AliB
Well-Known Member
This is an interesting thread too. I was particularly interested in your bit about Sleep apnoea, Dave. I have been nagging a friend of mine to get off gluten but it looks like she needs to be off carbs in general too. She is a good stone or two overweight and is now having to use a C-PAP machine at night.
As far as the energy thing is concerned I think the issue between calories and carbs has to be addressed from the way that the body uses the food.
From what I understand, giving the body carbs is a bit like the difference between sitting and watching tennis on the TV and actually being there playing in a tournament. For the body, carbs are the 'easy' option. They are the 'stay at home, put your feet up and eat chocolate' kind of 'exercise' for the body. Eating protein and fat is the 'active' fuel. The body needs to go through a lot more work to generate the energy, but it is a much more efficient output.
The reason that the body puts weight on when you eat carbs is that it will metabolise the carbs first. Carb breakdown starts in the mouth so it is already partly digested before it hits the stomach. Protein and fats take longer to digest, but the energy they generate lasts a lot longer. Give the body carbs, and it will sideline the fat and protein and that is when weight gain becomes a problem. Fats can male you fat, but only when eaten with a lot of carb.
So although you may be eating a bit more (I would beg to differ on that as carbs are notoriously high in calories), the body has to work through a different, and more efficient process that is a far better fuel burner.
As far as the energy thing is concerned I think the issue between calories and carbs has to be addressed from the way that the body uses the food.
From what I understand, giving the body carbs is a bit like the difference between sitting and watching tennis on the TV and actually being there playing in a tournament. For the body, carbs are the 'easy' option. They are the 'stay at home, put your feet up and eat chocolate' kind of 'exercise' for the body. Eating protein and fat is the 'active' fuel. The body needs to go through a lot more work to generate the energy, but it is a much more efficient output.
The reason that the body puts weight on when you eat carbs is that it will metabolise the carbs first. Carb breakdown starts in the mouth so it is already partly digested before it hits the stomach. Protein and fats take longer to digest, but the energy they generate lasts a lot longer. Give the body carbs, and it will sideline the fat and protein and that is when weight gain becomes a problem. Fats can male you fat, but only when eaten with a lot of carb.
So although you may be eating a bit more (I would beg to differ on that as carbs are notoriously high in calories), the body has to work through a different, and more efficient process that is a far better fuel burner.