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Why Cutting Carbs Is So Tough

nytimes.com

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Re: Why Cutting Carbs Is So Tough

#141

Post by jrimbault »

lultimouomo wrote: post #133
jrimbault wrote: post #93

Earlier quoted context omitted.

French people are also less obese and less overweight than NA people.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Epidemiology_of_obesity#/media... Italian people are among the least overweight people in the OECD countries, and have a heavily carb based diet. (I think the same applies to Japanese and Korean, but I think there could be a prevalent genetic factor there.) That's not to say that fat makes you obese, just that carbs, per se, don't. Eating too much does.

Oh yes, one meal per day is enough. I don't move enough to justify more.

Re: Why Cutting Carbs Is So Tough

#142

Post by keithpeter »

specialist wrote: post #74
jonnathanson wrote: post #12

Earlier quoted context omitted.

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…

I've begun to notice the elderly in my life eat worse as they age. My mom was a health food nut (in a good way). Now at 80, she eats whatever looks yummy at Trader Joe's and Costco. She's earned it, sure, but there are consequences. I've suggested to my siblings that we get her back on Meals on Wheels, just so she'll eat some real food.

Yes, I used to cook my mother a veggie meal whenever I visited - nothing special just daal/rice or pasta/tomato sauce and salad. My sister did the same but with plenty of meat/fish. Otherwise she lived out of the freezer and it wasn't veg/meat but prepared pies and stuff.

I think it was convenience and her generation always having to be the one to cook for the family.

Re: Why Cutting Carbs Is So Tough

#143

Post by yazaddaruvala »

ue_ wrote: post #137
abtinf wrote: post #46

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 Vol…

That's interesting. I regularly drink soft drinks, and written on the can is the government-mandated notice of how much of my "daily recommended intake" is in the can. For sugar, it says 40%. How does that figure relate to your one-half teaspoon metric? Does it mean that one of the figures is wrong?

Disclaimer: I do not know what I'm talking about.

Assuming both numbers are accurate (I haven't double checked any of the numbers above), the discrepancy could be with time.

Your body doesn't just have sugar in its blood. It uses it. At any given moment "Average blood sugar" needs to be 5grams. However throughout the day your body burns up 97.5 grams (I.e. 39 grams is 40%).

Re: Why Cutting Carbs Is So Tough

#144

Post by darrmit »

I think "carbs are bad" is sort of overgeneralizing the problem. The problem isn't carbs, it's processed carbs that are low in fiber - i.e. not vegetables.

That said, I've experienced all this same stuff with processed carbs and sugar. I'll beat it for a few months and then end up binging/getting right back hooked.

The best recipe I've found for managing weight (personally, since YMMV is super applicable when it comes to fitness) is low-carb, high protein/fat, and weightlifting 3-4 times a week.

Re: Why Cutting Carbs Is So Tough

#145

Post by overcast »

bonniemuffin wrote: post #98
overcast wrote: post #4

Because they are delicious. Life is too short, not to enjoy one of life's simple pleasures. Obviously moderation is key, but it's silly not to take advantage of being human.

I'm sure this varies between people, but for me, moderation in carbs doesn't work. Having a small scoop of ice cream or a little bit of pasta is completely unsatisfying, and in fact ignites a craving to stuff my face until my stomach hurts. It's like telling an alcoholic to just have one glass of wine a day-- yeah that would be great if it works, but it's not really helpful advice for some people.

Not sure I would equate that to alcoholism. How about rather than a scoop of ice cream every day. You have a bowl of it on Friday night watching a movie? Rest of the week, eat healthier. It's all about calories consumed, and used. You want to eat a ton of ice cream, go for it. Just be aware you've used up all of your caloric intake for the day.

Re: Why Cutting Carbs Is So Tough

#146

Post by mrkstu »

beagle3 wrote: post #88
mcone wrote: post #75

Earlier quoted context omitted.

My wife is a Type-1 diabetic and I'm fairly confident that there's no such thing as a "zero carb" diet. She's had several endocrinologists tell her that she needs to eat carbohydrates. This is definitely something we need to survive! More importantly, there are naturally occurring carbohydrates in most unprocessed foods (greens, vegetables, beans, etc). Obviously "refined carbohydrates" are different — that's the sug…

What undesirable medical condition occurs as a result of zero carbs? I've never heard of one.

I (painfully) found out I was pre-disposed to gout only after going on a high protein diet. That said, if you're careful to avoid too many high purine meats, you can avoid that side effect.

Re: Why Cutting Carbs Is So Tough

#147

Post by Cerium »

ue_ wrote: post #137
abtinf wrote: post #46

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 Vol…

That's interesting. I regularly drink soft drinks, and written on the can is the government-mandated notice of how much of my "daily recommended intake" is in the can. For sugar, it says 40%. How does that figure relate to your one-half teaspoon metric? Does it mean that one of the figures is wrong?

Just an observation, but if a soda has 10 times more sugar than you need in your body, and it is about half the daily value of sugar you need, then I suppose it is a rate problem. Drinking a whole soda at once puts way too much sugar into your system, but it may be possible to drink a sip an hour.

Re: Why Cutting Carbs Is So Tough

#148

Post by ashark »

the_af wrote: post #15
donatj wrote: post #2

When I lived alone it was easy. I simply didn't buy any at the grocery store and as such didn't eat any. It's nearly impossible, now living with my wife who adores pasta and everything potato based.

> [...] living with my wife who adores pasta And who can blame her? I suppose you could live without pasta, but would you call that living? :)

Yeah. My biggest problem with attempting low-carb is that X+rice and X+pasta and X+bread are all delicious for almost any value of X, while nearly all values of X on their own are fairly unappetizing. Beans and rice? YES. Just beans? I mean, I can, but I'll hate every bite. Veggie and tofu fried rice? Yes yes yes. Veggies and tofu alone? Uhhh... must I?

The exceptions tend to be expensive and the kind of thing that makes me feel kinda gross after eating more than a few bites of it anyway. Steak, say. Most meat on its own is like this, really. Just cheese. Veggies and cheese. Meat and cheese. Uck. Veggies and meat can work out OK on its own but, again, kinda expensive and still not as good as if you threw in some wheat products.

I have a suspicion that food without carbs being fairly unappealing is part of why many of the people doing keto lose weight so quickly.

Going vegetarian—and probably even vegan—would be far easier for me than a keto diet.

Re: Why Cutting Carbs Is So Tough

#149

Post by saiya-jin »

brianwawok wrote: post #131
hashable wrote: post #27

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Except for the fact that carbs are the only macronutrient that are not essential and can be completely synthesized by the body via gluconeogenesis. There are essential amino acids that need to be sourced via food (protein). There are essential fatty acids that need to be sourced via food (fat). There are no essential carbs.

Sure. But if you live even a little bit active lifestyle, you are going to have issues with this, as converting fat to energy is a much harder process. You can try to counter the point by pointing out that there are ultra-marathoners who are keto. But my two counters against this are: 1) They generally still use some form of carbs during the race, i.e. sugar packets. 2) There is no world class sprinter / 5k / 10k / s…

> TLDR: The problem with office potatoes is being an office potato. You are better fixing it via exercise, vs trying to eat a weird diet that lets you stay skinny while an office potato.

You don't get it. People don't want good proper science-based long-term solutions, they want fast & effortless solutions (meaning no sweat). People don't want to change their life, they want to throw money at problem to see it solved. Well, our bodies are not some TVs or radios. One day, sure, but not now, not during this century.

That's the only reason why so many idiotic diets exists (some are OK, but most just don't work for long term or are outright absurd).

Re: Why Cutting Carbs Is So Tough

#150

Post by sleavey »

nicky0 wrote: post #134
mikeryan wrote: post #68

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Cutting carbs is difficult for most people because of two things: 1) withdrawal from the sugar-high that you get from eating high-glycemic-load food (like bagels / pasta), and 2) your body needs a fair amount of carbs every day Research the ketogenic diet which is Starting with a low carb diet and transitioning to keto can be done without a lot of pain and I've eaten less than ~30 carbs a day for 6 months with no los…

Would this diet be suitable for a person who does a significant amount of endurance exercise? (E.g. ~1 hour of running per day)

Anecdotally: yes. I've heard from some long distance runners that the ketogenic diet makes it easier to endure exercise. Your body runs on fat, so as long as you have stores then you can keep going until your muscles start to waste away. There is also anecdotally no "wall" that you need to break through, as this comes from exhausting your muscles' supplies of glycogen.
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