My favorite video explaining low carb diet
Carbohydrates can be found in many foods: breads, cereal, fruit, etc, but what are they exactly and how do they work in our body. Basically, carbohydrates are organic compounds that contain sugars and the simplest form is glucose, which our body uses for energy or stores for later use. There are two types of carbs; simple and complex. Simple carbs are found in sodas, cookies, candy and other non nutritional items. However, they are also found naturally in fruit and milk products, which also contain vitamins and minerals that are good for you. Another name for simple carbs is sugar and they are processed easily in our body. On the other hand, complex carbs are foods that must be digested before the body can use them, thus, causing our bodies to expend more energy. Complex carbs include foods high in fiber and starch, such as whole grains, fruits and brown rice. So what is the problem you might say and why would a person go on a low carb diet?
When we eat a diet rich in carbohydrates, which is part of most american diets, our body reacts by producing more insulin. Insulin is a hormone produced and released from the pancreas and takes the glucose molecules to our cells for energy. However, the problem is that our bodies don’t need all those carbs and so insulin converts the glucose into fat. This fat is then stored in the liver and the rest of our body. We then continue to eat our meals and continue to “store” the excess glucose/fat and our bodies are never given the chance to burn fats for energy. In addition increasing fat stores, there are many health issues related to higher insulin levels, such as diabetes and digestive issues.
When we restrict our carb intake our insulin levels go down, which allows our body to use fat for energy which our bodies are perfectly happy to do. We are not used to using fats instead of of carbs for energy because we consume so many carbs daily that we never give our bodies a chance to consistently use fat instead of glucose. Thus, when a person initially eats a low carb diet with proteins and fats, they will urinate a lot the first week for two reasons: when your insulin levels go down, the kidneys get rid of excess sodium from the body,which takes water with it and lowers your blood pressure. Secondly, the body stores carbs in the form of glycogen, which binds water in the muscle and the liver so when your carb intake goes down so do your glycogen levels and, once again, water goes too. After the first week or so, your body gets used to the low carb changes and there is a decrease in the frequency of urination. During the first week, part of your weight loss will be due to water loss, but if you stick with a low carb diet fat loss will follow.
