World of Carbohydrate

Carbohydrate is one of the most important food components we are eating every single day because it is so important for our health we better be familiar with some basic fact which could help us step away from some misleading ‘trap’.

1. Intro

So, the first thing I want to talk about is the differences between food high in carbohydrates and high in added sugar. Before that, we should be clear what is carbohydrate and the relationship with sugar.

2. Adding some sugar? NO!

As you can see from the picture, sugar is a general term for one part of the carbohydrate. If you want to shop something with high carbohydrate in a market, there will be a countless option for you, but normally food with starch ingredients (Bread, Pasta, Rice), dairy products (Milk, Cheese), and fiber (Vegetable, Fruit) should be a good choice for you. On the other side, added sugar is more common in packaged foods which mostly provide sweet flavor for the customer. Not like carbohydrate, food high in added sugar food has less nutrition and lack of fiber, phytochemicals etc.

For example, Pepsi Cola has 41g sugar per drink, Red Bull has 27g sugar per drink, and 100g sugar has 387 calories. Basically, they are just water plus sugar.  The daily intake for sugar is only 100g per day recommended by CFIA. 

3. High sugar diet could result…

From the research on 2009, High intakes of dietary sugars in the setting of a worldwide pandemic of obesity and cardiovascular disease have heightened concerns about the adverse effects of excessive consumption of sugars. Excessive consumption of sugars has been linked with several metabolic abnormalities and adverse health conditions, as well as shortfalls of essential nutrients. (Johnson et al., 2009, p. 1015)

This research showing between 1970 and 2005, the average annual availability of sugars/added sugars increased by 19%, which added 76 calories to Americans’ average daily energy intake. Soft drinks and other sugar-sweetened beverages are the primary sources of added sugars in Americans’ diets.  In addition, during the past two decades, the prevalence of obesity in children has risen greatly worldwide. Obesity in childhood causes a wide range of serious complications, and increases the risk of premature illness and death later in life, raising public-health concerns. Fortunately, people already aware of the harm of high sugar diet and start to adopt a healthy diet which is low in sugar, fat, and sodium. 

4. What is whole grain 

Wholegrain is just as the name ‘whole’ saying, it includes a full component of the grain which provides more nutrients such as Fiber, Protein, Vitamin B, and trace mineral which you can’t find in refined grain. Nowadays, people also adding some nutrients back to the refined grains that lost during processes like thiamin, riboflavin, niacin, iron, and folic acid.

The benefits of eating whole grain often come from the elements you ate: Fiber, Protein, Vitamins etc. Soluble fiber helps with diarrhea, lower cholesterol and insoluble fiber help with constipation, blinds toxin.  Protein composited most of our cell in our body so you should take more of it. Vitamin B helps us with a good eyesight. Unfortunately, those nutritions are removed during the refining process, if you only eat refined grain could result in a lack of fiber and multiple vitamins. 

5. Packaged food of added sugar v.s whole grain 

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• The first ‘Sweet Biscuit’ is an added sugar food which has glucose syrup and dextrose.
• The second ‘Oat Cookies’ is a whole grain food also has sucrose.
• The third ‘Quick Oats’ is a whole grain food has no sugar added.

6. Home made fried black rice

I am not a big fan with whole grain food, but I still add it to my daily recipe because I need it to balance my dietary which I might consume too much sugar or fat. But there is one whole grain recipe, I cooked all the time. It’s easy to learn and also delicious. OK, let’s take a look.

A. Recipe

1. Black Rice                                                   300g
2. Carrot(Small Dice)                                    150g
3. Onion(Small Dice)                                    150g
   
4. Ham(Small  Dice)                                       50g     
5. Scallion(Cut on a bias)                              10g 
6. Salt                                                                   4g
7. Soy Sauce                                                       3g
8. Vegetable Oil                                              50ml

B. Steps

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• Cooked rice in rice cooker with a ratio of 1:1.5 for rice and water
• Cut the vegetables and ham
• Heating oil with medium heat and add onion first
• After onion getting crystal then add carrot 
• Adding ham and mixed rice
• Fried for 5 mins with high heat
• Adding salt and mix with soy sauce
• Adding scallions and ready to serve  

Black rice is a source of iron, vitamin E, and antioxidants. The bran of black rice contains one of the highest levels of anthocyanins found in food. The grain has a similar amount of fiber to brown rice and, like brown rice, has a mild, nutty taste. It’s not bad to add this to your whole grain recipe, you can always add some your personal favorite ingredients. I often put some scrambled egg in, and it tastes fantastic! 

Reference

• Jared, C. (2010). Figure 1 [digital image]. Retrieved from https://content.byui.edufilea236934c-3c60-4fe9-90aa-d343b3e3a6401module3readingscarbohydrates.html
• Johnson RK, Appel LJ, Brands M, Howard BV, Lefevre M, Lustig RH, … Wylie-Rosett J. (2009). Dietary sugars intake and cardiovascular health: a scientific statement from the American Heart Association. Circulation, 120(11), 1011–1020. https://doi-org.gbcprx01.georgebrown.ca/10.1161/CIRCULATIONAHA.109.192627
• Diana, Y. (2017). Figure 2 [digital image]. Retrieved from https://www.businessinsider.com/sweetest-sodas-teas-coffees-energy-drinks-us-2017-7
• Jennifer, I. (2016). Figure 3 [digital image]. Retrieved from https://skinnychef.com/blog/whole-grains-for-kids