Are Carb’s "Evil" Part 4: Sugar Addiction

You just had a great dinner! And you’re so proud of yourself for being so healthy! You stayed away from the mac’n cheese, avoided the greasy burger and managed to miraculously have a plateful of veggies with your meal. So now, why are you eyeing that chocolate cookie like you haven’t eaten in days?

Scenario two: It’s 2pm. You’ve got 3 more hours to go at work. You’ve got stacks and stacks of KP reports to process. But all you can think about is taking a nap! So in an effort to avoid getting fired, you grab one of those mocha-java-caramel-cream-latte-swirl drinks. Perfect, you get a jolt of energy, you get through those pesky KP reports and now it’s time to go home. Maybe, you’ll even go to the gym. But somehow when you get home, that urge to nap is back! How is this possible?

The magic word here is sugar, well, and insulin. Sugar has an amazing power to get us going, energize us and make us feel better. The problem is, it also has the power to cause our energy, and our bodies to crash. See too much sugar not only causes you to pack on calories, but it creates a metabolic disorder that at first causes insulin to overreact (creating that sudden sugar drop) then eventually leads to insulin resistance, then diabetes. Furthermore, research is beginning to point to this cycle as the cause of high cholesterol, leading to heart disease. And new research is also pointing to this metabolic imbalance as a major contributor to inflammatory diseases like arthritis, as well as hormonal imbalances, depression anxiety and ADHD.

Ohh sugar why must you be so tempting!! The intense craving is actually innate and at one point crucial for survival. It was essential locate sugar when foraging for food. That’s because back then sugar was scarce (not exactly easy to get a Slurpees back in those days) and was an important source of calories when food was less available. It’s also what prompted our prehistoric ancestors to eat fruits, the main source of sugar, and inadvertently fiber, vitamins and antioxidants. The problem is, now that food is vastly more abundant, we’ve still got the same hardwiring. What’s meant to help us eat more berries and other fruit is now driving us to eat more Twinkies and jelly beans. And when you combine that hardwiring with the seductive powers of caffeine, like in soda and coffee, and you’ve got a serious addiction.

Think about your relationship with sugar... have you had trouble cutting back? Next we’ll find out why.

Are Carbs Evil? Part 3: The "Good" Guys

"Good” Carbs:

OK, we’ve spent so much time talking about the bad guys that it looks like Carbs might be evil after all. But no, there are good guys! These are the Carbs that, when eaten, will not cause dangerous insulin spikes. They contain fiber so they will fill you up without making you feel like you need to take a nap. They also have all their natural vitamin and mineral content- including iron and some essential amino acids. And as if that’s not enough, they’re packed with protein!

• Whole Grains- Some of the most popular are brown rice, whole barely, quinoa, “Old Fashioned” Oatmeal (Steal Cut is even better!), bulgur and buckwheat. These grains are unrefined and because they still have their “shell” they keep all their fiber and essential nutrition. No pesky insulin spike and sugar crash and you’re not going be reaching for a snack in a couple hours because you’re not satisfied.

• Real, fresh baked bread- if it’s made with whole grains and lacking all the preservatives can be a great alternative. I’m not talking about processed whole wheat either, that’s still processed. I’m talking about the kind where you can see all the grains in there (because they didn’t mill it down to powder). The difference here, slower absorption and digestion, more filling, more nutrition and no preservatives.

• Veggies, fruits, beans, legumes and yams- Yup of course these are Carbs, complex Carbs. What’s the difference here? Fiber! When’s the last time you heard someone say they gained weight eating too much broccoli? That’s because it’s virtually impossible to overeat when there’s this much fiber involved. So you’re full, keeping your blood sugar stable and adding vitamins, minerals, antioxidants and with the exception of fruit and most veggies, more protein!

• Natural alternatives, like honey, agave, stevia and cane sugar. In an effort to decrease our sugar consumption and as a reaction to consumer demand for healthier products, a lot soft drinks, juices, teas and foods are now switching over. I can go on for days about the pros and cons of each one of these alternatives, but I won’t bore you with that (for now). I will say this, if given a choice between sugar, artificial sugar and one of these, go with the natural alternative. Cane sugar, agave and honey are still a form of sugar so you’re still consuming calories. Stevia is calorie free, but as with all these alternatives, the body will respond with insulin, but at a much more efficient rate. No spike, no crash.

So everyone knows sugar is bad, so why is it so hard to quit the white stuff? Next up, sugar addiction.

Are carbs Evil? part 2: "Bad" Carbs

“Bad” Carbs:

These foods have crept onto this list because I believe that they unquestionably lead not only to weight gain, but also blood sugar abnormalities that cause diabetes, high cholesterol, heart disease, depression, anxiety, ADHD, cancer and even arthritis!

• Refined Sugar- Americans consume an average of 180 pounds of sugar a year. That translates to each person consuming a half a pound of sugar a day. We’re talking a cup of sugar a day and I honestly think that a low ball estimate! Where is this coming from? Well just look at the ingredient list of most processed foods and you’re sure to find added sugar. Soda is by far the most offending culprit. But fruit juice, ice teas, and sport drinks are not far behind. Everyone knows that candy and ice cream have sugar, but don’t forget cereal, yogurt, granola bars… oh wait aren’t those supposed to be healthy? They would be, if the manufacturers didn’t add so much sugar to make them more appealing, more palatable and addictive (yup sugar is addictive, more about that later).

• Not-so-“Wonder” bread and pasta- good old refined flour. Processed in such a way as to deplete any of its natural content of B vitamins, fiber and protein. Back in the late 1800’s someone invented a cheap way to process wheat to mass produce flour with a smoother consistency. This process was so efficient, that soon all breads, pastries, cereals and pasta where made this way. One glitch, people started getting sick! Malnutrition due to depleted levels of B vitamins leads the government to enforce mandatory use of enrichment to replace the depleted content. The problem here is twofold, however. The processed flour also acts like sugar once absorbed and causes the same type of insulin response that refined sugar does.  

• High Fructose corn Syrup- this ingredient made it into our foods in the late 70’s as a sweetener that could be added to foods and beverages without altering calorie content (and an oh so useful way to use up all that extra corn being subsidized). Sounds great! But one huge disadvantage, you’re pancreas doesn’t know the difference and still secrets insulin. These repeated insulin spikes have been attributed to a slew of health problems, including diabetes. This guy is in everything, soda, fruit juice, ice tea, bread, granola bars (I know! Again!), peanut butter, the list goes on and on.

• Aspartame, Splenda and the like- OK technically these aren’t “carbs” but they also aren’t real, so your body doesn’t deserve that. How do you expect it to function properly if you don’t give it what it’s been designed to run on for thousands of years of evolution? You wouldn’t put petroleum in your car and expect it to function properly (come to think of it, you wouldn’t put sugar in your gas tank either), why would you expect any different from your body?

OK, enough talking trash… next we’ll learn about some of the good guys.

Are Carbs Evil?

All carbs are not created equal. In fact, I’m going to go ahead and say, that carbs are not as bad as some of the fad diets would like us to believe. Refined and imitation carbs are primarily the culprits. For some people with certain sensitivities or allergies wheat or gluten might be out of the question also. But for the most part, including whole grains into your diet can help you feel fuller longer, curb your blood sugar levels and even provide a great source of fiber, vitamins, minerals and protein.

So what is a carb anyway? Well in case you forgot your 7^th grade science, a carbohydrate is sugar. It includes simple carbs like table sugar and fruit sugar, to complex carbs like bread, grains and pasta. Our bodies and especially our brain need sugar in order to survive. And the body is a crafty guy, coming up with ways to “make” sugar when it’s not readily available by breaking down complex carbs, protein and fat into sugar molecules. But the problem begins when we are eating the wrong kind and too much. That’s when we fall into the trap of obesity, diabetes and high cholesterol along with dozens of other conditions that cascade from there.

So what to do? Eliminate carbs all together and go Atkins? Keep some carbs and do more South Beach? Or say “forget it,” and just hit the candy store? Well the problem is, there isn’t just one diet that’s perfect for everyone (with the exception of the “Candy Store” diet, that’s universally bad for everyone). If there was, the “Diet Industry” wouldn’t be churning out hundreds of books a year on the subject. There wouldn’t be a demand for diet aids, Lap-Band and stomach bypass surgery, and of course everyone would be thin and healthy.

There’s so many different factor to consider, that I’m going to dedicate a series of posts on this subject. So stay tuned for upcoming posts on how distinguished the good, the bad and the evil.