Anthony Vita is an Author, Certified Holistic Nutritionist, and Health Coach. He’s also a success story after having dramatically improved his health through a whole food plant based diet. In the process he dropped 50 pounds. He answers the “carbs” question here. You can find him @ https://www.facebook.com/thevitalblend/about
First of all, what are “carbs”? I’ve never seen a “carb” section at the supermarket. Why do we refer to foods like this?
Follow the $$.
Boiling down foods according to their macronutrients is one of the biggest marketing SCAMS ever devised and one reason why humans are the ONLY species who are confused about what to eat.
Because of food industry propaganda, faulty science, and shameful media distortions, most people believe that carbohydrates are bad for our health and that fruits and vegetables don’t have enough protein.
When you really think about it, all of these lies favor and help promote the sale of PRODUCTS, namely meat, dairy, and processed foods. The more that consumers remain in the dark and away from the truth, the more these companies profit at our expense.
The truth is, carbohydrates are the DEFAULT fuel source for our human body. When we consume carbohydrates our body converts them into simple sugars (glucose) which provide essential fuel to all our cells. Carbohydrates are present in all plant foods, which is one reason why they are ideal for optimal human health.
This is one reason why I tell people to eat more PLANTS. Like it or not, plants are what we have been designed to consume and carbohydrates are essential for helping us to achieve and maintain our ideal weight.
A “good carb” is any WHOLE, unprocessed plant food that you would grow in a garden or pull from a tree. Examples would be apples, oranges, bananas, grapes, tomatoes, broccoli, potatoes, rice, beans, etc. When humans consume these foods, it’s impossible to remain overweight because the factors that drive weight gain are not present.
So, what is a “bad carb”? This is where things get SAD really fast. Most people believe that starchy vegetables, like potatoes, are “bad carbs” and have zero nutritional value. In reality, it’s quite the opposite as potatoes are not only an unprocessed whole food but they’re also nutritionally COMPLETE.
The only way a potato becomes a “bad carb” is when we top them with butter and cheese or heavily process them into french fries and deep fry them in artery-clogging oils. Sadly, this is how most people consume potatoes totally oblivious to the truth as well as the health consequences of their actions.
“Bad carbs” would also include things like donuts, cookies, cakes, and pies because they’re based on white flour, which is a highly processed form of wheat, or a whole food. However, while most people tend to demonize the white flour found at the heart of these junk foods, they completely overlook all the other unhealthy ingredients like butter, oils, milk or cheese. Maybe that’s because food industry propaganda has misled consumers into believing that meat and dairy are “essential” to human health.
So, instead of thinking about food in terms of good or bad “carbs”, try to focus on the ideal fuel your machine (or body) has been designed to consume. It’s literally EVERYTHING when it comes to maintaining optimal weight and long-term human health.
Tune out the noise and eat more PLANTS to get slim and stay that way!