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Why Cutting Carbs Is So Tough

nytimes.com

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Re: Why Cutting Carbs Is So Tough

#91

Post by maxxxxx »

FussyZeus wrote: post #60
philipkglass wrote: post #43

Earlier quoted context omitted.

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 lo…

Your foreign friends were onto it; the problem is that those carb-rich foods in the US are by and large CRAMMED with sugar, which doubles down the effect; carbs to trigger the insulin response, and sugar that the body can convert extremely efficiently to fat. Homemade pasta is incredibly healthy; you still should meter your intake of course, but for the most part it's very good for you (especially if you're doing a l…

On average the standard US food is of very low quality but this gets compensated by increasing quantity. It really saddens me to see what kind of crap food a lot of children are growing up with and are getting conditioned for.

Re: Why Cutting Carbs Is So Tough

#92

Post by nathan-wailes »

TurboHaskal wrote: post #83
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's a lot of broccoli. You should check whether your TSH values are in range.

Thanks for the tip!

Re: Why Cutting Carbs Is So Tough

#93

Post by jrimbault »

E6300 wrote: post #78
jrimbault wrote: post #71

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You're wrong, but to illustrate why: when people talk about cheese, often you'll think of France -> https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/French_paradox It's not strictly speaking a rebuttal, but it illustrates a point quite clearly, fat is not the culprit.

I'm talking about weight loss, not overall health.

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

Re: Why Cutting Carbs Is So Tough

#95

Post by maxxxxx »

cyxxon wrote: post #81
FussyZeus wrote: post #60

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Your foreign friends were onto it; the problem is that those carb-rich foods in the US are by and large CRAMMED with sugar, which doubles down the effect; carbs to trigger the insulin response, and sugar that the body can convert extremely efficiently to fat. Homemade pasta is incredibly healthy; you still should meter your intake of course, but for the most part it's very good for you (especially if you're doing a l…

How do you add sugar or corn syrup to pasta in the US? Shouldn't it basically be just wheat? Or do you mean the sauce you eat with the pasta? Honest question!

I don't know about pasta but with bread you will find d that even whole wheat breads are sweetened. No way they would do this in Germany or France.

And sauces have a ton of added sugar too.

Re: Why Cutting Carbs Is So Tough

#96

Post by teamhappy »

peteretep wrote: post #82
teamhappy wrote: post #73

Earlier quoted context omitted.

But wouldn't it be much easier to just remove all the crap from your diet (soda, candy/chips, processed food, ...) and exercise every once in a while rather than monitoring your carb intake every day?

No, because bread and pasta are also "crap" when it comes to simple carbs.

True, but bread and pasta have been around for a lot longer than the obesity problem. What's changed over the last however many years is that people stopped cooking their own food, stopped moving, replaced water with soda and so on.

Re: Why Cutting Carbs Is So Tough

#97

Post by nathan-wailes »

abtinf wrote: post #80
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…

> [I consume] carbs in the form of two bags of "steam-in-bag" broccoli and a bag of carrots Keep in mind that the glycemic index of foods influences how your body reacts. Broccoli is a very low GI food. Carrots are quite a bit higher. I would guess you can eat quite a bit less broccoli than you can carrots, because the insulin response to carrots is going to be much more severe.

I think you mean the other way around, right? I can eat more broccoli than carrots? The carrots take up quite a bit of space in your stomach, and I would wager their GI is far below breads/etc., so I would expect that I'd run out of space in my stomach before their GI became something to worry about. I'm someone who used to (and still does sometimes) eat an entire loaf of bread at once (God help me), so I'm not worried about carrots.

Re: Why Cutting Carbs Is So Tough

#98

Post by bonniemuffin »

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.

Re: Why Cutting Carbs Is So Tough

#100

Post by oldmandutch »

Ixiaus wrote: post #66
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…

The body does not need exogenous carbohydrates, there is no such thing as an essential carbohydrate. Carbs are a useful tool but they are also easy to abuse. The body is perfectly capable of deriving carbohydrates from essential fats and essential proteins. Beyond the physical addiction there's also a lifestyle addiction, this is a similar problem chronic cigarette smokers who want to quit encounter. Sometimes they d…

Funny story(so anecdotal): I'm male, and 50. From the time I was a small boy, I kept my wallet in my back left pocket, and keys in my front left pocket. As an experiment (late 30s) I decided to move them to the right pockets. It took nearly a decade before this felt 'natural', and even now I sometimes put them in the wrong pocket if distracted. TLDR: habits are powerful, make sure to start only good ones.
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