To Carb or Not to Carb

Many questions I receive have to do with confusion about carbohydrates, what they are, whether you really need any, and their contribution to brain-body health. Often these questioners have been lobbied by well-meaning individuals whose apparent goal was to convince the world that embracing a diet free from all carbohydrates or carbs was the preferred way to go. Such recommendations seem to ‘throw the baby out with the bathwater,’ to use that familiar saying, and their proponents urge avoiding carbs like the proverbial plague. What really are carbohydrates? They are one of the three general categories of macronutrients, the other two being fats and proteins. Are there good and bad carbs? Definitely, just as there are good and bad behaviors (or behaviors that results in either negative or positive outcomes, as I prefer to state it). Can avoiding undesirable carbs help you manage your weight and prevent some disease? That appears to be the case. Can avoiding even good carbs injure your health and sabotage brain function and fitness goals? This, too, appears to be the case. More tomorrow.