Feature
A slice of regular "diet" bread typically has 50 calories and 10 grams of carbohydrates.
The flip side of "low-carb"
From eNews, April 29, 2004
If you're enthused about "low-carb" foods, here are a few things
to ponder. "These products are not significantly more nutritious,
do not always contain less calories than many regular foods, and
they cost more," says Marla Reicks, a nutritionist with the
University of Minnesota Extension Service. Read more
Reicks says that if you replace carbohydrates with protein, you
still have just as many calories--protein has as many calories as
carbohydrates on a gram-per-gram basis, while fat has more than
twice as many calories. Reicks offers these examples:
- A slice of low-carb Atkins bread has 60 calories and eight
grams of total carbs, though it claims to have only three "net
impact" carbs. A slice of regular "diet" bread typically has 50
calories and 10 grams of carbs.
- A one-ounce low-carb chocolate bar has 155 calories and 12
grams of fat, but no sugar; and it claims to have only one "net
impact" carb. A regular bar has 150 calories and 10 grams of
fat.
"Low-carb almost always means high price," says Reicks. One
low-carb breakfast cereal costs nearly four times as much per
serving as regular cereal. Atkins breads cost twice as much as most
regular breads. "And most low-carb foods sacrifice a lot in taste
and texture," she adds. Reicks advises choosing your carbohydrates
carefully. "Eat less sugar, honey, syrups, and foods that contain
these sweeteners," she says. "And eat more healthy carbohydrate
foods such as fruits, vegetables, and whole grains--such as brown
rice, oatmeal, whole wheat bread, and whole grain pasta--which
contain fiber that may protect you from some forms of cancer and
reduce your risk of heart disease, diabetes, and obesity." She also
recommends being leery of low-carb product labeling. It's
problematic, she says, because the Food and Drug Administration has
no official definition for "low-carbohydrate" and has yet to
approve any low-carbohydrate labels. For more information about
low-carbohydrate foods and diets, read
"A Perspective on the 'Low Carb' Bandwagon" in
Nutrinet, March 2004, a publication by the U's Department
of Food Science and Nutrition.
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