Not All Carbohydrates Are Equal
Not all carbohydrates are the same.
Some can cause serious problems with your body, but many are very beneficial.
The high potassium foods are the most effective group of foods within the carbohydrates food group.
Processed carbohydrates with high caloric density are some of the worst.
The calorically dense, processed foods have quickly absorbing carbohydrates that result in a spike in blood glucose levels and a rapid decline that takes place a couple of hours following the meal.
This causes the common let-down and feeling of hunger a couple of hours after a meal full of that sort of carbohydrate.
The push by the government for increased consumption of foods that are mainly carbohydrates began a few years before the increased incidence in obesity and diabetes started in the United States.
The emphasis on avoiding fats and increasing carbs resulted in lots of high caloric density carbs being consumed.
Even though the reason for the rise in obesity and diabetes may be associated with several factors, one wonders what amount of the rise is a result of this shift in what we eat.
The making of natural food into processed foods is carried out by pulverizing natural food into fine particles.
Subsequently, the food is simply sold as flour, or the particles are put into a liquid and sold as a drink, or the particles are stuck together to be sold as a solid food product.
For the reason that the food is still composed of fine particles, when the food reaches our stomach, the food readily falls apart, and becomes rapidly absorbed, ending up in a spike in blood sugar.
In food that is not processed, the food's sugar and starch are bound to other components of the food, and take more time to separate, resulting in a gradual absorption more like a gentle hill than a spike.
Not surprisingly, each plant differs slightly, so the sugar and starch binding is tighter in some than in other foods.
Thus the glycemic index (which indicates the speed of glucose entering the blood) differs from one food to the next.
Processed carbohydrate foods resemble charcoal ground up into a powder and then suspended in air.
If you light a match, it all burns instantly (for charcoal, resulting in an explosion).
Natural food is more like a briquette of charcoal, catching fire more slowly and burning more slowly.
One other disadvantage of processed foods occurs when processing adds sodium, done to help in food preservation.
Although it prolongs shelf life, it reduces the health value of the food.
High sodium intake increases the likelihood of hypertension, stroke, and cardiac disease.
Even though everyone requires some sodium, you should limit the amount.
The Institute of Medicine recommends getting between 1.
5 grams and 2.
3 grams of sodium a day.
Potassium is able to counteract many of the adverse effects of sodium.
By getting 3 grams of potassium for every gram of sodium, you are going to significantly reduce your chances of hypertension, resulting in less chance of heart related illnesses and stroke.
In addition, you will lessen your bone loss while you age, and minimize your chance of kidney stones.
High potassium foods are usually low in sodium.
By filling your diet with high potassium foods, you will be very likely to reduce your sodium intake and improve heart function and bone density.
Some can cause serious problems with your body, but many are very beneficial.
The high potassium foods are the most effective group of foods within the carbohydrates food group.
Processed carbohydrates with high caloric density are some of the worst.
The calorically dense, processed foods have quickly absorbing carbohydrates that result in a spike in blood glucose levels and a rapid decline that takes place a couple of hours following the meal.
This causes the common let-down and feeling of hunger a couple of hours after a meal full of that sort of carbohydrate.
The push by the government for increased consumption of foods that are mainly carbohydrates began a few years before the increased incidence in obesity and diabetes started in the United States.
The emphasis on avoiding fats and increasing carbs resulted in lots of high caloric density carbs being consumed.
Even though the reason for the rise in obesity and diabetes may be associated with several factors, one wonders what amount of the rise is a result of this shift in what we eat.
The making of natural food into processed foods is carried out by pulverizing natural food into fine particles.
Subsequently, the food is simply sold as flour, or the particles are put into a liquid and sold as a drink, or the particles are stuck together to be sold as a solid food product.
For the reason that the food is still composed of fine particles, when the food reaches our stomach, the food readily falls apart, and becomes rapidly absorbed, ending up in a spike in blood sugar.
In food that is not processed, the food's sugar and starch are bound to other components of the food, and take more time to separate, resulting in a gradual absorption more like a gentle hill than a spike.
Not surprisingly, each plant differs slightly, so the sugar and starch binding is tighter in some than in other foods.
Thus the glycemic index (which indicates the speed of glucose entering the blood) differs from one food to the next.
Processed carbohydrate foods resemble charcoal ground up into a powder and then suspended in air.
If you light a match, it all burns instantly (for charcoal, resulting in an explosion).
Natural food is more like a briquette of charcoal, catching fire more slowly and burning more slowly.
One other disadvantage of processed foods occurs when processing adds sodium, done to help in food preservation.
Although it prolongs shelf life, it reduces the health value of the food.
High sodium intake increases the likelihood of hypertension, stroke, and cardiac disease.
Even though everyone requires some sodium, you should limit the amount.
The Institute of Medicine recommends getting between 1.
5 grams and 2.
3 grams of sodium a day.
Potassium is able to counteract many of the adverse effects of sodium.
By getting 3 grams of potassium for every gram of sodium, you are going to significantly reduce your chances of hypertension, resulting in less chance of heart related illnesses and stroke.
In addition, you will lessen your bone loss while you age, and minimize your chance of kidney stones.
High potassium foods are usually low in sodium.
By filling your diet with high potassium foods, you will be very likely to reduce your sodium intake and improve heart function and bone density.
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