Does Eating High Carbs But Low Calories Equal Weight Loss?

If you eat fewer calories than your body expends, you lose weight. However, some weight-loss plans are healthier and more efficient than others. A diet high in low-glycemic index, or slow, carbohydrates can help you lose weight while still feeling satiated. It can also help keep your cholesterol and blood glucose at low levels.

Glycemic Index Diets

Glycemic index diets restrict the dietary intake of high-glycemic index, or fast, carbohydrate foods, such as sweets, white rice, white bread and white pasta, and encourage a high intake of low-glycemic index, or slow, carbohydrates, such as whole-grain products, vegetables, legumes, nuts and seeds. The South Beach Diet, one of the most popular glycemic index diets, recommends that 45 to 65 percent of your daily calorie intake come from slow carbohydrate foods. According to the Mayo Clinic, this is the equivalent of 225 to 325 g of carbohydrates per day for a person on a 2,000-calorie-a-day diet.

Dietary Fiber

Foods high in slow carbohydrates contain dietary fiber. There are two kinds of dietary fiber: insoluble and soluble. Insoluble fiber, which comes from plant cell membranes, absorbs water and expands in the digestive system. Soluble fiber, which derives from the interior of plant cells, dissolves in water, which creates a gellike substrate. Both kinds of fiber pass through the intestinal tract undigested.

Blood Glucose

When dietary fiber passes through the digestive system, it slows down the passage of food from the stomach to the colon. This delays the absorption of glucose, or blood sugar, into the bloodstream. Keeping blood glucose levels low and steady can prevent plaque formation in the blood vessels. It also helps weight loss by avoiding steep drops in your blood glucose levels, a factor that can control hunger pangs.

Effects on Satiation

A delay in the passage of food through your intestinal tract can also directly affect your feeling of satiation after eating. A feeling of satiation is significantly correlated with the time at which the small intestine is exposed to fat. So, the longer the small intestine is exposed to fat, the more satiated you will feel. A greater feeling of satiation can contribute to weight loss by making you eat less.

Effects on Bad Cholesterol

Bile is a dark-greenish liquid that is essential to the digestion of fat in the small intestine. Bile acid, one of the major components of bile, is derived from low-density lipoprotein, or bad cholesterol. Soluble fiber binds to bile acid. When this happens, bile acid passes through your system undigested. As bile acid derives from bad cholesterol, eating soluble fiber can help lower your cholesterol levels.