Believe It or Not: Carbs are Good

A large portion of the U.S. population has gone "anti-carb" with the evolution of the Atkins diet, the South Beach diet and other carb-restricting diets. What most people don’t understand is that carbohydrates can be very good.

Let’s look at some basic carbohydrate facts:

  • There are both simple (sugars) and complex (starch, dextrins and glycogen) carbohydrates.
  • Once carbohydrates are absorbed in your body, they can be stored within the liver, muscle tissue or in the blood stream (as blood sugar).
  • Excess carbs are not excreted but converted to fat for storage. 
  • When you exercise, the primary fuel source is carbohydrates.
  • Your body uses the glycogen (storage form of glucose) that is stored in your muscles, then relies on the glycogen stored in your liver. If there aren't enough carbohydrates available within the muscle or liver, the body will turn next to protein.
  • The source of protein your body turns to is muscle (muscles are made of protein).
  • Your body breaks down some of your own muscle to metabolize the protein as a fuel source.
  • Finally fat will be used. At any one time, a combination of all three fuel sources -- carbs, protein, fat -- are being metabolized.
  • The type of fuel used to the greatest degree depends on the duration and intensity of the exercise or activity.
    The longer the exercise lasts, the greater the likelihood your system will dip into your fat stores for energy. This usually requires continuous exercise in excess of 30 minutes.

How do people see such good results in the first two to three weeks with the low-carb diets?

Easy, it's all water.

  • Carbohydrates are stored in the body attached to water molecules.
  • When your body is deprived of carbohydrates through your diet, carbs will be taken out of storage and with each carb extracted comes water. 
  • So, that initial 10 or so pounds you lose in the first couple of weeks is actually just water.
  • What this ultimately means is that your body is now dehydrated and has diminished carbohydrate stores.

For more information, please contact

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 This information is made possible in part by gift from Cambridge Homes