Carbohydrates are your body's preferred source of energy. They are one of three macronutrients with fats and protein being the other two. Carbs can be split into two main groups; complex carbohydrates and simple carbohydrates. Of the two complex carbohydrates are often seen as the good choice and simple carbohydrates are viewed as the bad choice. However, this simple distinction is not always the best way to choose your carbs. That is why in this article I am going to be explaining how to choose your carbohydrates effectively.
To begin you first need to understand the difference between complex carbs and simple carbs. The difference is actually down to chemical structure and has nothing to do with that carbohydrate source being good or bad. Simple carbohydrates are made up of one or two units of sugar whilst complex carbohydrates are made up of three or more linked units of sugar.
When you ingest carbohydrates (either simple or complex) they are absorbed in your digestive tract which triggers an increase in glucose (blood sugar) levels. When your glucose levels rise your pancreas responds by releasing the hormone insulin. This allows your cells to use glucose for energy or store it as glycogen or fat for later use. Once your cells have taken enough glucose and blood levels of this sugar become low your pancreas stops releasing insulin and starts releasing the hormone glucagon. This allows your liver to convert stored glycogen into glucose so that it can be released back into the bloodstream. Overall, this process ensures that your body's cells always have a steady supply of energy available.
Now the type of carbohydrate you choose does have an impact on this process. However, the key factor is not whether the carbohydrate is simple or complex but how quickly it is digested. Eating too many quick digesting carbohydrates causes your blood glucose levels to surge and crash which can lead to rapidly changing energy levels, difficulty controlling your appetite and organ damage. Therefore, you need to make sure that the majority of carbohydrates you choose are digested relatively slowly.
So how do you determine which carbohydrates are slow digesting? Well there are a number of methods you can use including the glycemic index and the glycemic load. However, as a general rule you should go for natural carbohydrate choices. Highly processed snacks are generally loaded with simple carbohydrates and little else meaning that they are digested very quickly. Natural carbohydrate sources such as fruits and vegetables normally contain slower digesting carbohydrates and are also rich in fibre and other nutrients which further help moderate blood glucose levels.
Author Resource:-
Tom Parker owns and operates a number of useful fitness resources and websites. You can learn more about the main carbohydrates and get a free fitness tip delivered to your email inbox every day for a full year by visiting his websites.
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