Carbohydrate

There are two types of carbohydrates – starchy (complex) carbohydrates and simple sugars. The simple sugars tend to be found in sweeter foods such as cakes, biscuits, puddings and juices. Starchy carbohydrates are typically found in less sweet foods like bread, potatoes, rice, wholegrain cereals, semi skimmed milk, yoghurt, fruit, vegetables, beans and pulses.

What happens to the carbohydrates we eat?

Our digestive systems converts carbohydrates in food into glucose, a form of sugar which is carried in the blood and transported to cells for energy. The glucose, in turn, is broken down into carbon dioxide and water – a process which generates energy. Any glucose not used by the cells is converted into glycogen – another form of carbohydrate that is stored in the muscles and liver to be metabolised later and used for energy.

How much carbohydrate does the human body need?

In a healthy, balanced diet, carbohydrates should make up around a third of every meal.

Do carbohydrates make you put on weight?

Gram for gram, carbohydrates contain less than half the calories found in fat. Carbohydrates have 4 calories per gram, while fats have 9. It is adding fat to bread in the form of butter or other full fat spreads which increases the calorie content.

How many grams of carbohydrates are in a slice of bread?

One medium slice of both brown bread and wholemeal bread provides 14.7g of carbohydrates, one medium slice of white bread provides 16.1g and one medium slice of seeded bread provides 16.6g.