Carbs and Fiber: The Poison & The Antidote
With insulin being the driving factor when it comes to weight gain, obesity, and overall health, we should enlist a diet that is completely zero carb, right?
Not quite. But the quality of carbohydrates that you eat can have make a big difference in your insulin and blood glucose levels. The good news: the difference is simple.
Eat more fiber.
Fiber is not exactly a nutrient, like the way that we think about proteins, carbs, fat and even vitamins. Instead, fiber is somewhat like an anti-nutrient. When I say that, I don't mean it's bad for you. Fiber actually reduces the absorption and digestion of sugars, and thus helps reduce insulin.
Carbs and sugars lead to insulin, high insulin levels lead to weight gain and obesity. However, carbohydrates containing fiber don't have the same effect on our bodies as they slow down the digestion, avoiding insulin spikes and storage into adipose (fat) cells.
A study conducted in 2000 showed that for patients who have Type 2 diabetes, having fiber in their diet can make all the difference. Two groups consumed the same amount of carbs, but one group had more fiber in their diet than the other. The results? Insulin levels in those consuming fiber were much lower and maintained consistent levels, and they also had lower overall cholesterol levels to boot.
Getting fiber in your diet isn't as hard as you might think. The first thing that comes to mind when I think about fiber are products like Metamucil, which are totally not necessary.
The best source for fiber is actually pre-packaged with carbohydrates in the form of fruit and vegetables. You see, it's almost as if when nature created fruit and vegetables as carbs, it pre-packaged them with the antidote for keeping us healthy.
These are the highest fiber containing fruits and vegetables.
As we've developed more and more processed foods that remove the fiber, moved away from eating fruits and vegetables regularly, and consumed more and more processed sugar, we've seen higher levels of insulin and thus obesity.
Just one more reason why following a diet based around whole food with lots of fruits and veggies tends to work best for most people.
Deidre founded Always Growing Nutrition in 2015 with an enthusiasm for health, fitness, and understanding how to optimize the human body. She approaches nutrition from the perspective that each body is unique and this is key to creating nutrition programs that are sustainable for each person to maintain long-term, but also programs that work.
Her passions lie in digestive and hormone health, and she loves working with clients who struggle with balancing these complex systems. She believes that everyone deserves personalized nutrition, to understand how their body works, and to have the support to get answers about their health. She has worked with hundreds of clients to create a body they love with food they love.
When she's not working with clients, you'll find her enjoying everything Colorado has to offer from hiking to camping to craft beers.