Low carb diet? I won’t make fun if you’ve tried one. But, just so you know why you felt like crap, or in case you were thinking about trying a diet that would send your cholesterol through the roof, drain your brain power, gain twice as much weight back when you finally snap and cause you to be fatigued, cranky, generally miserable and constantly hungry… I give you the following:
Carbohydrates are not the problem. Sugar is the problem. White sugar, brown sugar, raw sugar- any kind of refined sugar, refined flour, refined, processed and de-mineralized packaged foods. White foods are danger bay.
This is how it works. The body needs carbohydrates. Carbohydrates are what is broken down to fuel the brain, to give you energy and is also what the body needs to power all the many of millions of things going on in the body at any one time. Depriving your body of this energy is detrimental to its total functioning.
It is not about the quantity of the carbohydrates you eat, it is about the quality.
This is what happens with the refined carbohydrates after they leave your mouth and head for the depths of the digestive system. Well… Not much actually. Because they are so refined, they do not require much digestion time and so the sugar that comprises these simple carbs (glucose, fructose and galactose) zip through your digestive system and enter your blood stream very quickly. This causes your blood-sugar levels to surge. In an attempt to balance your blood-sugar levels, the pancreas will excrete insulin to stabilize the levels, causing your blood sugar levels to drop. Fast. This sudden drop forces your adrenal glands to secrete adrenalin in an attempt to boost the blood sugar levels back up.
When this fails- you feel irritable, cranky, sleepy, depressed, anxious, stressed, impatient and/or dizzy. This will lend to another sugar craving, or the desire to eat more and the cycle begins. When you get these cravings- you are not searching for some whole grain bread with almond butter are you? No. You want more quick sugar. You reach for the white bread and sugary peanut butter. You go for the afternoon chocolate bar. A couple of my favorite pattycake vegan cookies. You drink another cup of coffee. You reach for a cold Coke or Gatorade. You might even think that a bowl of white rice would be a smart choice. You end up feeding this craving with more simple carbs when in fact your body needs real solid long lasting energy it can use. Ever notice yourself getting hungry an hour after you finish a large meal? Or when you have Chinese food? This is because it is comprised of white rice and food doused in sugary sauces. What was the filler in your meal? Pasta? Potatoes? Bread?
In addition to the roller coaster you are taking your nervous system, pancreas, and adrenal glands on (which get fried enough with the external stresses) we find that we can’t lose weight. But the package of licorice says “Fat Free” right there on the front? But it’s white rice? What could be wrong with that? These refined foods- in their processed forms do not have the minerals and vitamins the cells of the body needs to actually burn them. Whole foods carry with them the keys needed to unlock the cells. With these keys having been stripped away in refining and processing methods, the sugar has no place to go but to our belly’s, bums, arm wings, thighs, chins… in other words- these refined, simple cards get stored as fat.
Our diets these days are so refined that they completely lack the vitamins and minerals we need in order to use the food we’re eating as fuel. These refined foods also lack the fiber needed to keep it moving and so it starts to build up… and up and up.
Have trouble falling asleep at night? Or do you ever notice yourself waking up in the middle of the night with a bad case of spinny brain? This can and often is the result of refined carbs. If you are stuck in the rise and fall cycle of blood sugar, the adrenalin coursing through your veins at bed time will make it hard to fall asleep. As well, if you maintain this pattern for long enough, you won’t even need the refined carbs to kick in the adrenalin ejection, it will do it all on it’s own, thus waking you in the middle of the night in an anxious frenzy. And if you find yourself heading to the kitchen cupboards for a midnight snack… well- I think you now know what that means.
Allow me to introduce you to the good carbs. These are often called complex carbohydrates as they are more complex for your body to break them down. These include such things as whole grains (whole oats, brown rice, quinoa, whole wheat), starchy vegetables (sweet potatoes, squashes), and beans and legumes (soy, lentils, chickpeas). These carbohydrates help your body to maintain a steady level of energy through the day. Due to their complex nature, it takes your body more time to break them down, more time for them to move through your digestive system, more time to enter your blood stream and more time to get into your cells to be burned for energy. These carbs will be used by the cells for energy and therefore not stored as fat as happens with the naughty processed versions. This slow process means that your body is absorbing the vitamins and minerals from the food and provides a steady flow of energy for several hours following your meal. Complex carbs will keep you satisfied longer and you will be less likely to find yourself in the kitchen an hour after dinner opening every cupboard looking for that something to satisfy that craving.
In addition to the energy that carbohydrates provide, diets high in complex carbohydrates, fruits and veggies will also provide your body with the fiber needed to clear out the old and make room for the new. Fiber helps your body naturally metabolize fat and protein and eliminate the waste. Soluble fibers found in fruits, veggies, psyllium (these are the digestible fibers that can hold and store water) are like big brooms that move through the digestive system sweeping up the debris, absorbing liquids for bulk and moving things through- including cholesterol, bacteria, and waste.
This keeps the immune system strong, lowers blood fats, boosts and stabilizes energy levels, helps maintain good brain function and minimizes digestive upset and bowel disorders (including colon cancer).
