http://robocowboy.livejournal.com/ ([identity profile] robocowboy.livejournal.com) wrote in [personal profile] garote 2011-10-26 10:12 am (UTC)

gah!... revenge of the comment length limit...


While I was doing the vegan thing, I became aware of the notion of "good carbs" and "bad carbs", where the "bad carbs" were refined sugars and wheats and the products made with them, and "good carbs" were unrefined or whole-grain, like brown sugar and blackstrap molasses and whole-wheat toast. The distinction is based on two things: How much of the original nutrients remain, and how rapidly the body absorbs the food (a.k.a. the "glycemic index"). So apparently the trick is to avoid refined things that cause an insulin spike.

Be careful how you represent this information. White bread and whole wheat bread may have different nutritional content, but they represent nearly the same glycemic load. If you want to avoid an insulin spike, you avoid all the bread. And sugar is sugar. The nutritional content of the brownness of the sugar doesn't really change a whole lot about what it does in your body. This is not to say that eating bread and sugar are necessarily unhealthy. Different people have subtle metabolic differences, we're all unique snowflakes, everybody should find their own best diet, etc.

So, I guess what I'm trying to say with all this, is, I no longer have any confidence in a particular diet as a panacea. I don't think I will ever stop having to adapt what I eat in pursuit of improved health.

Agreed. We humans are supposed to adapt. Sometimes that's not just adapting to your environment, but to your own awareness of your needs.

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