Although all carbohydrates are the fuel for living organisms, not all of them are burned at the same rate, and not all are equally useful - at least for people who want to lose weight. For example, a white rice glycemic index higher than that of honey, and hence it is processed more rapidly and causes a rapid increase in blood sugar levels. Therefore, honey can be called a slow carbohydrate than white rice. Why is that? To understand how to operate the fast and slow carbohydrates need to deal with their composition. The basic components of any carbohydrates are starch, sugar, or glucose.
The break down of Factors
That is how quickly the body breaks down carbohydrates depends on the following factors:
Starch is composed of glucose molecules linked in a linear or branched chain. Amylose - starch with linear chains of glucose molecules, the body is more difficult to break down, so the carbohydrates, which contain amylose, called slow (or complex). Starch branched-chain molecules - amylopectin, cleaved much faster, because these chains there are plenty of places for which can "catch" the enzymes to begin the process of recycling. Therefore, foods rich in starch of this type are referred to as fast or simple carbohydrates.
For complex carbohydrates include, for example, peas and lentils - these foods raise blood sugar levels
Blood sugar - one of the main indicators of human health
snail. Potatoes and pasta, on the contrary, leads to a sharp increase in blood glucose
Glucose: The energy source
. In general, the higher the amylose contained in the product, the slower it is digested.
Returning to the example of rice: it is well known that certain types of amylose rice contain more than others and, as a rule, the former are more useful. In general, the softer and more sticky rice after cooking becomes, the lower the concentration of amylose, and the higher its glycemic index. On the contrary, if the rice after cooking is relatively hard and crumbly, it indicates that it contains a lot of amylose and slowly, gradually increases the level of glucose in the blood. It is for this reason, brown, brown rice, doctors find it helpful and recommend to give preference to him.
Starch is composed of glucose molecules, but there are several types of sugar, which may comprise carbohydrates sucrose (cane, beet or table sugar), fructose (found in fruits and cereals), lactose (found in milk), maltose (particularly large its malt, but it is included in the composition and other cereals, and tomatoes).
Sugars contained in milk and other fruits are absorbed more slowly because they must first be processed into glucose by the liver. For the same reason they do not lead to a sharp rise in blood sugar levels
Blood sugar - a very important indicator
.
Surprisingly, the pure table sugar is processed more slowly on certain products containing large amounts of starch such as bread and potatoes. This does not mean that sucrose is useful for humans. It has two main reasons: firstly, the use of large amounts of sucrose leads to increased levels of triglycerides in the blood, due to which an increased risk of serious heart disease
Heart disease and heart attacks: that every woman should know
; Secondly, it is very high in calories (only 55 grams of sugar contains 225 calories).
All starches, regardless of their form linear or branched chains of glucose molecules consist of crystals which are insoluble in cold water. The most obvious example: if you put it in cold water potatoes or rice, their texture does not change. The high temperature in starch crystals can begin to dissolve. Thus, when you are cooking starchy foods, they absorb water and the body becomes easier for them to digest. The stronger seethe rice, pasta or other carbohydrate-rich foods, the faster after consumption will rise in the blood sugar level. If they are cool, starch may, in part, to return to its former structure. Therefore, you can call the hot potato carbohydrate faster than cold, although the difference is not as great as, for example, between potatoes (hot or cold), and brown rice.
You probably noticed that sometimes brown bread is the same uniform and soft, like white bread, and sometimes it is more rigid and does come across quite strong grain and / or bran. These are called whole grain breads, and they certainly are slow carbohydrates. However, most types of flour used today, and especially with respect to white flour, quickly converted to glucose, resulting in the level of glucose in the blood increases. Of these types of flour are produced not only a loaf of bread and, but and many other products, such as corn flakes, popcorn, cookies, cakes, and so on.
Instead, carbohydrate-free and low-fat diet - a diet rich in carbohydrates slow
Experts have long noticed that the popular carbohydrate-free diets usually do not bring good results - stick them too hard, and after the diet, many people are frustrated and in a few weeks regaining lost weight. In the end, it has been proposed and studied in several studies so-called slow-carbohydrate diet. In one such study involved 23 people aged 30 years, suffered from obesity.
The subjects were divided into two groups. Members of the first group had to eat non-starchy vegetables, fruits, legumes, nuts and dairy products. Instructors also advised them to eat slow carbohydrates, proteins and healthy fats at each meal, load fill, allow yourself to snack when they experience hunger, and do not count calories. People in the second group stick to the traditional low-calorie diets, the amount of carbohydrates and fats that have been kept to a minimum. A year later, the weight of the subjects from the first group fell on average by 7.8%, while in the second group, the result was 6.1%. Moreover, the triglyceride level of the participants of the first and second group decreased respectively by 37% and 19%.
