Carbohydrates-what they are.. a small talk on them

[Scribbler]

What is a carbohydrate?
Carbohydrates are saccharides (i.e., sugars) and are one of the basic biomolecules found in most of the living organisms. They are composed of either aldehydes or ketones with one or more Hydroxyl (-OH) groups linked to them.
Their two primary roles are to provide energy or act as energy stores as in the case of glucose or to be structural units as in the case of cellulose in plants.

Carbohydrates are molecules that link together in chains. If there is only one carbohydrate then we call this a monosaccharide (One Sugar) with the most known monosaccharide to be; glucose.

If there are two carbs connected then we call it a disaccharide, if more are connected we call it an oligosaccharide (a few sugars), and if there are many making up a chain, we call it a polysaccharide (many sugars).

The most common polysaccharide that most of us are familiar with is Amylose (Starch). In essence starch is a polymer of glucose and it can be up to thousands of glucose molecules linked together.

As we start to visualize this, we come to understand why starch is a no-no in Atkins. Because it is composed of many many sugars together, i.e., it contains too much energy in a little molecule.
Too much energy that if not spent, will be broken down to glucose (our body breaks down this long chain in the small links it is composed of), and our body will do what it knows best to do when it has to handle an excess of sugar(glucose); it transforms it to fat!

Some of the carbohydrates, especially the ones that provide structural support in plants, are not broken down in our bodies, because we cannot break down the bonds that hold the links of these particular chains together.. This is something that cows can do but we don’t. This kind of carbs are known as fibres; the ones which are actually passing unprocessed from our bodies and are excluded when we calculate our net carbs.

Remember! As a general rule of thumb if you see anything ending up on –ose in the ingredients list in the food you want to buy then this is a hidden carbohydrate.
That is for now fellow Atkineers! Take care

[Sunny_0ne]

Thanks, Scribbler! I am a trivia junkie and this was just pure fun to learn!

[MommaRuthie]

Also, as each monosccharide is joined together to form a di-sacchrarice or polysacchride or glycogen, each link cuases water to be released into the body. So everytime you eat to many carbs and your body has to store them a water molecule is created and stored in your body. A glycogen chain (glucose stored in your liver) can be hundreds of glucose moecules long-storing a water molecule for each link in the chain. This is one of the reasons for sudden weight gain in the event of a cheat. Your body has all this extra sugar that they don't know what to do with and it stores it away, storing away a water molecule for each sugar molecule it stores away as well. When your body is denied sugar and you need to use the glycogen that is stored in your liver, water is used to create that reaction. therefore you lose water weight. once the glycogen in you liver is used up you switch to fat burning. However, your body will attempt to store any extra glucose as glycogen therefore making you gain weight by also storing water away for future use in the breakdown of the glycogen.

Just wanted to add that in. My prefessor is using me as a case study in our physiologoy class in college because I'm on atkins and my body is metabolizing differently than what is considered normal.

[Scribbler]

Hey MommaRuthie, what is the different metabolic pathway your body utilises? (asking as a biologist). Metabolising fat is a normal process, and it kicks in as soon as we have no carbs , maybe your Prof equals normal=carb diet..

[liv]

Thanks Scribbler. That was a nice explanation.

[MommaRuthie]

Yes, she is equating "normal" as a regular carb diet so the class can get a real feeling for the different metabolic pathways the body can undergo. I should have been more clear...

[Scribbler]

No worries... Hey people check my new brief here http://www.atkinsdietbulletinboard.c...-overview.html (Lipolysis & Ketosis - A brief overview)

[sallyseachange]

Another nice one Scribbler!