Low Carb VS High Carb Diet
“Carbs mat khana! Moote ho jaoge!”
I cannot tell you the number of consultation call’s I have per day which start with people saying “But I have stopped all Carbs, still I am not losing weight”. We have villain- ised carbs so much as a society.
Undoubtedly, over the years, there have been a lot of speculations about the impact of carbohydrates on our health.
Interestingly, the debate over carbohydrates traces back to the 19th century. The Atkins diet was the most well-known low-carb diet in the 1970s, 1980s, and 1990s. Then, in the 2000s, there was an explosion of different types of low or no-carb diets. It includes paleo, South Beach, Whole30, and other low-carb diets. The war on carbs raged on in the 2010s, gaining traction with the Bulletproof Diet and the Carnivore Diet.
However, throughout history, studies have suggest that high-carb diets are more beneficial to the body.
Here are a few blogs I already have on this topic:
More on carbs…
Our bodies need carbohydrates. When we consume carbohydrates, our body converts them into a sugar known as glucose.
Glucose is also known colloquially as blood sugar. Our bodies use glucose and fatty acids to provide fuel for cells, allowing us to move and simply exist.
Carbs are literally designed to keep our system running.
Carbohydrates are frequently blamed for weight gain, but they aren't all bad. According to experts, carbohydrate-containing foods such as vegetables, legumes, whole grains and dietary fibre can reduce the risk of heart diseases while also keeping our waistline small.
Fibre may also reduce your risk of type 2 diabetes and aid in digestion.
Does science also show this?
Studies have shown that higher carbohydrate diets outperformed lower carbohydrate diets in terms of coronary artery calcium score.
A study by European cardiologists who looked at a sample of nearly 25,000 people in the United States discovered that low-carb eaters had a 32% increased risk of dying from any cause. When heart disease and stroke were considered separately, the risk of death from heart disease was 51% higher, stroke was 50% higher, and cancer was 35% higher.
Furthermore, they discovered that low-carb diets high in animal protein and fat associates with a higher risk of death.
Research also shows that when a high-carb diet is consumed, the hormone fibroblast growth factor 21 increases in our body. This important hormone is primarily produced in the liver and aids in increasing the amount of energy we burn at rest. basically, keeping our metabolism fired up.
A high carb diet also helps us better modulate our blood glucose breakdown and absorption.
A high-carb diet activates systems that promote longevity. It also turns off the biological clock on disease-causing and ageing machinery.
But these benefits are only seen on a high ‘whole- food’ carb diet. That means, unprocessed grains like brown rice and whole wheat instead of white rice and maida bread.
So complex carbs in it’s whole form as nature intended it to be instead of junk food in the name of carbs.
Carbs are sub- divided into sugar, fibre and resistance starch. You want to stay away from sugar, but embrace fibre and resistance starch.
It is a misconception that carbs are bad for you. Carbohydrates, in fact, are abundant in many of the healthiest foods. However, it is critical to understand the difference between processed and un- processed carbs.
For example, foods like brown rice, sweet potato, oats, quinoa, oranges, beets, bananas, buckwheat, grapefruit, blueberries, and chickpeas are also high- carb, but very important for you.
These are part of a healthy, whole-foods diet. This will increase your intake of essential nutrients like fibre, vitamins, and minerals. It will also lessen the risk of heart and other cardiovascular diseases.
Trust this helps,