WHO SAID CARBOHYDRATES WERE BAD? NOT AT ALL!

This article I've taken from the Daily Mail, advocates what I have been telling people for years. Carbohydrates are not all bad, its THE REFINED CARBOHYDRATES THAT ARE BAD. If you look at the list down below of carbs that contain resistant starch you will notice they are all UNREFINED CARBOHYDRATES. These foods fill you up, stop you feeling hungry and they use up energy being broken down, they also maintain blood sugar levels for longer, stopping the sugar peaks and lows, that can causing shaking and dizziness when trying to loose weight and prevent the brain fatigue that goes with this.

Eat carbs, lose weight: How carbohydrates can help you eat less AND burn more calories

For years they’ve been a no-no — but now a diet taking America by storm says bread, pasta and potatoes can help you drop half a stone in a week...

Weightloss wonder: You can still eat carbs and shed the pounds according to a new diet

Low-carbohydrate diets have been all the rage for some time. And with an estimated 15 per cent of the UK population following a reduced-carb diet at any one time, they’re certainly popular.
But, as anyone who has tried one can testify, there is something about carbohydrate denial that seems extraordinarily punishing.
Carbs are, after all, so tempting —whether it’s the smell of freshly baked bread or the delicious sight of buttery new potatoes.
But the low-carbohydrate message has become so entrenched in modern diet wisdom that pasta, bread, rice and potatoes have been widely accepted as being intrinsically ‘bad’.
But does it have to be this way? A new diet plan claims not, positively encouraging its followers to eat spaghetti and jacket potatoes with meals yet claiming it’s possible to still lose up to 6lb in a week.
It goes against everything we’ve been told by the likes of the Dukan and Atkins diets, but studies have shown that not all carbs are bad. Some contain a substance called resistant starch which, when consumed in quantity, actively encourages weight loss.
Found in ordinary foods — such as bananas, oats, beans and potatoes — resistant starch is so-called because it appears to resist digestion.
This starch travels through the digestive system nearly intact, producing fatty acids that stimulate fat-melting enzymes (particularly in the abdominal area), encouraging your liver to switch to a fat-burning state, preserving muscle mass (so stoking up your metabolism) as well as boosting satiety hormones, meaning you feel fuller for longer.

 

Now, the power of resistant starch has been harnessed in a book, The Carb Lover’s Diet, which has taken the U.S. by storm and is now available in the UK. Written by respected health editor Ellen Kunes and dietitian

FOOD FOR THOUGHT
A U.S. study found women who ate a low-carb diet had a poorer memory and attention span than those on a low-calorie diet

Frances Largeman-Roth, The Carb Lover’s Diet is a diet plan which, the authors claim, guarantees rapid but long-term weight loss.
Both authors are vehemently against the low-carb message, believing Atkins-style diets are difficult, unnatural and ineffective long-term. They claim our bodies and brains have evolved to eat starchy foods and willpower alone can only hold back on centuries of evolution for so long before we crack and all those good intentions are lost to a carb-rich feeding frenzy.

Resistance is futile: Avoiding carbs is against evolution, according to authors of The Carb Lover's Diet

OUR GUIDE TO 'RESISTANT STARCH' SUPER FOODS

Green bananas are the hero food of the resistant starch diet. If you eat one slightly green banana a day, you get a guaranteed 12.5g of resistant starch to help you lose weight without feeling hungry. Increase your daily intake of the
following foods, which are rich in resistant starch:

• Green banana 12.5g
• Ripe banana 4.7g
• Oats, uncooked (50g/2oz) 4.6g
• Cannellini beans (125g/4oz) 3.8g
• Lentils, cooked (100g/3.5oz) 3.4g
• Potato, cooked and cooled 3.2g
• Chickpeas, cooked (125g/4oz) 2.1g
• Wholewheat pasta (150g/5oz) 2g
• Pearl barley, cooked (75g/3oz)
• White pasta, cooked and cooled
• 150g/5oz) 1.9g
• Kidney beans (125g/4oz) 1.8g
• Potato, boiled with skin 1.8g
• Brown rice, cooked (100g/3.5oz) 1.7g
• Pinto beans, cooked (125g/4oz) 1.6g
• Peas, frozen (75g/3oz) 1.6g
• White pasta, cooked (150g/5oz)
• Black beans, cooked
• (125g/4oz) 1.5g
• Millet, cooked (75g/3oz) 1.5g
• Baked potato with skin 1.4g
• Pumpernickel bread (one
• slice) 1.3g
• Polenta, cooked (8tbsp) 1g
• Potato crisps (25g/1oz) 1g
• Cornflakes (25g/1oz) 0.9g
• Rye bread (one slice) 0.9g
• Puffed wheat (15g/0.5oz) 0.9g
• Tortillas (one) 0.8g
• Rye crackers (two) 0.6g
• Wholemeal bread (one slice) 0.3g

Kunes and Largeman-Roth have devised and tested a diet that promises weight loss without carb-denial, which hinges on resistant starch. They quote more than 200 studies at respected universities around the world, which show resistant starch to be an effective appetite suppressant and metabolism booster.
Research at the University of Surrey found that consuming resistant starch in one meal caused participants to consume 10 per cent fewer calories (roughly 150 to 200 calories for the average woman) during the next day because they felt less hungry.
Another study showed that resistant starch increases the activity of fat-burning enzymes and decreases the activity of fat-storage enzymes, meaning stomach-fat cells were less likely to pick up and store calories as fat.
Results seem to indicate that adding a little resistant starch to your morning meal is enough to shift your body into fat-melting mode, enabling you to burn nearly 25 per cent more calories a day.
Meanwhile, you’ll eat about 10 per cent fewer calories because you don’t feel as hungry. Most of us naturally consume around 4.8g of resistant starch a day, but the authors believe increasing your intake to ten to 15g a day is enough to trigger a swift and simple route to weight loss.
They have devised a quick-start, seven-day diet plan which, they say, guarantees rapid 3lb to 6lb of weight loss, and a separate long-term strategy for incorporating healthy carbohydrates — particularly those containing resistant starch — into your life to ensure weight continues to come off, and stays off.
STAR CARBS

• BANANAS are your richest source of resistant starch. They are also rich in appetite-suppressing fibre (3g each) and contain the amino acid tryptophan, which is converted into the calming brain chemical serotonin to help you relax and improve your mood.
• Nearly half the starch in BEANS is resistant starch, making them a powerful weight-loss ally. They are also an incredibly rich source of fibre. A Canadian study found that people who ate beans regularly tended to weigh less and have a smaller waist than those who didn’t (they were also 23 per cent less likely to become overweight over time).
• In addition to the fibre and resistant starch they contain, POTATOES are a natural source of a proteinase inhibitor — a natural chemical that boosts satiety hormones and  curbs appetite.
• POLENTA — this cooked cornmeal is naturally high in resistant starch, but is also rich in fibre and contains a decent amount of protein. It can be cooked into a creamy consistency or baked into crunchy sticks (chop small to make nutritious crutons).
• BROWN RICE digests more slowly than white. One study found that blood sugar levels were 24 per cent lower in people who ate brown rice than those who ate white.
• BARLEY is rich in resistant starch and both soluble and insoluble fibre which reduces appetite and  aids digestion.

DIET RULES
Stick to the daily plan (below) or mix and match meals, but to lose weight quickly, follow these rules:

• Eat at least 1g of resistant starch with each meal and aim for a minimum daily 10g total.
• At lunch and dinner, ensure resistant starch fills a quarter of your plate and the remaining three quarters is lean meat and low-fat dairy products, fruit and vegetables.
• Write down everything you eat in a food diary, highlighting all foods high in resistant starch (research shows that dieters who jot down what they ate lost weight more quickly than dieters who didn’t, and keeping a food diary helps dieters follow their plans without cheating).
• Ban artificial sweeteners. Studies show they may increase your cravings for sugary foods. Fake sweeteners are up to 600 times sweeter than sugar and numb your taste buds to the natural sweetness of good-for-you carbs such as berries and other fresh fruit.
• Eat one snack a day to prevent between-meal bingeing (the longer you wait to eat your snack, the easier it will be to stick to the diet).
• Don’t skip meals. Sticking to a regular pattern maintains blood sugar levels and keeps hunger at bay.
• Keep trigger foods out of the house. This means you are less likely to lose your self-control and scoff them down.
• Drink eight glasses (240ml) of water each day, so you don’t mistake thirst for hunger. Don’t drink liquid calories. On the seven-day kickstart plan, you can drink water, coffee and tea (black, green or herbal, without sweeteners, but with up to two teaspoons of semi-skimmed milk), but skip fruit juice, alcohol and fizzy drinks (even diet drinks or sparkling water), which make you look and feel bloated.
• Sit down to every meal. Grabbing something and eating it over the sink sets you up for overeating. It doesn’t give you a chance to be mindful about your food, and you’re less likely to pay attention to the serving size. Eat slowly and avoid TV, music and even dinner companions — all of which can cause you to overeat.
• Use smaller plates (try your salad plate instead of your dinner plate) and keep portion sizes small.
• For a quick boost, try this fat-flushing cocktail, which includes metabolism-boosting ingredients that will help speed you to your goal: Take two litres of green tea, juice from one orange, juice from one lemon and juice from one lime. Mix together in one large jug. Serve hot or iced. Keep in the fridge for up to three days.

THE RECIPES

Prawn Stir-Fry with Ginger (serves two)
Heat 2tsp sesame oil in a pan and add 2tbsp soy sauce, 1tbsp honey, 1 tbsp grated ginger, two chopped garlic cloves.
Cook for one minute.
Add 400g/14oz stir-fry vegetables, 75g/3oz prawns and 300g/10oz cooked brown rice and cook for eight minutes.
Serve topped with 2tbsp flaked almonds and one chopped spring onion.

Chicken pasta primavera (serves two)
Cook 50g/2oz wholemeal pasta then cook 125g/4oz cooked chicken strips with one sliced onion, three finely chopped garlic cloves, a 400g/14oz can of chopped tomatoes, salt, pepper and 1tsp dried oregano for eight to ten minutes before combining with cooked pasta, one courgette sliced lengthways into ribbons and 2tbsp parmesan cheese.

Grilled burger and  three-bean salad (serves two)
Divide 175g/6oz lean minced steak into two and shape into a thick patty, cooking for six minutes on each side.
Combine 75g/30z green beans, 125g/4oz rinsed canned cannellini beans, 125g/4oz rinsed canned kidney beans, 100g/3.5oz finely chopped carrot and half a chopped green pepper with 2tbsp low-fat vinaigrette in a bowl.
Serve burgers in wholemeal  buns topped with lettuce and sliced tomato.

Fish Tacos with coleslaw (serves four)
Sprinkle 700g/1lb 8oz fish fillets with salt, pepper and cooking spray and cook in a non-stick pan for ten to 12 minutes. Mix 3tbsp low-fat yogurt with 2tbsp lime juice, 1tbsp dark sesame oil, 2tsp grated fresh ginger, 1tsp honey and coat 350g/12oz coleslaw mix (shredded cabbage, carrot, lettuce).
Divide the fish between warmed tortillas and top each with the coleslaw.

YOUR SEVEN-DAY KICK-START CARB DIET PLAN

This plan has been devised to provide a healthy, balanced diet that maximises resistant starch intake, but restricts calories to 1,200 a day, promising dramatic weight loss of 3lb to 6lb in just a week.
MONDAY

Breakfast: Banana shake (blend one banana, 250ml/12fl oz semi-skimmed milk, 2tsp honey with ice) or a wholegrain chewy cereal bar plus one banana.
Lunch: Chicken pitta (stuff a wholemeal pitta with 40g/1½oz baby spinach, 125g/4oz cooked skinless chicken strips, tossed with 2tbsp lowfat vinaigrette).
Dinner: Griddled salmon and parmesan potatoes (baked potato with salt, pepper and 2tbsp grated parmesan cheese) with salad.
Snack: One 180ml/6fl oz pot low-fat Greek yoghurt with 2tsp honey and
2tbsp rolled oats.
TUESDAY

Breakfast: Banana nut porridge (cook 50g/2oz oats with water and top
with sliced banana, 1tbsp chopped walnuts and 1tsp cinnamon) or a banana with 1tsp peanut butter.
Lunch: Hard-boiled egg, 25g/1oz cheddar cheese and one sliced apple
on three rye crackers.
Dinner: Prawn stir-fry with ginger (see recipe above).
Snack: Cannellini and herb hummus with crudites (mash 65g/2½oz canned white beans with 2tsp olive oil, 1tbsp chopped chives and 1tbsp lemon juice and serve with 75g/3oz sliced raw vegetables).
WEDNESDAY

Breakfast: Banana shake Plus (blend one banana with 350ml/12fl oz semi-skimmed milk, 2tsp honey, ice and 2tsp ground flaxseed).
Lunch: Big chopped salad of 125g/4oz salad leaves, 125g/4oz canned
chickpeas, 100g/3½oz grated carrots, 50g/2oz shredded red cabbage,
1tbsp grated parmesan, 2tbsp chopped walnuts, 2tbsp dried
cranberries, all tossed in 2tbsp low-fat balsamic vinaigrette.
Dinner: Black bean tacos (rinse and drain 400g/14oz of black beans and heat through, warm two tortillas, then divide beans between the two, stuffing with 75g/3oz shredded lettuce, 175g/6oz grated carrot and
60ml/2fl oz salsa).
Snack: 2tbsp salsa mixed with 2tbsp black beans (rinsed and drained) with eight tortilla chips.
THURSDAY

Breakfast: Banana berry shake (blend one banana, 350ml/12fl oz
semi-skimmed milk, 2tsp honey, ice and 40g/1½oz berries) or wholegrain
chewy cereal bar and a banana.
Lunch: Chicken pitta sandwich (40g/1½oz baby spinach, half a sliced
red pepper and 125g/4oz cooked chicken tossed in 2tbsp low-fat vinaigrette and stuffed into a wholemeal pitta).
Dinner: Chicken pasta primavera (see recipe above).
Snack: Two crackers with 2tsp almond butter.
FRIDAY

Breakfast: One slice of toasted rye bread topped with 1tbsp almond butter and one banana.
Lunch: Hard-boiled egg with 25g/1oz cheddar and an apple on three rye crackers.
Dinner: Grilled burger and three-bean salad (see recipe above).
Snack: Trail mix (15g/½oz cornflakes, 2tbsp flaked almonds and 2tbsp
dried cherries).
SATURDAY

Breakfast: Banana-cocoa shake (blend one banana with 350ml/12fl oz semi-skimmed milk, 2tsp honey, ice and 1tbsp cocoa powder) or wholemeal chewy cereal bar plus a banana.
Lunch: Big chopped salad (see Wednesday).
Dinner: Fish tacos (see recipe above).
Snack: 2tbsp oats and 2tsp honey in a small tub of low-fat yogurt.
SUNDAY
Breakfast: Banana and almond butter toast (top one toasted slice of
rye bread with 1tbsp almond butter and a sliced banana).
Lunch: Hard-boiled egg, 25g/1oz cheddar and sliced apple on three rye crackers.
Dinner: Grilled salmon served with parmesan potatoes.
Snack: 25g/1oz baked potato crisps.

Extracted from The Carb Lover’s Diet: Eat What You Love, Get Slim For Life by Ellen Kunes and Frances Largeman-Roth (Hamlyn).

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-1394616/Diet-carbohydrates-help-lose-weight.html#ixzz1OVVWrbzC

Maggie Brown (Author)

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CARBOHYDRATES HELP YOU LOSE WEIGHT

Finally something we should all know and I already have a blog on this in the health section on here (I have posted it below this one). The key is UNREFINED CARBOHYDRATES, where the carbs are providing fibre, unrefined carbs take longer for the body to break down, thus expending energy to do so and because we are talking wholegrain are rich in nutrients. We see this in the base of the food pyramid below

Forget Atkins... carbs could help you LOSE weight

An explosive new book claims carb-heavy foods - including potatoes - can actually help you lose weight

For years, dieters have berated themselves for every bite of bread or pasta that has passed their lips.
But tucking into carbs could actually help us lose weight, according to scientists.
An explosive book that claims bread, pasta, pizza and chips are the ingredients for a perfect body is threatening to consign the Atkins diet and other high-protein regimes to history.
The Carb Lover’s Diet, due for release in the UK next month, remained on bestseller lists in the U.S. for six months after it was published in August.
The book claims that resistant starch, found in carb-rich foods such as bananas, oatmeal, brown rice and potatoes, has the power to suppress appetite, boost metabolism, improve mood, reduce stress levels and speed up weight loss.
According to its authors, scientists at the University of Colorado Centre for Human Nutrition in Denver found evidence that certain carb-rich foods speed up metabolism and curb hunger pangs.
In their study of 4,451 volunteers, it emerged that the slimmest ate the most carbs in the form of whole grains, fruits and vegetables, while the fattest consumed the least.

If it works, the diet could spell the end for high-protein weight loss programmes such as Atkins and Dukan, which is favoured by actress Jennifer Aniston.

Actress Jennifer Aniston is known to favour low-carb diets - but is there a better way to lose weight?

Elisabeth Weichselbaum, from the British Nutrition Foundation, said: ‘If you eat a low-carb high-protein diet you do lose weight but it is not healthy – and it’s not a long term solution.’
She added that, in theory, the Carb Lover’s Diet could help slimmers shed pounds – but only if they didn’t use it as an excuse to eat limitless portions of pizza and pasta.
‘Resistance starch, which features prominently in the diet, bulks out what we eat. It is considered a fibre and it can be helpful in weight loss,’ she said.
‘One-third of what you eat should come from carbs. I don’t think we should increase the amount of carbs we eat but it’s not a good idea to totally cut them out.’
Anna Raymond, from the British Dietetic Association, said: ‘I’m pleased someone has finally advocated carb consumption.
‘Of course Atkins-type diets give results but in the long-term cutting out carbs means you metabolise using different processes that are harmful.
‘[The Carb Lover’s Diet] is basically a low GI diet. Resistant starch is fibre so it’s harder to break down and can suppress appetite.
If you feel fuller for longer, you eat less.
‘But it’s got to be interpreted quite carefully. People shouldn’t think they can eat a big bowl of pasta and half a loaf of white bread.’

A BALANCED DIET

Your body is a complex machine, it is constantly going through various chemical changes, taking nourishment to all its working parts and taking away waste and in order to do this efficiently it needs not only sufficient fuel but good quality fuel.

THE FOOD PYRAMID

So let us use the pyramid as a guide. Firstly water we are composed of 70% water so it stands to reason we need to replenish this constantly. Water is used up in the removal of toxins, such as sweat, urine/excretement and respiration, so 8 good size glasses are required daily. Ideally this should be plain water and no harm will come of adding fruit squash providing it's not sugary and some of this could be fruit juice. As for tea and coffee, this should be in moderation as the caffeine contained is a diuretic, this causes the body to excrete more urine, so if you must drink tea and coffee  for every cup you drink, drink a glass of water. Don't wait until you are thirsty either, for when you feel this symptom you are already dehydrated, a little and often is the key. Skin suffers dreadfully when we are dehydrated, because it is not such as an important organ such as our internal organs, it will be last on the list. Our skin is constantly being renewed and on average the upper skin layer, the one you can see, it is roughly a period of 28 days from the time the cells are created until they die and are sloughed off. In the deeper layers of the epidermis the cells are plumper however as they mature they become drier and tougher due to the protein Keratin, this forms protection, however if they don't receive adequate water the skin will look dull and loose it's lustre. (More about this process in 'Skin care')

Next layer up in the food pyramid is cereals and cereal products, these ideally should be wholegrain and not refined. Wholegrain has much more nutrients, it takes longer for the body to break down, thus keeping the blood sugar levels stable for longer and provides the body with fiber. We need fiber for our intestines to help them work properly, preventing constipation and try to see fiber as a brush to sweep out our intestines of any toxic matter that can accumulate there and cause trouble later on. Fiber has little if any calories so plenty can be ingested. This layer forms what is known as carbohydrates and it is these that are the main source of fuel. These starches are broken down in the body to eventually form simple sugars to be used by our body's cells for energy. In a balanced diet the bulk of which is carbohydrates.

Next layer up is the fruit and vegetable layer and to receive adequate vitamins and minerals we need a good balance of both. Fruit and vegetables are also rich in fiber. Leafy dark green vegetables such as spinach, broccoli and savoy cabbage are rich in iron, needed to make red blood cells and also vitamin C, this too is needed to form red blood cells. Vitamin C is a water soluable vitamin, it dissolves in water and a common mistake is to over boil green vegetables, all the vitamin C is thus transferred to the cooking water, so the best way to cook these vegetables is by steaming or microwave. The body cannot store water soluable vitamins like vitamin C so adequate levels need to be ingested daily.

Now a common mistake some people make if something is good for you they will take more, its not so much a problem with water soluable vitamins, however some vitamins are stored in the body in the liver namely vitamin A and high levels can be toxic and dangerous. With vitamin C however by taking copious amounts thinking it will do you good, all you will do is manufacture expensive urine as the body can only use so much and will excrete the rest. Too much vitamin C can cause diarrhoea and because vitamin C is ascorbic acid, will irritate your anal region. Vitamins and minerals are easier absorbed from food than as supplements too. Fruit and vegetables are a rich source of roughage/fiber and I mentioned this earlier. Another important aspect of fruit and vegetable are what's known as Bioflavonoids  these are plant pigments that are largely responsible for colors of many fruits and flowers.

Beneficial Effects

• referred to as "nature's biological response modifiers" - modify body's reaction to compounds such as allergens, viruses, and carcinogens
• powerful antioxidants by giving protection versus oxidative and free radical damage
• prevents formation of oxidized cholesterol through antioxidant effects
• greater antioxidant effects than Vitamins C, E, Selenium, and Zinc 

Next layer are Proteins and split here into two sources, the Dairy source, which is milk and milk products such as cheese and yoghurt and meat, fish and pulses (pulses are high sources of vegetable proteins e.g. lentils, beans) and nuts.

Proteins are the building blocks of the body and necessary for growth and repair of the body's tissues and classified into two groups, complete proteins e.g. found in animal foods such as meat, fish, poultry, eggs, milk, and milk products such as yogurt and cheese. Soybeans are the only plant protein considered to be a complete protein. And incomplete proteins such as beans, peas, nuts, seeds, and grain. A small amount of incomplete protein is also found in vegetables. This is why it is important to have a varied and balanced diet  to provide all of the essential amino acids and form a complete protein. Oily fish are a rich source of omega 3 polyunsaturated fatty acids which can help reduce the risks of heart disease. Seafood in general contains an abundance of essential minerals which include, iron, zinc, iodine and selenium. Fish is also a good source of vitamins, which maintain healthy nerve tissues, strong bones and teeth and a glowing complexion.

Now we come to the tip of the food pyramid it is these foods that should be consumed sparingly, fats, oils and sweets, which include cakes and biscuits which are generally made from refined sugars and flour. We do have to consume a little fat (if you are on a fat reduced diet because of gall bladder disease etc consult with your medical practioner) as we need some fat for fat soluble vitamins. Fat as well as a source of stored energy is our insulation under the skin and protects some organs such as the kidneys.

Vitamins

Vitamins are only required in very small quantities. There is no chemical similarity between these chemicals; the similarity between them is entirely biological.
Vitamin A: good for your eyes.
Vitamin B: about 12 different chemicals.
Vitamin C: needed for your body to repair itself.
Vitamin D: can be made in your skin, needed for absorption of Calcium.

Mineral Salts

These are also needed in small quantities, but we need more of these than we need of vitamins.
Iron: required to make haemoglobin.
Calcium: required for healthy teeth, bones and muscles.
Sodium: all cells need this, especially nerve cells.
Iodine:

It's important to remember we have all of those components in the right amounts as if we don't have enough protein in our diets, we wont heal properly, not enough carbohydrates and we will be lacking in energy. Too much fat or too much carbohydrates will cause us to become overweight if we don't balance the amount of fuel (food) with our activities. Many vitamins work together and some cannot be absorbed unless the other is present e.g zinc is absorbed better with trace copper and vitamin C is needed to make haemaglobin in the blood as well as iron. The key is balance and the food pyramid will give a rough idea into the daily amounts and proportions to achieve this.

Tone up: Simple changes to your diet and exercise can make all the difference

Maggie Brown (Author)

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