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Why Cutting Carbs Is So Tough

nytimes.com

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Re: Why Cutting Carbs Is So Tough

#41

Post by nathan-wailes »

typon wrote: post #36
nathan-wailes wrote: post #24

Preface: Over the past 12+ years I have spent a fair amount of time learning about foods/diets, at first to try to get rid of my acne (which I was successful at), but then later to stay lean and stop any diet-related dips in my mood (which I was also successful at). What I want to say: Cutting carbs is difficult for most people because of two things: 1) withdrawal from the sugar-high that you get from eating high-gly…

> That guy is a retired Silicon Valley engineer and he really knows what he's talking about. That really doesn't increase my confidence

Good point; I've taken that sentence out.

Re: Why Cutting Carbs Is So Tough

#42

Post by E6300 »

jonnathanson wrote: post #12
kbar13 wrote: post #3

Earlier quoted context omitted.

My mother is convinced if i dont eat carb heavy foods (rice, fruit) that I will die of some disorder or other. It is hard to stay on diet whenever I go home.

My mother simply does not understand what a "carbohydrate" is, let alone the relationship between starch and sugar, or why things like mashed potatoes are not low-carb. ("But I didn't use any butter in them, so they're low-carb!") When left to her own devices, she will consistently confuse and/or conflate carbs and fats. I think this is because she's from a generation that totally bought into the war on fat, and rais…

Well, fat certainly is worse than carbs, as far as weight loss is concerned. Fat contains twice the calories per gram compared to carbohydrates or protein, that's why things like cheese and oil are a big no-no if you're trying to lose weight. Butter is alright as long as you don't take a big ol' chomp out of a stick.

Re: Why Cutting Carbs Is So Tough

#43

Post by philipkglass »

FussyZeus wrote: post #10

And none of this even goes into how much modern food is designed and engineered to be as addictive as possible. Every snack food is built practically from the molecule up to hit as many of the addiction-causing transmitters as possible, from the texture of the food, to the shape of the salt they use, to the size of the serving, all of it is designed to make you want more, perpetually, and as much more as possible. Th…

When I was in graduate school many foreign students noted that American food was too sweet and put in extra effort to find food that more resembled that from their home countries. This seems at odds with humans "naturally" loving sweetness-everywhere.

The other thing that makes the "carbs are fattening us" story seem incomplete (though not necessarily wrong) is that a generation or two ago obesity rates were much lower even in countries where people ate/eat carbohydrate-rich foods routinely (noodles, rice, tortillas, bread). It's not like everyone in Italy was on a ketogenic diet in the 1980s.

It seems like there must be multiple overlapping causes for the rise in obesity rates because all of the One Big Thing stories I've read about it have obvious counterexamples.

Re: Why Cutting Carbs Is So Tough

#44

Post by sleavey »

nathan-wailes wrote: post #24

Preface: Over the past 12+ years I have spent a fair amount of time learning about foods/diets, at first to try to get rid of my acne (which I was successful at), but then later to stay lean and stop any diet-related dips in my mood (which I was also successful at). What I want to say: Cutting carbs is difficult for most people because of two things: 1) withdrawal from the sugar-high that you get from eating high-gly…

> your body needs a fair amount of carbs every day, and people are cutting bad carbs without replacing them with good carbs, and thus experiencing an inescapable craving for carbs.

Not true. While it might be true that your body (e.g. your brain) needs some glucose, this can easily be synthesised by your liver from fat as required once you have been running on ketones for a few weeks. You do not need "good" carbs to survive.

Re: Why Cutting Carbs Is So Tough

#45

Post by JustAnotherPat »

I cut carbs and have not looked back. I have even developed a dislike of them. Our stomachs adjust to what we eat and after a while, eating two slices of pizza just doesn't sit well.

I found always going for the lesser of two evils was a big help. Sweet potato over regular potatoes. Vanilla Haagen-Daz over Ben and Jerry's (has lower sugar and more fat). whole wheat wrap with some sort of high fat salad (e.g. chicken salad) over a roll with just turkey and cheese. You wind up just developing a preference that isn't necessarily one of exclusion.

Re: Why Cutting Carbs Is So Tough

#46

Post by abtinf »

I've posted these numbers before, but I'll post them again because they are so low as to be totally unintuitive:

Normal human blood sugar [1]: 70-100 milligrams per deciliter of blood.

Blood volume of average human [2]: 5.5 liters

Thus, total blood sugar in non-diabetic human: 3.85 to 5.5 grams

Density of glucose: 1.54 grams per cubic centimeter

Thus, total volume of sugar in average human: 2.5 to 3.6 milliliters

Volume of teaspoon: ~5ml

Your body does its best to cap the amount of sugar flowing through you at about one-half teaspoon. A 12 ounce can of coke has 39 grams of sugar, or 7-10 times what the human body considers normal. It's a tremendous shock to the system - the resulting insulin response sends your body on a roller coaster of hormone regulation.

[1] https://www.virginiamason.org/whatarenormalbloodglucoselevel...

[2] http://www.medicinenet.com/script/main/art.asp?articlekey=21...

Re: Why Cutting Carbs Is So Tough

#47

Post by maxerickson »

nathan-wailes wrote: post #24

Preface: Over the past 12+ years I have spent a fair amount of time learning about foods/diets, at first to try to get rid of my acne (which I was successful at), but then later to stay lean and stop any diet-related dips in my mood (which I was also successful at). What I want to say: Cutting carbs is difficult for most people because of two things: 1) withdrawal from the sugar-high that you get from eating high-gly…

How could you know that you feel as good as possible?

Re: Why Cutting Carbs Is So Tough

#48

Post by nathan-wailes »

hashable wrote: post #34
nathan-wailes wrote: post #24

Preface: Over the past 12+ years I have spent a fair amount of time learning about foods/diets, at first to try to get rid of my acne (which I was successful at), but then later to stay lean and stop any diet-related dips in my mood (which I was also successful at). What I want to say: Cutting carbs is difficult for most people because of two things: 1) withdrawal from the sugar-high that you get from eating high-gly…

> your body needs a fair amount of carbs every day, I think you're mistaken. Carb is the only macronutrient that is not required. The body can make glucose via gluconeogenesis. Take someone who has not eaten a single carb for a month and measure their blood glucose level and you will find a stable 90mg/dL. This is why Type-1 diabetics still need insulin (although much much lesser than otherwise) in spite of being on…

Thanks for that information; I'm not expert enough to respond to the scientific claim that you made, but what I can say is that I suspect I'm using the term "need" in a less-strict sense than you are, to mean "if a person is not consuming any carbs, that person is likely going to eventually feel some level of 'healthy' craving for carbs".

Re: Why Cutting Carbs Is So Tough

#49

Post by jshevek »

electriclove wrote: post #18
FussyZeus wrote: post #10

And none of this even goes into how much modern food is designed and engineered to be as addictive as possible. Every snack food is built practically from the molecule up to hit as many of the addiction-causing transmitters as possible, from the texture of the food, to the shape of the salt they use, to the size of the serving, all of it is designed to make you want more, perpetually, and as much more as possible. Th…

The addiction is the part that does not receive enough attention in regards to sugar, caffeine, and other substances that don't carry the stigma of alcohol, nicotine, or other drugs.

This really is a shame. We could improve the quality of many people's lives, extend their lifespans, and save money on health care if we treated sugar addiction as serious social problems, the way we do alcohol, nicotine, and harder drugs.

Re: Why Cutting Carbs Is So Tough

#50

Post by nathan-wailes »

maxerickson wrote: post #47
nathan-wailes wrote: post #24

Preface: Over the past 12+ years I have spent a fair amount of time learning about foods/diets, at first to try to get rid of my acne (which I was successful at), but then later to stay lean and stop any diet-related dips in my mood (which I was also successful at). What I want to say: Cutting carbs is difficult for most people because of two things: 1) withdrawal from the sugar-high that you get from eating high-gly…

How could you know that you feel as good as possible?

Good catch; I've updated the wording I used.
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