Carbs and Blood Sugar
Keeping your blood sugar levels on track means watching what you eat, plus taking
medicines like insulin if you need to. Your doctor may also have mentioned that you
should keep track of how many carbohydrates (carbs) you eat. But what exactly are
carbohydrates and how do they affect your blood sugar?
The foods we eat contain nutrients that provide energy and other things the body
needs, and one of these is carbohydrates. The two main forms of carbohydrates are:
- sugars such as fructose, glucose, and lactose
- starches, which are found in foods such as starchy vegetables
(like potatoes or corn), grains, rice, breads, and cereals
The body breaks down or converts most carbohydrates into the sugar glucose. Glucose is absorbed into the bloodstream, and
with the help of a hormone called insulin it travels into the cells of the body where it can be used
for energy.
People with diabetes have problems with insulin that can cause blood sugar levels
to rise. For people with type 1 diabetes, the pancreas loses the ability to make insulin.
For people with type 2 diabetes, the body can't respond normally to the insulin that
is made.
Carbs Can Be Part of a Healthy Diet
Because the body turns carbohydrates into glucose, eating carbohydrates makes blood
sugar levels rise. But that doesn't mean you should avoid carbohydrates if you have
diabetes. Carbohydrates are a healthy and important part of a nutritious diet.
Some carbohydrates have more health benefits than others, though. For example,
whole-grain foods and fruits are healthier choices than candy and soda because they
provide fiber, vitamins, and other nutrients.
Fiber is important because it helps you feel full and keeps your digestive system
working properly. In fact, eating lots of fiber can even help to slow the body's absorption
of sugar when eaten together with sugar in the same food. Everyone needs fiber, and
most people don't get enough. Some experts think that people with diabetes should
eat more fiber than people without diabetes to help control blood sugar.
Sugary foods, like soda and candy, don't usually have fiber and typically contain
"empty calories." That means they have calories but little nutritional value, and
eating too many of them might leave little room for healthy foods. Eating too many
empty-calorie foods can also make a person more likely to be overweight or obese.
These foods can also cause tooth decay.
