One popular diet method is to blacklist certain foods. Perhaps the first thing that comes to your mind is to give up “carbs” or packaged foods, which may mean avoiding staples such as pasta.
But do we really need to blacklist pasta to improve our diet?
No, not necessarily. This is what we call the reductionist approach to nutrition. Where we classify food based on one of its main components only. And for the record, pasta is not just a carbohydrate; One cup (about 145 grams or 5.1 ounces) of cooked pasta contains about 38 grams of carbohydrates, 7.7 grams of protein, and 0.6 grams of fat. Plus, there’s the water the pasta absorbs during cooking and plenty of vitamins and minerals. We hear many people say, “But pasta is mostly carbs!” Yes, that’s true, but it’s not the whole story.
You probably know that there are recommendations for how much energy (calories) we should eat in a day. These recommendations are based on several factors, including body size, gender, and physical activity.Science Alert“.
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But you may not realize that there are also recommendations about the characteristics of the macronutrients – or types of food – that provide us with this energy. Fats, carbohydrates, and proteins are macronutrients, which are broken down in the body to produce energy for our bodies. Acceptable macronutrient distribution ranges describe the ratio, or percentage, of the macronutrients that should provide this energy.
These ranges are set by experts based on health outcomes and healthy eating models. They aim to make sure we get enough, but not too much, of each calorie. Consuming too much or too little of any type of food can have health consequences.
Ratios are also designed to make sure we get enough vitamins and minerals that come with energy in the foods we usually eat. We should get 45-65% of our energy from carbohydrates, 10-30% from proteins, 20-35% from fats.
The macronutrient ratios mean that it can be healthy to eat up to 1.2 to 6.5 times more carbohydrates per day than protein; Since every gram of protein contains the same amount of energy as a gram of carbohydrates. The ratio of carbohydrates to protein in pasta is 38g to 7.7g, which is roughly equivalent to a 5:1 ratio, well within the acceptable distribution of macronutrients.
Pasta actually contains enough protein to balance out the carbohydrates. This is not only because of the eggs in the pasta, but because wheat is another source of protein, making up about 20% of the protein eaten globally.
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In the context of a healthy diet, it has been proven that people lose more weight when their diet includes pasta regularly. A systematic review of 10 different studies found that pasta was better for post-meal blood sugar levels than bread or potatoes.
Instead of giving up spaghetti, consider reducing portion sizes, or switching to whole-grain pasta, which is higher in fiber, which has benefits for gut health and can help you feel fuller for longer.
Gluten-free pasta contains slightly less protein than wheat pasta. So, while it’s healthier for people with gluten sensitivity, there are no increased health benefits in switching to gluten-free pasta for most of us.
Pasta is not usually eaten on its own. So, while some warn of the risk of high blood sugar when eating “naked carbs” (meaning only carbs without other foods), this is not a risk when it comes to pasta.
When pasta provides the basis of a meal, it can be a way to help people eat more vegetables in smooth vegetable sauces. As for the kids, pasta sauce can be a great place to hide mashed or grated vegetables.
Not eating pasta alone is also important about protein. Plant foods are not usually considered complete proteins, which means we need to eat combinations of them to get all the different types of amino acids (the building blocks of proteins) that we need to survive.
But pasta, although we often focus on the carbohydrates and energy in them, has good nutritional value. Like most foods, they are not just macronutrients, they also contain micronutrients.
One cup of cooked pasta contains about a quarter of the recommended daily amount of vitamins B1 and B9, half of the recommended amount of selenium, and 10% of our iron needs.
When pasta is cooked and cooled, some of the carbohydrates are converted into resistant starch. This starch gets its name from being resistant to digestion, so it contributes less energy and is better for blood sugar levels.
So your leftover pasta, even if you reheat it, is lower in calories than the night before.
There is a lot of talk about reducing your carb intake for weight loss, but remember that carbs come in different forms and in different foods. Some, like pasta, bring other benefits. Others, such as cakes and sweets, add very little benefit.
When it comes to cutting back on refined carbs, think first of the sweets that are eaten on their own, before you cut out the staple carbs that are often served with vegetables; Because it is arguably the healthiest staple food group for you.