Carbohydrates belong to the group of micronutrients. Carbohydrates foods provide the human body with the energy it needs and is an outstanding source of many minerals and vitamins.
They are found in foods like vegetables, fruits, pasta, breads, and dairy products. The body uses these foods to make glucose that is the body’s main energy source.
Glucose is a kind of sugar that can be used right away for the energy or stored away to be used later. All the cells in the human body need carbohydrates foods, and they are also important for waste elimination and intestinal health.
Once in the body, carbs are easily converted into fuel.
Types Of Carbs:
There are mainly two types of carbohydrate foods: simple carbohydrates and complex carbohydrates.
- Simple carbohydrates: Simple carbohydrates are mainly made up of sugar molecules. They are one of the quickest sources of energy as they are very easily digested. The food sources of simple carbohydrates include honey, brown sugar, maple syrup, table sugar, jellies, corn syrup, soft drinks, molasses, fruit drinks and candy.
- Complex carbohydrates: Complex carbohydrates is another among the types of carbohydrate foods which can be referred to as dietary starch and are mainly made of the sugar molecules strung together like a necklace. They are rich in fiber, thus health promoting and satisfying. Complex Carbohydrates are mainly found in whole plant foods and are high in minerals and vitamins. The food sources of complex carbohydrates include pasta, whole grains, whole grain breads, oatmeal, sweet potatoes, green vegetables, corn, pumpkin, beans, peas, bananas, lentils, barley, beans, beans, brown rice, potatoes, oats, and parsnips.
Health Benefits Of Eating Carbohydrates
Carbs Can Help Boost the Mood
It has been found that carbs promote the production of serotonin, a feel-good brain chemical.
Men and women who followed a very low carbohydrate diet for a year—that allowed only 30 to 35 grams of carbs regularly, about the amount in just 1 cup of rice plus 1/2 piece of the bread—experienced more anxiety and depression than those assigned to a low-fat, high-carb diet that focused on low-fat dairy, fruit, whole grains and beans.
Carbs Are Good For Your Heart
It has been found that increasing one’s soluble fiber intake (a type of fiber found in high carbohydrates food like beans and oatmeal) by 6 to 9 grams every day can result in a 6 percent drop in “bad” LDL cholesterol.
Similarly, men and women who eat whole grains (bulgur, brown rice, and quinoa) also tend to have higher “good” HDL cholesterol and lower LDL cholesterol.
Carbs Will Help You Trim Your Waistline
Swapping the refined grains for whole grains can help reduce belly fat and total body fat. It has been found that adults who eat about 4 servings of whole grains a day have about 3.1 percent less body fat and 4.1 percent less abdominal fat than those who eat less than a quarter of a serving.
Carbs Will Help You Blast Fat
Eating a healthy breakfast made with “slow-release” carbohydrates, like bran cereal or oatmeal, before exercise can help burn more fat. Eating “slow-release” carbohydrates do not spike the blood sugar as high as eating refined carbohydrates, like white toast.
In turn, the insulin levels do not spike as high and as insulin plays a pivotal role in signaling the human body to store fat, having lower levels can help you burn fat.
Providing Energy
The body utilizes carbohydrates as its main fuel source. Starches and sugars are broken down into simple sugars during the digestion. They are then completely absorbed into the bloodstream, where they are known as blood sugar (blood glucose).
From there, the glucose enters the cells of the body with the help of the insulin. Glucose is used by the human body for energy, fueling all of the activities, whether it is going for jogging or simply breathing.
Extra glucose is collected in the muscles, liver and other cells for later use or is converted to fat.
Brain Function
The body uses carbohydrates for optimal brain functions. Foods like oats, vegetables, beans, quinoa, nuts, legumes, fruits and seeds all retain an array of carbohydrates that aid in mental focus and a healthy mood.
Without carbohydrates, one can become foggy-headed, feel light-headed, have a hard time concentrating, feel depressed or sad, or just not feel like oneself. You can also have the harder time retaining information.
Do not deprive the brain of carbohydrates- it needs them!
Metabolism
Carbohydrates provide one with the energy, so they are important for an optimal metabolism. Without energetic calories, the metabolism will suffer.
Most men and women assume that as a low-carb diet can lead to weight loss that it will improve their metabolism, but this is the opposite of being true.
While one might lose some weight without carbohydrates, the metabolism will suffer and slow down the longer one prolong the diet. Again, eating whole food sources of carbohydrates is the most effective way to optimize the weight, energy, and metabolism.
Controlling Weight
The carbs get blamed for weight gain, but the fact is they can help one in controlling or reducing weight if consumed properly. The thinking that reduction in intake of carbohydrates is the only solution to reducing weight is fallacious.
Proper selection of carbohydrates, in fact, helps one in reducing weight early. The proper diet of vegetables, fruits, and fibrous foods help one in weight loss. Diets high in carbs can be helpful in reducing weight and controlling the muscle tones.
Nervous System Function
Complex carbohydrates help provide a grounding effect to the body and reduce anxiety and nervousness. It is the reason one often feel less stressed after having a simple banana, a yummy bowl of oatmeal or a dish made with sweet potatoes.
Carbohydrates provide the body with exactly what they need all the way down to the nervous system. They help the body produce a number of enzymatic reactions and bring balance in just about every way possible.
Prevent Diseases
The fibrous foods provide your ammunition for fighting certain diseases like obesity and diabetes. Fiber helps indigestion and keeping the cholesterol and the heart diseases under control.
The fiber can be obtained from dietary fiber and whole grains. Exercise control and proper intake of calories can prevent several diseases like diabetes and heart related problems.
Low fat, low cholesterol carbohydrates can reduce or eliminate heart related diseases.
Since carbs work both ways for increasing and reducing weights, the inclusion of carbohydrates need to be done very carefully. So choose your carbs wisely.