How many carbohydrates do you need per day? This question interests many, especially those who cannot live without "harmful" products.
The energy necessary for the human body comes from consumed food. The process of assimilation of food in the body is somewhat similar to burning, when most products, including fats and carbohydrates, are converted into heat or energy, water and carbon dioxide.
Carbohydrates are important energy components of food, the main representative of which is glucose. By their chemical composition they are divided into polysaccharides and simple sugars. According to the degree of assimilation in the body, carbohydrates are divided into digestible and non-digestible. Glucose, sucrose, fructose, lactose, maltose are most easily acquired. Slower - dextrins and starch.
Indigestible carbohydrates include cellulose, which is found in legumes, grains, whole wheat bread, potatoes, cabbage, carrots. Fiber is not absorbed by the body, although normal digestion is impossible without it. Fiber deficiency leads to obesity, cardiovascular disease, gallstone disease, constipation, colon cancer, etc.
In order to avoid changes in the normal hormonal status of the human body, it is recommended that the daily intake of carbohydrates - simple sugars (sugar, confectionery, sweets, honey, jam) in the diet should not exceed 50-100 grams.
Carbohydrates, yielding significantly in calories to fats, are included in the diet in a relatively large amount - 4.5-5 times more compared to fats. In this regard, they represent the main source of food energy. Carbohydrates are sometimes thought to be “empty calories." This is not true. After all, if all the calorie content of the diet will be provided by fats and proteins, regardless of how many carbohydrates are needed per day, the vital activity of the body is disrupted.
Carbohydrates are mainly found in plant foods. Glycogen (an animal polysaccharide) is found in the muscles and liver.
Sucrose, which is of primary importance in nutrition, is, in fact, an ordinary sugar sold in stores and is the main carbohydrate component of cakes, sweets and cakes.
With a normal diet, the incoming energy of food containing carbohydrates is enough to ensure the vital functions of the body. With a lack of calories, the body has to spend spare carbohydrates. With excess consumption of food of high calorie content, the body uses only the amount of carbohydrates needed per day, and their excess is deposited in fat cells as subcutaneous fat, resulting in increased body weight and obesity.
To maintain normal human life, a certain norm of carbohydrates per day is needed, in the established ratio with fats and proteins. The optimal ratio of proteins, fats and carbohydrates for a healthy person is 1: 1.2: 4.
It is accepted that 1 g of fat contained in food gives 9 kilocalories, 1 g of carbohydrates and 1 g of protein - 4 kilocalories.
So, how many carbohydrates do you need per day for a middle-aged adult with a weight of 70 kg, who is engaged in light physical labor? Such a need is from 360 to 400 grams of digestible carbohydrates, including 50 to 100 grams of sugar, confectionery, honey, jam.
In older people, starting at age 60, the need for daily intake of carbohydrates is changing. Namely:
Men from 60 to 74 years old need 333 g of carbohydrates.
Men 75 years and older - 290 g.
Women from 60 to 74 years old - 305 g.
Women 75 years and older - 275 g.
You can find out how much carbohydrates a child needs per day from the following plate:
From 1 year to 3 years - 170-180 g.
From 4 to 6 years - 200-250 g.
From 7 to 9 years old - 270-300 g.
From 10-12 years old - 320-350 g.
From 13 to 15 years old - 350-400 g.
The percentage of digestible carbohydrates in foods (per 100 grams of product):
Cooked sausage - 1.1%, Sausages - 0.4%
Chicken egg - 0.9%, Egg white - 0.8%
Egg yolk - 1.2%, Scallop fish - 3.3%
Fat kefir - 4.5%, Butter - 0.5%
Cow's milk - 4.5%, Condensed milk with sugar - 53.5%
Yogurt - 4.5%, Sour cream 3.1%
Cheese with a fat content of 45% - 2.0%, Fat cottage cheese - 3%
Fat-free cottage cheese - 3.5%, Bun from flour of the 1st grade - 52.7%
Peas - 50.8%, Buckwheat - 64.4%
Semolina - 70.1%, Oatmeal - 62%
Barley groats - 70.5%, Macaroni - 70.9%
Potato starch - 81%, Wheat flour 1st grade - 69.7%
Rice - 72.5%, Millet - 66.5%
Wheat crackers - 68.2%, Wheat bread - 50.3%
Rye bread - 42.5%, Apricots - 12%
Dried apricots - 63.5%, Grapes - 16.7%
Pears - 10.5%, Raisins - 69%
Cranberries - 7.5%, Dried fruits - 51.2%
Lemons - 9.2%, Tangerines - 9.2%
Blackcurrant - 9.8%, Apples - 11.5%
Plums - 10.7%, Watermelon - 8.8%
Dry porcini mushrooms - 22.5%, Shovel peas - 10.5%
Melon - 8.6%, Zucchini - 3.5%
Cabbage - 5.2%, Potato - 20%
Onions - 9.2%, Carrots - 7.6%
Cucumbers - 2.9%, Tomatoes - 4%
Salad - 2.1%, Pumpkin - 5.9%
Strawberry jam - 71.2%, Cocoa - 38.4%
Honey - 77.7%, Walnuts - 8.3%
Sugar - 95.5%, Chocolate - 50.9%