Nutrition 101: To Carb or Not to Carb?

Article written by our Nutritionist partner, Hannah Norris ANutr MSc

 

Carbs or Not to Carb?

Oh! Carbohydrates… how you have been wrongly demonised. 

Firstly, carbohydrates are one of three major macronutrients (alongside fat and protein), providing energy (4 kcal  per gram). Carbohydrates can be ingested in different formats, the body then breaks it down into smaller parts i.e. sugar and/or fibre. 

The major issue we see now is avoiding carbohydrates means avoiding fibre, which we REALLY do not want as fibre is incredible for our health(link to fibre blog). The craze of carnivore diet and even keto is pretty bad for our health due to the impact of low to no fibre has on our gut microbiome, and the negative impact of too much saturated fat and protein on our gut too. 

Restricting carbohydrates too much can also impact mood, bone health and as a woman may impact your menstrual cycle. 

However, as someone myself that prefers a slightly higher fat diet over higher carbs, it can be done healthily and the way to follow a lower carbohydrate diet safely is by still consuming lots of fruits, vegetables, nuts, seeds and legumes. 

Ideally, if you can tolerate them, you also want to consume some wholegrains in your diet too like oat. If not every day at least a few times a week. 

Does eating low carb help you lose weight? 

Low carb diets can help you lose weight faster BUT only because it reduces water weight. 

Every 1g of carb = 4g of water 

Studies show low fat and even low protein for some people, is as effective for weight loss as low carb, primarily the major thing to consider is what suits you and what you find easier to follow. 

Another reason low carb can help weight loss is you often reduce calories due to high calorie foods being carbohydrate dense like pizza or fresh pasta or chocolate. But eaten in moderation they won’t have any impact on your overall health. 

If you are diabetic you may need to consider a lower carb diet, but fibre rich foods including whole oats for example can actually improve blood glucose and insulin management.

Bringing me on to insulin, it’s been debunked for many years now that insulin is the cause for weight gain; protein for example also spikes insulin, and excess fat can cause diabetes irrespective of sugar intake. 

The most important thing for managing your weight is overall calories; exercising, walking, getting good sleep and opting for wholefoods over ultra processed foods irrespective of if you’re eating carbs will improve your health and weight the most. 

Low carb options at By Chef Jen 

When it comes to our low carb options, these are options that are lower in calories with extra veg in replacement of the starchy carbohydrate for example butternut squash instead of pasta. 

These meals will suit people wanting to have lighter meals, perhaps want to lose weight without sacrificing flavour, with plenty of fibre and protein or like me, sometimes just prefer to eat lots of veg with protein and save their carbs for snacks and chocolate ;-)

Beef Ragu and Butternut Noodles - Who doesn’t love ragu? This is one of our favourite dishes and butternut squash is a fantastic alternative, with lots of nutrients and beta-carotene which is great for our skin! 

Chicken Nacho Salad - on the higher calorie end so still filling and although has a little “starch” the overall meal could be considered “keto” due to the low carb high fibre content and is also high protein (48g) and low in saturated fat!