Carbohydrates
50-60% of your daily calorie intake should be carbohydrates.
Carbohydrates provide energy for...
· Muscle contraction
· Brain function
· Liver contraction
There are two types of carbohydrates:
1. Complex carbohydrates-these carbs take longer to break down and digest than simple carbs. They exist in either a refined or natural form. Natural sugars are found in fruit and vegetables and are usually healthier than refined carbohydrates because they have a higher nutritional value. Refined sugars are not very healthy and are found in things which are processed e.g. cakes, chocolate, jams, biscuits and so on.
2. Simple Carbohydrates- these are also known as sugars and are “simple” to break down and digest.
All carbohydrates are made up with molecules of sugar. These molecules of sugar are known as saccharides. There are 3 forms of saccharides:
· Monosaccharide’s- these are simple carbohydrates as they are only one molecule of sugar e.g. glucose.
· Disaccharides- these are also simple carbohydrates because they are just two molecules of sugar. An example of this would be sucrose (glucose + fructose).
· Polysaccharides- this is many molecules of sugar together making it a complex carbohydrate.
Glycaemic index
This is a number out of 100 which shows how quickly a carbohydrate is broken down and enters the blood as glucose. The higher the number the quicker the break down and the lower the number the slower the break down.
There are a few things which affect how quickly the glucose enters the bloodstream:
§ How long it took to cook.
§ How much the food has been processed.
§ How ripe the fruit is
