Over the last couple of decades, low-carb diets have boomed in popularity. This has led to millions of people seeing pretty dramatic health improvements which in turn forces most practical people to ask the question, are carbs bad?
The answer to this question, like most questions in nutrition, is not a simple yes or no. It depends. Remember, nutrition is highly individualized. There is no one sized fits all approach when it comes to diet. The question should not be whether or not carbs are bad. The question should be are carbs bad for you. Right now. How well does your body metabolize carbohydrates? How do you feel when you are eating them? What are your primary health goals? What type of carbs are you talking about and how much?
The reason why low-carb diets have become so popular over the last couple of decades is that humans around the globe have been trending towards metabolic inflexibility. Insulin resistance, inflammation, and various other chronic diseases. In the United States, 1 in 3 adults is prediabetic. Prediabetic means that the body no longer efficiently utilizes carbohydrates, otherwise known as insulin resistance (IR) or carb intolerance.
The chronic overconsumption of carbohydrates plays a big role in the development of obesity, insulin resistance, carb intolerance, prediabetes, and diabetes. If one finds themself in any of these categories, the answer to the question, “are carbs bad?” is likely a yes.
This may seem harsh to some but this is a reality of nutrition biochemistry. If we overconsume carbohydrates for a long period of time, it can have a pretty nasty effect on our bodies. The good news is there is something we can do about it. Restrict carbohydrate intake.
To add to the good news, just because your personal answer to the carbs being bad question is yes, doesn’t mean that is your answer forever. Nutrition strategies like carbohydrate restriction and fasting can help improve insulin resistance or carb intolerance. Over time, you can restore your body’s ability to utilize carbohydrates, in turn allowing you to eat them in the right amounts. Now the answer to the question, “are carbs bad for me” changes.
For those who do restore their ability to metabolize carbohydrates and those who are currently able to do so, the answer to the question are carbs bad is still not a cut and dry yes. That will be the topic of the next newsletter!
Thanks for reading,
Chris Irvin
P.S. If you know anyone who could benefit from reading this, please share it with them!
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Hey Chris, thank you for this informative article.