Carbohydrates have been getting a bad rap for years. Unfortunately this has lead to many people associating carbohydrates with weight gain. Yes it’s true that eating too many carbohydrates will make you gain weight, but so too will eating too much protein or fat. At the end of the day weight management comes down to calories in (food) and calories out (physical activity). 

Carbohydrates should make up the bulk of your daily intake. However it’s the type of carbohydrate that matters most. So while having a bowl of Sugar-Os for breakfast, a few slices of white bread with lunch and a bowl of white rice at supper will provide you with carbohydrates, they are not the carbohydrates that promote health. 

The carbohydrates that promote health are unadulterated meaning that they have not been sent to a factory where they were stripped of fiber, vitamins and minerals the way wheat is to make white bread, or the way corn is is to make high fructose corn syrup. One great rule of thumb is to choose carbohydrates from sources that are sold as close to the way they are in nature. Fruits, vegetables and beans for example have had little done to them besides being picked, sorted and washed before they are shipped to stores or farmers’ markets. This means that these foods are full of their original and healthful nutrients: vitamins, minerals and fiber. 

Most Americans eat far too many refined carbohydrates in the form of cane sugar and high fructose corn syrup. The recommendation is that 6-10% of our intake come from sugars (that’s about 9 teaspoons). However most Americans are consuming a lot more sugar than 9 teaspoons; there are about 9.5 teaspoons of sugar (in the form of high fructose corn syrup) in a can of cola! All these grams of sugar may curb your appetite for a short while, but actually causes hunger to rebound with a vengeance sending you back into the kitchen for more empty calories.