What Are Complex Carbohydrates? And What’s The Difference Between Simple And Complex Carbohydrates?

To understand what complex carbohydrates are, you first need to understand what carbohydrates are. In a more scientific definition carbohydrates are organic compounds that your body uses to process glucose; the essential building block for energy. These compounds include elements that can be found in nature, like oxygen and carbon.

I don’t mean to make this feel like you are back in chemistry class, so I wont. A more readable definition may go something like this; Carbohydrates are the main source for your body to get energy. Foods that contain starch or sugar contain carbohydrates and the amount of exercise you perform, determines the amount of carbs you have in your body. The vital parts of your body that need carbs are your brain and your nervous system.

Simple Vs Complex Carbohydrates

Now that we establish what carbohydrates are lets define the types of carbs. The main groups are simple and complex carbohydrates. Simple carbohydrates are the ones that most people don’t want. (i.e. if your trying to loose weight) Simple carbohydrates contain only one sugar molecule. This means that these carbs are smaller and your body digests them and breaks them down a lot quicker than complex carbohydrates. Which brings us to the other type of carbs.

Complex carbohydrates contain three or more sugar molecules and take longer to digest. This in return will make those carbs stay longer in your bloodstream and that will increase your blood sugar.

The main difference between simple and complex carbohydrates is that simple carbs generally fall into the category has begin fatty and hazardous to your health if you take in large amount of them. But not all simple carbs fall into that category. For example juice. Orange juice falls into the simple category but it is nutritious and shouldn’t be categorized as hazardous. But on the other hand, things like, ice cream should be limited to a certain amount. Complex carbohydrates are the exact opposite. They are the carbs that you DO want to eat because they usually contain high amounts of fiber and add other nutritious value to your diet.

Complex Carbohydrates List And the Best You Can Eat

If you cant decide on the foods you want to eat that have complex carbohydrates, here are some of the best that are high in fiber and other important nutrients.

Grains

Oatmeal
Corn
Bran
Brown Rice
Whole Wheat Bread
Pasta
Whole Barley

Fruit

Kiwi
Pear
Pineapple
Strawberries
Apple
Grapefruit

Vegetables

Yams
Peas
Tomato
Celery
Onions
Coleslaw
Carrot
Broccoli
Brussel Sprouts

Other Great Sources Of Complex Carbohydrates

Lentils
Peanuts
Lima Beans
Pickles
Lettuce
Milk