Do you ever feel like your brain isn't functioning properly, like you are mentally exhausted? This could be due to the lack of glucose in your body, the storage form of carbohydrate. Glucose provides nearly all of the energy that the human brain uses daily. People do not eat glucose and glycogen directly; they eat foods rich in carbohydrates, and then their bodies convert the carbohydrate mostly into glucose for immediate energy and glycogen for reserved energy. Dietary recommendations suggest that carbohydrates provide more than half (55-60%) of the energy requirements. A person consuming 2,000 calories a day should therefore consume 1,100 - 1,200 calories of carbohydrate, or about 275-300 grams daily.
Many individuals mistakenly think of carbohydrates as "fattening" and avoid them when trying to lose weight. Actually, this could be counterproductive. People can better control weight by consuming high-carbohydrate, high-fiber foods and limiting high-fat foods. All unrefined plant foods, which include whole grains, vegetables, legumes, and fruits, provide ample carbohydrates and fiber with little or no fat.
There are two forms of Carbohydrates:
(1) Simple Carbohydrates: (Simple sugars; composed of monosaccharides & disaccharides)
The monosaccharide Fructose is found in:
Soft drinks
Ready-to-Eat Cereals
Desserts that have been sweetened with high-fructose corn syrup
The disaccharide Sucrose is found in:
Table sugar
Brown, white, and powdered sugars
The disaccharide Lactose is found in:
Milk sugar
Contributes to about 5 % of milk's weight(2) Complex Carbohydrates:
(Complex sugars; composed of 3 types of polysaccharides)
Glycogen:
Found only to a limited extent in meats; not found in plants
Not a significant food source for carbohydrate
Body stores as glycogen
Starches:
Plant polysaccharides composed of glucose
Found in:
Grains such as wheat or rice, potatoes, and in legumes such as peas and beans
Grains are the richest of the food sources of starch
Body stores as glucose
Fiber:
This is the nonstarch polysaccharide found in plants
Food found in:
Vegetables, fruits, grains, and legumes
Two forms of fiber:
Soluble fibers: fruits (apples, citrus), oats, barley, legumes - helps lower blood cholesterol
Insoluble fibers: Wheat bran, corn bran, whole grain breads and cereals, vegetables
- Helps delay glucose absorption
In conclusion, the health benefits of consuming a diet rich with starch, fiber, natural sugars, whole grains, vegetables, legumes, and fruits that supply valuable vitamins and minerals allowing your body to control weight. Complex carbohydrates are low in fat, they make you feel full, and help delay hunger. They can also help protect against heart disease and some types of cancer. Diets rich in complex carbohydrates have also been linked to lower incidences of diabetes, and ease GI disorders.
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Written By: Nicole Hinkley
Source: Understanding Normal and Clinical Nutrition, 6th ed.
