Confused over carbs?

Get the skinny on the low-carb craze before heading to the supermarket

February 24, 2004

BY SYLVIA RECTOR, FREE PRESS FOOD WRITER

http://www.freep.com/features/food/carb24_20040224.htm

If you feel bombarded by low-carbohydrate products at the grocery store now, brace yourself. Hundreds more are coming.

That's because consumers are expected to spend up to $30 billion this year, twice as much as in 2003, on low-carb foods and other items ranging from snacks, frozen dinners and bunless burgers to beer, pasta and diet books, according to LowCarbiz, a Denver-based low-carb industry group.

With a projected 59 million Americans (the group's estimate) following a low-carb eating plan -- either by using a specific program such as Atkins or the South Beach diet, or just by cutting back on sweets and starches -- the sales potential for food manufacturers is obvious.

So, too, is the irony of consumers trying to lose weight by buying more food. Nevertheless, many low-carb dieters are loading their carts with these new, often pricier products while having only fuzzy notions of what they're getting, what they should be eating, or how it's supposed to help them.

The scientific community remains divided about the effects of low-carb diets, and some doctors warn that extreme carb restriction can even cause kidney damage and other harmful consequences.

Until long-term studies are done, it's impossible to say which low carb diet -- if any -- is right for you; that's a subject for the scientists. But if you've made low-carb your weight-loss plan of choice, take our Savvy Shopper's Low-Carb Quiz before heading out to the supermarket.

For better or worse, a diet revolution is under way, and you'll want to be armed with all the information you can get.

QUESTION: On food packages, what do nutrient claims such as "carb free," "low carb" and "reduced carb" mean?

ANSWER: Unlike terms such as "fat free," "low fat" and "reduced fat," these descriptions of carb levels are illegal at this point because the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has not set guidelines defining them. A few manufacturers have been daring to use them anyway, but without uniform definitions, consumers have no way of knowing what they mean. However, the Grocery Manufacturers of America this month asked the agency to establish definitions so companies can begin using them to help consumers make better buying decisions. The FDA is expected to issue the rules soon.

Q: What do advertising pitches such as "carb controlled," "carb smart" and "carb counter" mean?

A: These and similar slogans have no legal meaning, so there's no guarantee such products have significantly lower carb levels. The Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI) -- a Washington, D.C.-based consumer advocacy group -- has asked the FDA to crack down on the use of such implied claims. Until they're regulated, however, consumers should know that the only way to be sure these more-expensive products are significantly different is to compare their carb counts with those of traditional products.

To do that, look at the "Total carb" numbers on the nutrition labels on the back of food packages.

Q: Which number is more significant: the grams of "total carb" listed on the nutrition label, or the lower "net carbs" number sometimes trumpeted on the front?

A: The term "net carb" has recently come under criticism by experts outside the diet industry. The nutrition label's total-carb number includes all grams of carbohydrate in one serving. But Atkins and many other low-carb diets subtract the grams of fiber from total carbs to find "net carbs" (also known as effective carbs, usable carbs, impact carbs and other terms). They consider net carbs a more important number than total carbs because fiber is not digested or absorbed, so it does not raise blood sugar; avoiding spikes in blood sugar is one of the objectives of low-carb eating.

Other compounds known as polyols, or sugar alcohols, also have little or no effect on blood sugar, and some diet programs including Atkins also subtract these from total carbs. Some critics, including the CSPI, point out that sugar alcoholsstill contain calories, that some people are sensitive to them and that consumers may think they can load up on low-net-carb foods and still lose weight -- which may not always be true.

To see the difference it makes, consider PowerBar's chocolate peanut butter flavored Protein Plus Carb Select bar. It has 30 total carbs, but the manufacturer subtracts 2 fiber grams and 26 grams of sugar alcohols and advertises 2 grams of "impact carbs" on the wrapper. Still, the bar packs 270 calories.

"It's a huge leap of faith to assume that the calories in a lower-carb food don't count," says Bonnie Liebman, nutrition director of CSPI, which has called on the FDA to ban net-carb claims.

Q: What are some of the things food companies do to reduce carb counts, and are these changes healthful?

A: Often, they add fiber-rich ingredients -- a positive change for most Americans' diets. They may substitute protein powders, soy flour and gum thickeners for some of the wheat flour in foods, so foods may be higher in protein but possibly lower in other nutrients.

Instead of sugar, food companies may use artificial sweeteners -- such as Splenda or Equal -- or sugar alcohols, listed as ingredients with names that end in "-ol," such as malitol, mannitol, lactitol, sorbitol and xylitol. Author Dana Carpender writes in "500 Low-Carb Recipes" (Fair Winds Press, $19.95) that sugar alcohols, like dietary fiber, can cause gas problems. Using Beano can help, she writes, but it also makes the compounds digestible and defeats the purpose of using them.

Q: The popular South Beach Diet makes a distinction between what it calls "good carbs" and "bad carbs." What is the difference?

A: In general, it considers good carbs to be those from minimally processed fruits, vegetables and whole grains and bad carbs to be those from highly processed foods made with white flour or white sugar. The diet's founder, Miami cardiologist Dr. Arthur Agatston, advocates "whole grain bread instead of white, sweet potatoes instead of white, brown rice or wild rice instead of white, and whole-grain pasta." Virtually every low-carb diet discourages consumption of foods made mostly with white flour and white sugar.

Likewise, South Beach -- and again, some other diets -- distinguishes between "good fats" and "bad fats." It recommends limiting fatty meats and full-fat dairy products, while recommending foods including lean meats, poultry, fish, nuts, low-fat dairy products, olive oil, canola oil and peanut oil.

Q: How many grams of carbohydrate should adults typically consume per day?

A: Many fewer than the USDA Food Guide Pyramid advises, leading experts agree.

An adult consuming 2,000 calories a day and following the pyramid's recommendations would ingest about 300 grams of carbohydrate -- the equivalent of 1,200 calories -- or 60 percent of a day's calories from carbs.

That 300-gram amount is expected to be reduced dramatically -- perhaps by half -- when the FDA issues new Dietary Reference Intakes, or DRIs, this year.

Some of the country's leading epidemiologists -- chief among them, Dr. Walter Willett of the Harvard School of Public Health -- have said they believe the emphasis on high-carb, low-fat diet has been wrong, and that 40 percent rather than 60 percent is a better amount of calories to consume daily from carbohydrates.

Q: How many grams of carbohydrate should someone on a low-carb diet consume daily?

A: There's no consensus. More than a dozen popular diets espousing some form of carbohydrate control have been published since 1992, starting with "Dr. Atkins' New Diet Revolution" (Quill, $13.95) by the late Dr. Robert Atkins and continuing through Dr. Arthur Agatston's "The South Beach Diet" (Rodale, $24.95). Nutritionist-author Jonny Bowden describes and rates 14 of them in his new book, "Living the Low Carb Life: From Atkins to the Zone, Choosing the Diet that's Right for You" (Sterling, $19.95). As he shows, their approaches differ and their carb levels -- along with what foods are permitted -- vary significantly on each diet and over the course of the diet.

Atkins followers, for example, consume only 20 carbs a day for the first two weeks of the plan but then increase their intakes and add more foods back to their diets until they reach goal weight and begin a lifetime maintenance program. That's usually about 60 to 100 carbs per day, according to "Atkins for Life" (St. Martin's Press, $24.95).

Q: Can Atkins dieters really eat unlimited quantities of steak, bacon and other red meats?

A: "Atkins for Life" maintains that there's nothing wrong with saturated fat -- the kind found in meat, poultry, eggs, butter, cheese and other dairy products. But, it says, "It is a common misconception that doing Atkins means eating large amounts of bacon and sausage. Both should be eaten occasionally and in moderation . . ." The book also cautions that "it is crucially important to eat a variety of healthy fats for health reasons."

Colette Heimowitz, director of research and education for Atkins Nutritionals, says the Atkins plan's recommendations on fats have not changed, despite recent news stories to the contrary.

Q: Why do low-carb products usually cost more than traditional ones?

A: Prices are higher because the ingredients are more costly and their research and development costs are higher, says Laurie Kuntz, LowCarbiz's chief executive officer. Look for low-carb products to become cheaper as the novelty wears off, as they continue moving out of niche markets and into mainstream retail outlets, and as more and bigger companies begin producing them. Last year, for example, some 300 new low-carb food products were introduced, but at least three times that many will be added this year, Kuntz says.

Q: For those on a low-carb diet, are these new products worth the extra money?

A: Not always. You can sometimes save significant carbs by switching to a different mainstream brand. Check nutrition labels and you'll see that popular national-brand spaghetti sauces, for example, can range from 8 carbs per half-cup serving to 23 or more. The difference is simply the amount of sugar a manufacturer has added. Similar differences exist throughout the grocery store, in everything from peanut butter to deli meats and canned soup to frozen dinners.

Contact Sylvia Rector at 313-222-5026 or rector~freepress.com.


Sidebar - COUNTING CARBS?

How many carbs are in one serving of your favorite foods?
Here's a sample list*.

Food Carbohydrate grams

1 slice white bread 12

3 1/2" plain bagel 38

3 frozen microwave pancakes 48

1 egg, boiled or fried 1

1/8 homemade 9" apple pie 58

1/2 cup chocolate ice cream 19

1 jelly doughnut 33

12-ounce Pepsi 41

12-ounce Diet Pepsi 0

1 cup cooked spaghetti 40

1 cup medium-grain cooked rice 46

1 cup Kraft original mac & cheese 48

2 tablespoons Skippy creamy peanut butter 5

1/2 roasted chicken breast with skin 0

3 1/2-ounce pan-fried ground beef patty 0

3 medium slices pan-fried bacon 0

3 ounces salmon, any variety 0

3 ounces canned or raw tuna 0

1/2 cup boiled cauliflower pieces 3

1/2 cup boiled broccoli 4

1/2 cup frozen boiled green peas 11

1/2 cup raw chopped green pepper 3

1 potato w/skin, microwaved 49

1/2 cup homemade mashed potatoes 18

1 baked sweet potato with skin 28

1/2 cup cooked spaghetti squash 5

1/2 cup boiled spinach 3

1 red, raw tomato 6

2 tablespoons canned tomato paste 6

8 ounces bottled apple juice 29

1 medium raw apple with skin 21

1 cup fresh blueberries 22

1 cup raw strawberries 11

2/3 cup seedless raisins 79

* Amounts rounded to the nearest full gram; fiber grams are not subtracted.

SOURCE: Bowes & Church's Food Values of Portions Commonly Used, 17th edition. Lippincott, $52.95; paperback, $24.95.