Low-Carb Diets, Yea or Nay?
By Aric Juarez, Special to the Daily Press
Many schools are currently under pressure by parents to offer a low-carb menu. I can understand their concern with the rise of overweight children. However, carbohydrates are important for school aged children as they learn and concentrate in school. What these children need are proper diet and exercise. As I look around I see everyone jumping on the low-carb bandwagon. Several restaurants now have a low-carb menu and manufacturers are producing low-carb foods.
As a Health and Physical Education instructor, I know how important carbohydrates are in a persons diet. I wonder how many other people truly know the importance of carbohydrates. What are the true costs to our health of the low-carb or no-carb diets?
Carbohydrates come in two forms, complex carbohydrates and simple carbohydrates. Complex carbohydrates are found in grains and vegetables and are released slowly into the body.
Simple carbohydrates are found in foods that we all like but we know are not good for us, i.e. candy, cakes, and cookies. These simple carbohydrates are released immediately into the bloodstream. As you ingest carbohydrates, your body breaks them down into glucose, a form of energy for your body. It then stores this glucose in your muscles as glycogen. When you perform physical activity, your body uses this glycogen for energy. Any glycogen that is not used is stored as fat in the body.
Glucose is also a primary fuel source for your brain. Neurons, or impulse carriers for the brain, rely on glucose to perform their duties. Neurons cannot store glucose and therefore relies on the bloodstream to deliver a constant supply. The only way to do this is to consume carbohydrates in your diet. With a limited supply of glucose, you are limiting your brains ability to concentrate, remember, and learn.
Studies have shown that carbohydrates can improve memory as quickly as 1 hour after consumption! They have also shown that carbohydrates have improved memory up to 25% in older adults. By decreasing carbohydrates in your diet, youre cutting the vital fuel to the brain. Carbohydrates are an important part of a persons diet and should be viewed as such rather than as the enemy.
Carbohydrates also help to keep our bodies hydrated. For each gram of carbohydrates, our bodies store 3 grams of water, thus keeping us hydrated. By eating a diet low in carbohydrates, we are essentially dehydrating ourselves. This explains some of the weight loss people have discovered through these diets. Low-carb diets also leave our bodies deficient in vitamins, minerals and fiber, all of which are important to our bodies.
We as a society are constantly striving to find ways to be sedentary and not gain weight. This is one way that society believes they can continue to be sedentary and not pack on the pounds. Remember, exercise stimulates the mind, reduces stress, and strengthens the heart. Theres always a price to pay for cutting corners and taking the easy way out. The bottom line is: to keep your mind sharp and your waistline thin, eat less and exercise more.
For more information, visit the website listed below. http://sln.fi.edu/brain/carbs.htm
Aric Juarez is department chair of physical education at the Academy for Academic Excellence in Apple Valley. Juarez may be contacted at ajuarez@lcer.org or 760-946-5414 ext. 298
Used with permission by the Daily Press, Freedom Communication, 2004