Most people have heard the term carbohydrates, but have no clue what is meant by good and bad carbs. Can there really be good ones and what do the bad ones really do to you? Since making a list of all carbohydrates would take pages and pages, to answer these and other questions, one needs to understand the basic structure of this food source and how to tell them apart.

Often it’s easier to divide this food source into good and bad and then list the categories under which all carbs fall. There are basically two kinds; simple and complex. Simple are bad for the body and complex are good adding a rich element to any diet. These latter carbs should not be avoided, but should be embraced.

Complex carbohydrates are foods such as whole grains and edible parts of plants like stalks and leaves. Because they contain longer chains of sugar molecules as well as a lower “glycemic load, ” they take longer for the body to process. In turn this provides energy for a longer period of time while lacking the substance that turns sugar to fat.

Simple carbohydrates, on the other hand, are made up of high sugar foods that are processed very quickly. When fiber is low and sugar is high, the food is processed before it can be burned off turning most of it into fat. These would include foods such as cakes and cookies.

Although simple carbs include many fruits and vegetables in that they are made up predominately of sugar, they differ in one way; they contain fiber. Fiber changes the way the body processes these foods, slowing digestion, and encouraging them to react much like complex carbs.

Of course, many people know that foods such as soda, pastries, candy, and desserts should be avoided, but so should many other forms of simple carbs. These include foods such as white rice, bread, and pasta as well as potatoes. Although eating these occasionally would not kill a diet, if given an option one should choose the more traditional complex carbs.

Most products today require labels indicating whether the carbs they contain are simple or complex. Additionally, the “glycemic index” explains how quickly these foods will be processed by the body. Both are extremely important when making better choices in a diet. Although trying to find a list of all carbohydrates can be extremely difficult, knowing the categories and researching the ones that help the body maintain an adequate energy level and reduce fat should be the focus.