Good Carb/ Bad Carb, no donut

[baronlaw.livejournal.com]

So I keep hearing the term "good carb" I know it has to do with the foods glycemic index or some such.

Can anyone explain this is non Chemistry Major terms and/or provide a website that lists good/bad carbs?

Comments

[deirdremoon.livejournal.com]

Dammit, Jim, I'm a writer, not a nutritionist.

That said, I *think* it has to do with carbs that are the least processed and have the most nutrients. Whole-grain bread with lots of fiber can be a good carb compared to Wonder Bread. Fruits and veggies are technically carbs but loaded with vitamins, especially the less they're cooked. But some diets say no bread or fruits. Which, I guess, means distinguishing between "good" and "no" carbs.

[baronlaw.livejournal.com]

Cap'n the ship cannae take any more carbs!

[meorime.livejournal.com]

Wendy's on track. You want healthy, nutritiously loaded sources of glucose. Complex sugars take longer for your body to break down so they don't cause a spike in the blood sugar levels (the so called glycemic index, which is popular, but controversial among nutritionists I know from school, so take it as you see fit). I imagine Camino can talk much more intelligently about food and blood sugar levels that I can, but that's the vaguely high level view.

In general terms, refined carbs give you that wonderfully fluffy smooth texture because they strip out all the nutritious bits. Then they "fortify" the refined carb with the bare basics because federal law says they must. But the fortified version doesn't contain nearly what the original version contained.

So you want whole wheat, not just wheat. That's a real distinction. Rice and pastas that are unrefined are much healthier as well.

Then there's dietary fiber which is something the body can't break down at all but acts as a nice bulk to aid in digestion and moving things along. Very important, particularly as we get older.

Cheers!
-M

[racerxmachina.livejournal.com]

Eric found and fell in love with a Vietnamese bakery near our home. Since he does the grocery shopping, all bread purchases became pure white fluffy-soft baguettes, every lunch sandwich, every day of the week.
Two weeks later, after I'd crash and burn at 3 pm, miserably slog through easy exercise, and gobble down vegetables as if I was starving for basic nutrients, I hit upon what the problem was.
I asked Eric to move baguettes into the "treat" category. "Why?" he asked, disappointed.
"Because we've been eating the nutritional equivalent of birthday cake, every day for two weeks." I said.

[baronlaw.livejournal.com]

White bread is the evil, I had some dutch crumb the other day and I could taste the "sugar" in it.

[baronlaw.livejournal.com]

Thank you for that explanation. :)