Fitness Fact or Fiction: Carbs are Bad
Cutting carbs is one of the most common restrictions people start with when they want to lose weight. The idea that carbs are bad has been pushed in the diet and fitness industries for years, but how much truth does this idea hold? Let’s dig into it!
About Carbohydrates
Carbohydrates are a type of plant-derived macronutrient found in some food and drinks. This macronutrient is divided into three categories:
Monosaccharides, or single sugar units
Disaccharides, or paired sugar units
Polysaccharides, or long chains of sugar units
Monosaccharides and disaccharides are commonly known as “simple sugars.” People eat all three types of sugar units, but our digestive process breaks everything down into single sugar monosaccharides, which are absorbed into the body. Glucose, fructose, and galactose are the three monosaccharides that are nutritionally necessary for humans.
The Role of Carbs
Carbs aren’t just delicious things we eat for fun. This macronutrient serves a vital function in the human body: providing energy. Excess amounts of this macro not used to immediately provide energy are stored as glycogen in the liver and muscles.
Those who claim carbs are bad might not realize that this macro is considered the body’s primary fuel source. Here are some other essential roles!
The liver helps regulate blood glucose and insulin levels thanks to its ability to release glucose into circulation, making it essential for avoiding or managing diseases like diabetes.
Fiber, a carbohydrate structure, offers a number of benefits including improving intestinal health and reducing the risk of cardiovascular disease and cancer.
The brain needs glucose to function and uses about 20% of glucose-derived energy in the body. This high percentage makes the brain the main consumer of glucose.
From Food to Energy to Storage
Digestion starts in the mouth where salivary glands release an enzyme that begins breaking down polysaccharides. From here, food moves to the stomach and then to the small intestine. It’s further digested in sections of the small intestine until everything is a single sugar unit, or monosaccharide.
After digestion, cells in the intestinal wall absorb monosaccharides. As mentioned above, fructose, glucose, and galactose are the most important monosaccharides for humans. Galactose doesn’t play as large a role as fructose and glucose, which are immediately used by the liver or sent off to serve as fuel in cells.
After the need for immediate fuel is met, glucose and fructose then replenish liver and muscle glycogen. Only glucose molecules can form glycogen, which they do by combining. The fructose taken into cells is first converted to glucose. When energy is needed, glycogen breaks back down into glucose and enters the energy pathways.
Carbs are Bad: Fitness Fiction
The idea that carbs are bad is fitness fiction. Any macronutrient in excess can lead to weight gain. A lot of people view protein as the most important macro and see carbs as extra empty calories when this isn’t the case at all!
There are also common arguments regarding some types of carbs being “healthier” than others. The idea is that simple sugars are harmful and complex sugars are healthy. All carbs, no matter how you consume them, are broken down into simple sugars. But, complex carbohydrates like whole grains are made up of polysaccharides, which must be broken down into single sugar units before absorption. Because of this extra step, polysaccharides take longer to break down, raising blood sugar levels slower and providing a more steady stream of glucose to the body.
Though simple sugars might cause a quicker (and shorter) burst of energy and a spike in blood sugar, many sources of mono- and disaccharides still come with additional nutritional benefits like fiber, vitamins, and minerals, making them a great addition to your diet.
Though this macro isn’t bad, consuming too many carbohydrates and sugars can cause excess insulin to be in circulation, which can lead to a reduction in insulin sensitivity and possibly diabetes, so ensure you’re including a balance of the other macros, fat and protein, as well.
Is This Macro Necessary for Survival?
While the fact still remains that carbs are NOT bad and play an important part in the daily function of the human body, it’s also true that sugars and starches aren’t technically essential for survival. However, just because the body will continue to function doesn’t mean it will function optimally.
The body can make a certain amount of glucose without the consumption of sugar units, but for ideal health and performance, starches and sugars are needed. When carbs are not available, the body makes glucose from muscle tissue (and sometimes fatty acids if needed).
Surviving and thriving are two different things, and your consumption of carbs might make the difference in when and how you meet your goals.
The Wrap Up
If you take nothing else from this post, remember this: carbs are not your enemy.
It’s wise to pay attention to the form of macros you’re consuming to ensure you're getting a balance of other nutrients, not risking a regular spike in your blood sugar, and not overconsuming sugars and carbs, which can lead to diabetes type II.
Even so, all forms of this energy-providing macronutrient fit into a well-rounded diet! Though grains, vegetables, fruits, and sweets shouldn’t all be consumed in equal amounts, there’s no reason to cut one source of macros out.
If you’re interested in a deeper dive into macro types, this study explores a range of dietary patterns consisting of different amounts of macros, the emphasis of carb quality over quantity, and the implications for public health.
If you want to talk more in-depth about the role of macronutrients or have any questions about this blog, contact me!