Carbohydrates are a type of nutrient that provide your body with its main energy source – glucose. Simple carbohydrates, also called fast-acting carbohydrates, are quickly broken down during digestion to be used as energy, causing a rapid increase in your blood sugar levels. Honey is an example of a simple carbohydrate that causes a quick rise in your blood sugar.
Carbohydrates: Simple versus Complex
Carbohydrates are categorized as either simple or complex based on how quickly they are broken down into glucose sugar molecules and how long it takes for the glucose to get absorbed into your bloodstream. Carbohydrates include sugar, starch and fiber. Sugars are simple carbohydrates, whereas starch and fiber are complex carbohydrates. Honey is a type of sugar that is made from nectar that bees create. Honey is composed of glucose, fructose and sucrose molecules.
Blood Sugar
Consuming honey will cause a quick rise in your blood sugar levels. After you ingest honey, the contents travel to your stomach in order to be digested. During digestion, all types of sugar molecules get broken down into their simplest form – glucose. Sugars – unlike starch and fiber – are broken down quickly because they have a simple chemical structure. Your stomach empties the glucose molecules into your small intestine, where they are then absorbed into your bloodstream, causing a quick rise in your blood glucose levels.
Total Carbohydrate Intake
Carbohydrates, unlike protein and fat, affect your blood glucose levels. In order to help maintain healthy and stable blood glucose levels, monitor your intake of carbohydrate-containing foods. In general, about 45 percent to 65 percent of your total daily caloric intake should be from carbohydrate. Based on a 2,000-calorie diet, this means that you should be consuming approximately 225 to 325 g of total carbohydrate per day. One tablespoon of honey contains about 17 g of total carbohydrate, all of which are sugars.
Empty Calories
Your diet should include a combination of nutrient-dense simple carbohydrates and complex carbohydrates. In terms of simple carbohydrates, emphasize nutrient-rich foods such as fruit and low-fat milk. Fruit and milk contain simple carbohydrates but also provide important nutrients. Honey is a nutrient-poor simple carbohydrate that provides empty calories. Limit your intake of honey and other added sugars – such as granulated sugar, brown sugar and maple syrup – to less than 6 tsp. to 9 tsp. for women and men, respectively.
References
- Medline Plus: Trusted Health Information for You -- Carbohydrates
- American Diabetes Association: Food and Fitness – Carbohydrates
- MayoClinic.com: Nutrition and Healthy Eating – Added Sugar: Don’t Get Sabotaged by Sweeteners, cont., April 2011
- MayoClinic.com: Nutrition and Healthy Eating – Glycemic Index Diet: Losing Weight with Blood Sugar Control, Nov. 24, 2009
- U.S. Department of Health and Human Services: National Digestive Diseases Information Clearinghouse – Your Digestive System and How it Works
- American Diabetes Association: Food and Fitness – Glycemic Index and Diabetes
- MayoClinic.com: Nutrition and Healthy Eating – Healthy Diet: End the Guesswork with these Nutrition Guidelines, Feb. 22, 2011
- United States Department of Agriculture Nutrient Database
- United States Department of Agriculture: ChooseMyPlate.gov – Empty Calories: What are Added Sugars?
