HEALTHY LIVING

5 Things to Consider When Choosing a Carbohydrate

5 Things to Consider When Choosing a Carbohydrate

Sub Heading

Carbohydrates are an important part of a healthy diet, yet not all carbs are created equal

Main Image

Alt text

Duration
JUL. 15, 2021   2 MIN. READ
Description

When it comes to good nutrition, balance is key. Your body needs a variety of nutritious foods to get all the necessary nutrients– including carbohydrates. Carbs are energy-providing macronutrients that can play an important role in an overall healthy diet. And choosing carbs doesn’t have to be hard. Here are five tips to help you choose the best carbohydrate source. 

1. Pick whole versus refined carbohydrates

When most people think of carbohydrates, they often think of grain foods like bread, pasta and breakfast cereals. But they’re not all the same. Grains can be divided into either whole grains or refined grains. When choosing, it’s best to opt for whole grains like whole-wheat breads/pasta/rice, oatmeal and bulgur. They’re made up of the entire grain kernel and naturally provide iron, B vitamins and dietary fiber. While refined grains—like white pasta and rice—are often enriched with added B vitamins and iron, dietary fiber is lacking compared to whole grains. In general, whole carbs take longer to digest than refined carbohydrates, helping to moderate the blood sugar response and encouraging a healthy digestive tract.

2. Find balance

Like all things in life, it’s important to find balance in your carbohydrate choices. The 2020-2025 Dietary Guidelines for Americans acknowledge the importance of balance and suggest that you consume half your grains as whole grains. Choosing a healthy eating pattern that’s realistic and satisfying can help you stay on track with your health goals.

3. Prioritize nutrient-dense foods

A general rule of thumb for good nutrition is to eat nutrient-dense foods – or those with an abundance of nutrients without an excess of calories. Carbohydrates can be responsible for a significant amount of the calories in a person’s diet. Pairing foods with healthy carbs with other nutrient-dense foods like proteins or low-fat dairy provides a more balanced snack or meal option.

4. Be mindful of your sugar sources

Sugar is a carbohydrate that often has a bad reputation. Eating too much sugar can be associated with health issues like weight gain and diabetes so paying attention to how much sugar you’re eating is important. Sugar occurs naturally in foods like fruit, milk and juice. Whether sugar is found naturally in a food or added to it, all sugar molecules are the same. For example, your body doesn’t recognize any difference between a sucrose molecule (another word for table sugar) in an apple vs. a sucrose molecule in a cookie. However, the apple is a healthier choice because of the other nutrients it contains, like vitamin C and fiber. Focusing on nutrient-dense foods and drinks is key.

5. Choose the right carbohydrate for you

Choosing your carbohydrate should be personal and depend on your health or nutrition needs. Sometimes carbohydrates can play very special roles, for example, helping prepare your body for surgery, replenish fluids and manage blood sugar levels. Abbott’s science-based nutrition products are specially formulated with the right amount and right type of carbohydrates to support the unique nutrition needs of people of all ages.

Healthy Eating Tips for the Holidays | Abbott Nutrition

Main Image

A group of friends enjoy a holiday meal together.

Description

It can be a challenge to keep your healthy holiday eating goals on track with the hustle and bustle of the holiday season. Among holiday gatherings, your grandma's special homemade cookies, and those fun, festive cocktails, the indulgences can start to add up.

Low carb and keto diets which one is right for you

Main Image

Alt text

Description

The ketogenic diet, better known as the keto diet, is a popular style of eating that restricts carbohydrates — but it's by no means your average low-carb diet. While low-carb and keto diets overlap in a few key ways, from their potential health benefits to the foods they discourage, they vary significantly.

We spoke with Pamela Nisevich Bede, a registered dietitian for ZonePerfect and medical manager for Abbott's scientific and medical affairs team, about low-carb and keto diets. Here are the insights she shared, as well as some tips to consider if you're looking to try either of these diets. 

NUTRITION IS THE FOUNDATION FOR LIVING YOUR BEST LIFE. THAT’S WHY WE WORK HARD TO ADVANCE AND SHARE THE LATEST SCIENCE AND CREATE BETTER WAYS TO NOURISH YOUR BODY AT EVERY STAGE OF LIFE.

Subscribe Policy

I understand and agree that the information I’ve provided will be used according to the terms of Abbott’s Privacy PolicyTerms and conditions apply.

Unless otherwise specified, all product and services names appearing in this Internet site are trademarks owned by or licensed to Abbott, its subsidiaries or affiliates. No use of any Abbott trademark, tradename, or trade dress in the site may be made without the prior written authorization of Abbott, except to identify the product or services of the company.

Please click "Accept Sale/Sharing and Targeted Advertising" to enable full site functionality.

At this time, we are experiencing problems with broken links on our site. As an interim solution, for full site functionality you must enable functional and advertising cookies. If you continue to opt-out of these cookies, some content on our site may not be viewable.

We use functional cookies to analyze your use of the site, improve performance and provide a better customer experience. We use advertising cookies to allow us, through certain data assigned and obtained from the user's device, to store or share with third parties information related to user's browsing activity in our website, in order to create an advertising profile and place relevant advertising in our website or those third parties websites. For more information about how Abbott uses cookies please see our Cookie Policy and Privacy Policy.

In order to accept functional and advertising cookies, please click "Enable Cookies" and then click "Accept Sale/Sharing and Targeted Advertising" to view the full site.

Collapse
Learn more about cookies