Recommended carbohydrates, along with the fiber foods that contain them, form the basis of several diets. Some, like Atkins, eliminate carbs almost entirely. Other diets make a distinction between "good" carbs and "bad" carbs. The counts you need of each in your daily diet are the subject of some dispute, but they go hand in hand.
Daily Recommendations
According to the McKinley Health Center, between 45 and 65 percent of your calories should come from carbohydrates each day. This is more than most low-carb diets allow, but carbs are your body's preferred source of energy, particularly your brain. Carbs convert to glucose, which your brain requires to function. Periods of concentration and heavy thinking can actually deplete your brain's stores of glucose, so you need more carbs to replace them. MayoClinic.com recommends that adults younger than 50 years old also need between 25 g and 38 g of fiber each day, depending on gender. But since fiber is a carbohydrate, you can easily incorporate this into your daily carb count.
Kinds of Carbohydrates
Carbohydrates are either simple or complex, and fiber is included in the complex group. Simple carbohydrates include those found in sugar, processed foods, milk products and fruit. As the name suggests, your body metabolizes them easily and quickly, converting them immediately to glucose for available energy. Fruits contain complex carbs as well, in the form of fiber, and legumes, vegetables and whole grains also provide complex carbs. Your body metabolizes some complex carbs more slowly for longer-lasting energy; it doesn't metabolize fiber at all.
Interaction
Complex carbohydrates in the form of fiber pass directly through your system undigested. The process contributes to healthy bowel function and can lower your "bad" LDL cholesterol levels. The Atkins Diet advises followers to subtract the fiber content of foods from the total carbs to ascertain the net carb effect of whatever you eat. For example, a cup of sweet fresh corn has 31.65 g of carbohydrates, but it also has 3.9 g of fiber. Your body will not digest those fiber grams, which contribute to the total carbohydrate count. Therefore, you're only actually consuming 27.75 g of carbs from that cup of corn.
Best Sources
The best sources of fiber and "good" complex carbohydrates are whole grains, beans, peas, legumes, nuts, seeds, fruits and vegetables, according to MayoClinic.com. The carbohydrate and fiber counts in these foods can provide your body with the daily recommendations for both. For example, a cup of cooked lentils contains 39.86 g of carbohydrates, but 15.6 g of them are fiber. A slice of whole-wheat bread comes with 12.79 g of carbohydrates, and 2.3 g of that is fiber. If you incorporate each into your daily diet, you've contributed about 23 percent of your needed carbohydrates, based on 45 percent of your calories, assuming you consume 2,000 calories a day. In addition, you've met about 72 percent of the recommended fiber intake of an average woman in a day, just 25 g short of the target.
References
- Atkins: What Are Net Carbs?
- United States Department of Agriculture: USDA National Nutrient Database for Standard Reference Release 22
- McKinley Health Center; Macronutrients: The Importance of Carbohydrate, Protein, and Fat; 2008
- Mayo Clinic; Dietary Fiber: Essential for a Healthy Diet; Mayo Clinic Staff; November 2009
- The Franklin Institute; Nourish -- Carbohydrates Feed Your Brain; 2004
- MedlinePlus; Simple Carbohydrates; Linda J. Vorvick, MD; May 2010
Member Comments