Carbohydrates ARE Healthy
Today’s post comes from Matt Priven, MS RDN.
If you’re one of the millions who have dieted for weight loss in the past, there’s a very good chance you have attempted to restrict your carbohydrate intake at some point. If you tried something like Keto (or in the 90’s, Atkins), you may have focused exclusively on minimizing your carb intake as much as possible. For countless other diets, there can be an emphasis on restricting carbohydrate portion sizes or choosing only certain types of starch (i.e. sweet potatoes but not rice for Whole 30).
Maybe you tried one (or many) diets and later stopped. But in this moment, how do you feel about carbohydrates? Do you grant yourself true permission to eat bread, white rice, pasta, fruit, or even cake and ice cream? Or do you feel guilty for eating these foods, believing that your lunch would have been better had you skipped the bread and had a salad instead? Does it take a special occasion like a holiday or vacation to feel truly permissive about your eating choices when it comes to carbs? And do you feel compelled to repent after the holiday is over by “being good” when you’re back on your normal schedule? Or perhaps you always act as if you are free in your eating, enjoying carbs when you want them, but quietly suffering in shame after, or even during, an eating experience.
My simple goal today is to remind you (or perhaps teach you) that carbohydrates are healthy. They are the primary and preferred source of useful energy for the human body. Whether they are found in blueberries or a potato chip, all carbohydrates can be used for energy. Incredibly, our bodies have evolved to run on carbohydrates in so many specific ways. Our lips are coated in salivary amylase, an enzyme whose only role is to break down carbohydrates for our needs as fast as possible. Our brain sucks up carbohydrates happily to meet its massive energy demands. Our muscles store and utilize carbohydrates to help us move around and engage in physical activity on a daily basis. The list goes on and on.
And when we don’t have sufficient carbohydrates, our body pushes us towards them in a major way. While we may interpret “cravings” for carbs as a weakness in our character, under the hood our brain is pumping out chemical messages that direct us towards carbohydrate-rich foods and increase our hunger sensation. And as the level of carbohydrates (or sugar) in our body drops our gut produces hormones to push us towards carbohydrate-rich foods that will help us restore balance in our bloodstream. In short, our body works really hard to obtain the energy (carbs) it needs to function optimally.
Now this would probably be the point where many healthcare providers would start carefully walking back the encouragement to eat carbs freely. Perhaps they would caution “moderation” (eye-roll) or remind you about the difference between “simple” and “complex” carbohydrates. I say NO! We can live with unconditional permission to eat exactly what we want, when we want, and how we want without restriction, rigidity, or rule following. If this sounds like a path you’d like to travel, I highly suggest you explore the process of becoming a confident intuitive eater. And if you’d like support in this confusing, sometimes scary, but wonderful journey, reach out for support from one of our expert dietitians.
Sources
Beck B. Neuropeptide Y in normal eating and in genetic and dietary-induced obesity. Philos Trans R Soc Lond B Biol Sci. 2006 Jul 29;361(1471):1159-85. doi: 10.1098/rstb.2006.1855. PMID: 16874931; PMCID: PMC1642692.
Mergenthaler P, Lindauer U, Dienel GA, Meisel A. Sugar for the brain: the role of glucose in physiological and pathological brain function. Trends Neurosci. 2013 Oct;36(10):587-97. doi: 10.1016/j.tins.2013.07.001. Epub 2013 Aug 20. PMID: 23968694; PMCID: PMC3900881.
Bharath K Mani, Kripa Shankar, Jeffrey M Zigman, Ghrelin’s Relationship to Blood Glucose, Endocrinology, Volume 160, Issue 5, May 2019, Pages 1247–1261, https://doi.org/10.1210/en.2019-00074