ORLANDO, Fla. – A poor diet does more damage to your body than drugs, alcohol and tobacco combined, according to a worldwide report. Simply avoiding sugars and starches can be a great way to lose weight and feel better.
The Mayo Clinic states that carbohydrates are absorbed into the blood stream as glucose, which can be used as fuel for energy. But if you’re not vigorously exercising every day, that glucose can be converted to fat.
“Because when we realize that all of the carbohydrates and all of the calories that we take in, if we don’t burn it, we’re going to store it, and it’s going to make it more difficult for our body to be agile,” Katie Ruth Nelson Myles said.
But you might be sabotaging your own low-carb diet with hidden carbs, like those found in pre-shredded cheese. Read the label. It comes packaged with food starch to keep the cheese from clumping.
Pre-packaged egg whites in a carton may also have this hidden carb on the label.
In fact, also read the labels on some of your low-fat and non-fat dairies like milk, yogurt, sour cream and non-dairy creamers. They often contain a starch called cellulose that gives them that creamy texture in your mouth. And it all adds up to a diet disaster.
A Harvard study of more than 300 overweight people found that knowledge of hidden carbohydrates helped people lose 67 percent of their body fat mass -- almost 50 percent more than the group that didn’t know anything about hidden carbs.