), and put vegetables in your mind as a carb option. If you follow these are your carb source options, it will make it incredibly hard to overeat your carbs and you’ll be feeling a lot more confident in having that energy source ready. You’ll notice quickly how much better it makes you mentally and physically. As well as you’ll be able to convince yourself that it isn’t the carbs that are making you gain weight, it is the overconsumption of simple foods that don’t give you any sense of feeling full.
Key Points: Eat whole grains, whole fruit, and high-fiber carbs when choosing your carbs. Avoid processed and ultra-processed foods as they are designed to make you buy more and eat more of them. Carbs aren’t the reason for your weight gain, overconsumption is.
Conclusion:
Carbohydrates are not the dietary villains they’re often made out to be. They are essential for providing energy and supporting brain function, and they do not directly cause weight gain. The myths that demonize carbs, largely driven by popular diets like keto, have unfairly cast them as harmful. Instead, the key is to focus on the type and amount of carbs consumed. Choose high-fiber, nutrient-dense carbs like whole grains, fruits, and vegetables over processed foods to avoid energy crashes and overeating. By making smarter choices, you can enjoy the benefits of carbs while supporting your overall health and well-being. Remember, carbs are not the enemy; they are an essential part of a balanced diet. By choosing the right types of carbs and being mindful of portion sizes, you can enjoy their benefits while maintaining a healthy lifestyle. Embrace carbs as part of a healthy diet and feel the difference in your energy levels, brain function, and overall well-being.
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Sidney Bartlett, CSCS