Carbohydrates Facts - What are carbohydrates?

Carbohydrates facts are often buried under a mountain of opinions or strange ideas of what carbohydrates are and how they work in the body. Unfortunately, this situation makes understanding carbohydrates pretty dang confusing!

What are carbohydrates?

Carbohydrates are nutrients that the body needs in order to function. A nutrient is something that nourishes. There are 4 types of nutrients that the body needs in large quantities to run right and be healthy. These are called "macronutrients" because "macro-" means "large."

The macronutrients the body requires are:

• Carbohydrate
• Protein
• Fats
• Water
  

Carbohydrates facts:

1. The word "carbohydrate" comes from "carbo-" meaning carbon.
   
   Carbon is a basic chemical element found in all organic and some inorganic compounds. (Organic in this sense means "derived from living organisms.")
   
   " Carbo-" is combined with "-hydrate" which means formed with water.

2. All carbohydrate digests and breaks down into molecules of sugar.
   
   Table sugar is a simple carbohydrate. Different foods and food combinations that contain carbohydrate digest at different speeds. Starches are also carbohydrates.
   
   Dairy usually contains some carbohydrate. Beans (legumes) contain both protein and carbohydrate.
   
   The speed of absorption of the glucose (sugar) from carbohydrate digestion is where the glycemic index comes in. The glycemic index, or GI is a measure of the effects of carbohydrates on blood sugar levels.
   
   A "high GI" number carbohydrate food breaks down more quickly and affects blood sugar levels faster than a "low GI" number carbohydrate food.

3. Carbohydrates are the primary source of energy for the body.
   
   Fat is the second source. Carbohydrate and fat actually are both composed of carbon and hydrogen, just in a different combination.
   
   Think of wood for a fire. Carbohydrate is like the twigs and small branches you use to get the fire started. Fat is like the big logs that keep the fire going.

4. There are 4 calories per gram of carbohydrate.
   
   
5. "Good carbs" and "bad carbs" have to do with the amount of processing done to the food.
   
   For example, an apple, fresh and crisp off the tree, is a good source of carbohydrate AND it's full of vitamins, minerals and enzymes all packaged into a yummy treat and the body loves it.
   
   An apple pie from a fast food restaurant, on the other hand, is very processed, meaning it contains preservatives, extra refined sugar and other substances that make it far less nutritious with more "empty" calories. Therefore it would be classified as a "bad" carbohydrate.

More carbohydrates facts: Benefits of carbohydrates

In addition to being the primary source of energy for the body, one of the important benefits of carbohydrates in fresh fruits and vegetables are their enzyme content. Enzymes are chemical substances that our bodies require to perform digestion and metabolism.

Especially in fruits and vegetables, there are abundant quantities of vitamins and minerals (called "micronutrients" because the body needs them, but in small quantities). This is another one of the benefits of carbohydrates.

I personally follow a low-carbohydrate diet (note: that doesn't mean "NO carbohydrate!) and have lost a herd of weight plus my blood sugar levels are much better managed!

If you want to learn more about low-carbohydrate eating and its benefits, check out the article "Low Carb and Loving It" on this site.

I hope this answers the question: "What are carbohydrates?" and provides you with some simple and basic carbohydrate facts.

Cheers,
BB

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