High Carbohydrate And Calorie Diet Foods

Diets that require you to sacrifice carbohydrates forever may dish out more sacrifice than many dieters can handle. Diets that provide the opportunity for you to include some high-carb, high-calorie foods in your diet can enhance your satisfaction with your meals, and help you stick to your diet. More importantly, certain high-carb, high-calorie foods meet nutritional needs and fit well into a healthy dietary program.

Low-Carb Diet

The proliferation and popularity of low-carb diets, such as the Atkins diet, have heightened awareness of the caloric cost of carbohydrates. Bread, pasta, rice and cereal have been identified by these diets as particularly problematic to dieters. Proponents of low-carb diets suggest these high-carb foods contain relatively high level of calories, which fuel carb-cravings and encourage diet-busting snack attacks.

Slow-Carb Diet

Increasingly, nutritionists and health professionals are promoting what could be called a slow-carb diet, according to AskMen.com. Some foods are broken down quickly and released into the bloodstream as glucose. These foods are termed high-glycemic foods. Low-glycemic foods take longer to digest and are released more slowly into the bloodstream. Low-glycemic foods spread the release of glucose over a longer period of time, stabilizing your blood sugar and reducing your appetite.

Nutrient-Density

In addition to the glycemic rating, you should consider the nutrient density of the foods you include in your diet, advises Clemson Cooperative Extension. Nutrient-dense foods provide nutrition along with whatever calories they have. Soda has low nutrition density. It provides empty energy -- calories lacking additional nutrients. A large egg has a lot of calories, but it also has protein, calcium, potassium and other nutrients. The egg has a high nutrient-density, so the calories are not empty.

Slow Carbs

Several complex carbohydrates are nutrient-dense and have a low-glycemic index, stabilizing your blood sugar while they sate your appetite. One cup of brown rice has 218 calories and 46g or carbs, but also has 4.5g of protein, 20mg of calcium and 154mg of potassium, as well as other nutrients. One slice of whole-grain wheat bread has 80 calories and 20g of carbs, but also has 4g of protein, 20mg of calcium and other nutrients including niacin, magnesium, phosphorus and potassium. Legumes, such as dried beans, provide calories that come with varied nutrients, depending on the bean. For example, lentils provide 230 calories and 40g carbs, but also provide protein, potassium, magnesium and phosphorus and are high in copper, manganese, iron and folate. One cup of Japanese edamame, also known as green soy bean, has 254 calories and 20g of carbs, but also provides 22 g of protein, 261mg of calcium and 970mg of potassium. Generally, most beans provide B vitamins, folate, iron, protein, potassium, magnesium, fiber and phytonutrients.

Dairy

Low-fat dairy foods such as skim milk and low-fat yogurt provide vitamin-rich carbs that can promote weight loss. Milk and non-fat milk are excluded from many low-carb diets because of the high carb content and high calories. For example, one 8-oz. serving of skim milk has 91 calories and 12g carbs, but the calcium in dairy products may accelerate weight loss, according The Diet Channel. The protein in milk slows digestion, prolonging the release of the carbs that are in the milk, and dulling your appetite.