Carbohydrates in products: why do we need to know which ones and how many

Certainly, Carbohydrates in foods are no less important component than proteins and fats. They all belong to the vital nutrient components of food, and the human body needs them. Carbohydrates are the basic material, easily accessible and high-energy, which supports the vital activity of a living being.

What carbohydrates can be and why they are needed

It is known that carbohydrates in foods can be simple and complex. The first include: glucose, fructose, lactose, maltose, sucrose, galactose. They are used as fast energy resources. For example, for the brain, muscles and kidneys, as well as red blood cells (erythrocytes), only glucose is suitable. Complex carbohydrates such as starch, pectins and cellulose are needed for similar purposes. So, starch is a long-lasting source of energy. Pectins and cellulose in the human body are not split, but this does not mean that they are not needed. It is necessary that these carbohydrates are present in the products in order to ensure the normal operation of the gastrointestinal tract. It is carbohydrates that serve as a reserve reserve of energy, for this they are deposited in the liver and muscles in the form of glycogen.

What foods contain carbohydrates

• Sweet, flour products (including macaroni), bread, honey, chocolate.
• Fruits, vegetables, milk, sour cream, mushrooms.

In this case, foods rich in carbohydrates and listed in the first group, with any type of food should not be consumed excessively.

The problem of excess weight is responsible for carbohydrates

The metabolism of carbohydrates and fats in the body is interconnected. With excess intake of carbohydrates with food, as already mentioned, they are stored in reserve. But if there are too many of them, and the person is inactive, carbohydrates begin to turn into substances of "long-term storage" - fats. This is the mechanism of recruiting excess body weight. When there is a shortage of carbohydrates, reserve fat is used for the needs of the body first, then the use of the body's own proteins starts, and exhaustion begins.

On the principle of reducing the amount of carbohydrates that come with food, so-called non-carbohydrate diets are based: Atkins, the Kremlin diet. In them, the intake of proteins and fats is not limited at all, only carbohydrates are almost completely excluded. The products contain a certain amount, counted in grams per 100 grams of the product. Based on these figures, a person calculates a daily diet so as not to exceed the permissible amount.

Often people who stick to carbohydrate diets ask the question: "Eating without carbohydrates is useful or harmful?". First, no proper diet allows you to remove any nutritional component altogether, as this is very harmful. It only needs to be limited. Secondly, with such diets there is an increased burden on the liver and kidneys because of the increased intensity of protein metabolism. But such kind of diets are effective, only to apply them it is necessary with mind and after consultation with the doctor.