What is a net carb?

By now, you have seen that supermarkets sell low carb options to most products.  Bread, orange juice, candy, and even milk are available with the low carb label.  However, a new label is causing a fair amount of confusion, that of the “net carb.”

First, let’s start with the definition. A net carb is defined as the amount of carbohydrates (or sugars) in a product, minus the carbohydrates comprised of fiber and/or sugar alcohol.  Sugar alcohol is a bulking and sweetening agent found in most processed foods.  It is not the same as the alcohol found in a beer.   If a product has 40g of carbohydrates, or sugars, and 5g are from fiber, and an additional 20g are from sugar alcohols, that would leave you with 15g of “net carbs.”   (40g sugar) – (5g fiber) – (15g sugar alcohols) = (15g net carbs)

Now what is the theory behind this definition? Atkins, and other low carb diets suggest that fiber as well as sugar alcohols metabolize in the body slowly, causing very little spike in the body’s blood sugar.  Many low carb diets believe that this spike is a prime factor in weight gain.  You may have heard of the glycemic index (a table listing the effect foods have on your blood sugar levels.)  In theory, a product consisting of just fiber and sugar alcohols would fall to the bottom of this index.  This leads many to believe that only the net carbs count in weight gain.

What does this really mean? There have been no medical studies to prove (or disprove) these claims.  Studies like these tend to take 5-7 years.  The American Diabetes Association conducted a study on sugar alcohols and concluded that when relied on too heavily, sugar alcohols can cause weight gain and will have a laxative effect on the body.  Moreover, a sugar alcohol contains anywhere from 2.6 to 3 calories per gram.  While this is less than the 4 calories per gram of a regular sugar, it is certainly not negligible.

What diet proponents don’t explain is that no matter how low on the glycemic index a certain food is, the body still must eventually either burn those calories, or store them!  Therefore, while sugar alcohols are slightly lower in calories than a regular sugar, they are still calories that must eventually be burned to lose weight!  Fiber may help in losing weight because it tends to give one a fuller, more satisfied feeling, which can aid in portion control.

In the end, it still boils down to the same theory.  A calorie is a calorie; as long as you burns more calories than you ingest, you will lose weight!   Eat a balanced nutritional diet that excludes nothing!  Just don’t eat too much of any one food, regardless of the health or diet claim.  Finally, stay active in the weight room as well as on the treadmill!

Comments

• 
  

• Tip of the Month

  June 2010

  Abdominal Workouts: Frequency, Intensity, and Duration

  Over the past 15 years, there has been countless advice on how to “properly” train your abdominals, or core.  There isn’t a fitness magazine out there that doesn’t publish a different abdominal workout each and every issue.  Opinions and research may change over time, but there are a few things you should look at before you alter your workout with each Fitness Magazine you read!
  First of all, it is important to know what your overall fitness and health goal is before designing a strength program for any body part, especially the mid-section.  For overall fitness, it is smartest to treat your abdominal muscles as you would any other muscle group.  The tried and true guidelines for most exercise programs is to work specific muscles to fatigue within a 30-60 second set time limit (intensity and duration,) while giving the worked muscle group at least 24-48 hours of rest (frequency) before working it again.  The amount of sets you do in a given workout (frequency again) can vary from as little as 4 sets to up to 12 for the average workout.  The science behind these theories is sound.  While exercising, pushing your body significantly past the 60 second mark without fatigue generally incorporates aerobic energy, thereby not stressing the muscles most efficiently.  And rest is necessary so that your body can properly rebuild the muscle fibers that you have broken down.  Additionally, you want to be at 100% energy levels for your next workout!

  click here for more »

  click here to read past tips

• Recipe of the Month

  June 2010

  Ham and Cheese Breakfast Casserole

  This healthy update of a traditionally rich ham-and-cheese breakfast strata is made lighter primarily by losing a few egg yolks and using nonfat milk. Gruyère cheese has a delicious, nutty aroma and flavor, which means that with the relatively small amount in this recipe you still get a big impact. To finish the makeover use nutritious, fiber-rich, whole-grain bread instead of white. The results: plenty of flavor, half the calories and one-third the fat of the original.

  4 large eggs
  4 large egg whites
  1 cup nonfat milk
  2 tablespoon Dijon mustard
  1 teaspoon minced fresh rosemary
  1/4 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
  5 cups chopped spinach, wilted (see Tip)
  4 cups whole-grain bread, crusts removed if desired, cut into 1-inch cubes (about 1/2 pound, 4-6 slices)
  1 cup diced ham steak, (5 ounces)
  1/2 cup chopped jarred roasted red peppers
  3/4 cup shredded Gruyère, or Swiss cheese
  click here for more »