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Study Shows Refined Carbs Are No Good

It's something many of us already know - highly processed carbohydrates are linked to weight gain. The American Journal of Epidemiology has been researching whether carbohydrates are linked to obesity:

Total amount of carbohydrate is not related to body weight," Dr. Yunsheng Ma of the University of Massachusetts Medical School in Worcester told Reuters Health. "It's the type of carbohydrate that's important."

He then goes on to say:

...that refined carbohydrates are often found in processed foods that contain a lot of sugar. This type of carbohydrate has what's called a high glycemic index, meaning it causes a rapid increase in blood sugar. The body stores that sugar in muscle, but if it is not used, it becomes fat, he noted.

In contrast, whole grains, fruits and vegetables have carbohydrates that don't have such high glycemic index, Ma said.

The implications of this study is that low-carb diets (with no clarification of carbohydrate quality) are missing the mark. This also explains why diets such as the South Beach Diet have reported so much success. Despite the questionable 'induction' phase, the second phase of the South Beach is all about consuming 'good' carbs.

So what are 'good' carbs? Fruit, Veg, Oatmeal, Brown Rice, Whole-wheat breads and pasta. Does this correlate with the GI? That appears to be an assumption in this study. If anything, Glycemic Load is probably the one to look for.

Written By J. Foster
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4 Comments

anicia

so then, what are examples of foods with good carbs, refined carbs and bad carbs?

Reply
Shannon

There are no good or bad carbs. Carbs are the body's main source of energy.

What the article is talking about is that there are carbs that are less processed like bran cereal, or not processed at all like rice or beans that are better for your body.

The reason is that it takes the body longer to digest those carbs and it takes longer for you to be hungry, especially if you eat those carbs with a protein or fat.

If you ate something refined like white bread or sugared cereals, your body digests it much quicker and your body uses up that energy a lot more quickly thereby sending a signal to your brain that it's hungry much sooner, so you eat more often.

Eat rice, beans, cereals like bran and oatmeal, whole wheat bread or bread where you can see large pieces of grain, fruits, vegetables.

Basically eat foods as close to what they are naturally.

Reply
Areliz Freeman

I excercise everyday, drink lots of water, eat a good breakfast, eat south beach meal supplement bars regularly every day, eat a light dinner, and still manage to lose and gain weight. Why?

Reply
James

It's a clear sign that Americans arn't out on steak, boiled eggs, or milk, but Americans are eating pizza, cakes, fraps, sugary drinks, and french fries. What's the culprit on all these foods? Trans fats and refined carbohydrates. These two deadly combination is what causes insulin spikes and unhealthy cholesterol levels.

Basically, if you want to eat pizza, use whole grain crust, bake it using butter or coconut oil (or for now, emulsified vegtable oil (not partially hydrogenated oils), and use low-fat cheese and low-sodium tomato sauce. You can pack on some lean meats on the pizza. If you want to bake a birthday cake, do NOT use vegtable shortening or stick margarines. Use butter, coconut oil, or emulsified liquid vegtable oil. There are studies that emusification can turn fish oil into a cookable omega 3 fatty oil, so that I can eat omega 3 cakes and pizzas.

You can make complex carbohydreates "sweet" without the need of aspartame or sucralose by adding a bit of honey, stevia, or xylithol to the food.

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Last Modified: September 16, 2005

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