Carbohydrates are one of the three macros (more on that shortly) that you need to include in your daily diet. On top of that, this source of energy tastes good and is found in many of the foods you love and enjoy.
However, there can be too much of a good nutrient, especially when it comes to carbs. Carbs have a lot of calories and can easily start to add up in your daily calorie count. Too much carb intake can increase your risk of obesity, high cholesterol, type 2 diabetes, and other health conditions.
If you’re trying to lose weight or eat healthier, you’ll need to keep an eye on how many carbs you’re eating every day. So, how many carbs should you eat in a day? The experts at MyFitFoods have all the answers below.
What Are Carbs?
Carbs, short for carbohydrates, are one of the main building blocks of your diet. One of the essential macronutrients, also known as macros (the other macros are protein and fat), carbs appear in many foods you enjoy, such as noodles, cookies, and bread.
They naturally occur in grains, like wheat, so it makes sense that you’d find them in grain-based foods. However, in some cases, carbs are added to certain things, like soda, in the form of sugary high fructose corn syrup.
Types of Carbohydrates
Although you probably associate carbs with grains, there are three different types of them that you’ll find in most of the things that you eat. They are:
- Starch: This is what most people think of when they hear the word “carbs.” Starch is a complex carbohydrate consisting of many carb molecules bonded together. You can find starch in whole-wheat and white bread, white rice and brown rice, peas, beans, lentils, and even some starchy vegetables, notably root veggies like sweet potatoes and carrots.
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Sugar: Considered a simple carb, sugar occurs both naturally in foods such as fruit juice and vegetables and unnaturally when added to pre-made snacks and soda. How can you tell that sugar has been added to your favorite beverage? Look for the words “high fructose corn syrup.”
There are three types of sugars: those that appear in milk, known as lactose; those found in fruit, called fructose; and those found in cane sugar, called sucrose. - Fiber: Another complex carbohydrate, fiber, is found in several foods, ranging from vegetables to beans. Fiber is good for you because it takes the body time to digest, making you feel fuller longer. It also helps to regulate your digestion.
If you want to include fiber in your diet, look for ways to add legumes, dairy products that are low in fat, and plenty of vegetables to your lunches and dinners.
Why Do You Need Carbs?
Despite all the fear that people have placed on carbs, they can be healthy for you if you eat the right amount and right type. Some of the health benefits of eating carbs include:
- Energy: Carbs give you energy, which is one of their many health benefits. The starches and sugars you eat get broken down into glucose as they travel through your digestive system. The pancreas turns the glucose into energy for your cells. The only issue occurs when you eat too many carbs, which are alternately stored by the liver for later use or turned into fat cells, increasing your body fat.
- Diet plan maintenance: As long as you eat the right carbs, they’ll help you lose weight. The healthiest carbs contain plenty of fiber and starch, both of which make you feel full for longer because they are digested more slowly. Plus, when you’re full, you’ll eat less, and a lower calorie intake is also diet friendly.
- Disease prevention: Fiber helps keep your digestive system regular and working efficiently, helping you avoid constipation and other issues. Plus, the fiber found in whole grains and vegetables can help prevent heart disease and the onset of diabetes. In addition, eating a lot of fiber may lower your risk of rectal and colon cancer.
Of course, to enjoy all of these benefits, you need to eat not only the right types of carbs but also the right amount of them.
Low-Carb Diets
Notice that low-carb diets like the ketogenic diet aren’t entirely “no carb” diets. They acknowledge that some carbs are necessary to have energy, prevent diseases, and feel less hungry. To follow a low-carb diet successfully, you need to carefully measure your calorie and carbohydrate intake every day and eat more protein and fats than you do carbs — even complex carbs.
So, how many carbs should you eat? Anything less than 50 grams of carbs per day is considered low-carb. With that said, the lowest that you should go is 20 grams since you still need some of the benefits of this macro.
If you regularly eat less than 50 grams of carbohydrates per day, the low-carb effects of your diet will send your body into ketosis. This is a state in which you begin burning off fat stores for energy, helping you lose weight pretty quickly. While you need to carefully weigh your macros and eat healthily to stay in ketosis, there are many benefits to a keto diet.
Other Healthy Diets
On the other hand, it’s entirely possible to eat carbs and still follow a healthy diet. You don’t need to go low-carb unless you want to. Instead, you have two general options, both of which will help you feel healthier while at the same time allowing you to include carbohydrates in your meals.
The 100 to 150 Grams per Day Plan
Eating between 100 and 150 grams of carbs per day is considered to be a moderate amount. If you’re very active and need those carbs to provide you with energy, then this is your best option. In addition, if you’re at your goal weight and want to maintain it, then aim for around this amount of carbs per day. There’s one final scenario here: if you’re just starting to cut down on the carbs and want to do so slowly, then this amount will be helpful.
It’s enough to make you feel as though you aren’t deprived of your favorite foods without going overboard.
The 50 to 100 Grams per Day Plan
If weight loss is your goal and you don’t want to take it to the “extreme” of the keto diet, eating between 50 and 100 grams of carbs is a good option. Cutting back to this amount will help you lose weight without putting your body into ketosis. In addition, you’ll still have plenty of energy and will see the weight come off since you are eating fewer carbs than normal.
Just don’t forget that when you cut back on one macro, like carbohydrates, you need to raise the amounts of the other macros that you eat to maintain a balanced diet. This means that you’ll need to eat more protein and healthy fats.
Focus on Healthy Carbs
It’s vital to focus on eating good carbs, not bad ones. Look at food and drink labels; if you see high fructose corn syrup on the list, then what you’re eating has plenty of added sugar, which is a bad carb. Find something else to eat or drink instead. These bad carbs will give you a sugar rush, followed by a crash, which leaves you craving more of them to keep going.
Good carbs include vegetables, especially leafy greens and root vegetables. Anything made from whole grains, including pasta and bread, is also on the list. Fruit, rice, whole oats (think standard oatmeal, not instant oatmeal), beans, legumes, and more are also considered to be good carbs. Focus on adding them to your meals.
How Many Carbs Should You Eat a Day?
When choosing how many carbs you should eat daily, there are plenty of factors to consider. You need to consider whether you’ll benefit from a true low-carb diet like keto or if you simply want to cut back on carbs so that you can focus on eating a healthier diet. With so many options to pick from, it is up to you, and you can feel free to experiment to see which amount of carbs best fits your lifestyle and dietary preferences. There really is no wrong answer.
And if you find that planning meals and making meals during this change is difficult, MyFitFoods is here to help. We have breakfast, lunch, and dinner meals to suit any healthy lifestyle.
Sources:
Carbohydrates: How Carbs Fit Into a Healthy Diet | Mayo Clinic
How Many Carbs Should You Eat Per Day To Lose Weight? | Healthline