Carbohydrates, The Good and the Bad

Often,  carbohydrates are getting a bad wrap from millions of dieters on popular fad diets. Research from the World Health Organization, American Heart Association, American Cancer Society, and American Dietetic Association warns of the long-term risks associated with diabetes and heart disease is the result of a low-carb, high protein diet.

You will lose weight on a low-carb diet temporarily. Low-carb diets are calorie restrictive diets. If you eat fewer calories than you burn, you will loose weight. But at what cost, any weight loss plan that claims you can eat, as much high saturated fat food as you want should cause you to wonder. Any weight loss plan that restricts a food group that humans have thrived on for over ten thousand years should cause you to wonder. Complex carbohydrates like fruits, vegetables, grains, beans, and legumes have formed the foundation of the traditional diets of several regions of the world. Scientists from the Mediterranean, Asian, and Latin America countries agree that the exceptionally low rate of chronic diseases, coupled with an increased lifespan of the people living in these regions, is due to their traditional diets. The quality of the carbohydrates we eat is more important than the quantity of carbohydrates. Fruits may be high in sugar, but they should not be lumped together with a chocolate candy bar. Fruits, vegetables, grains, beans, and legumes are complex carbohydrates and a candy bar, box cereal, white rice, white flour, and white sugar are refined carbohydrates.