Intake Recommendations for Carbohydrates
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One of the key changes in the new 2015 Dietary Guidelines is that there is finally a limit on added sugar. The 2015 recommendation is to consume less than 10% of your diet from added sugar. Many still consider the American Heart Association guidelines for added sugar, < 5% of diet from added sugar, more appropriate. The 2015 Dietary Guidelines report was criticized for not recommending a decrease in sweetened beverage consumption, which is linked to added sugar intake. In addition, the recommendation for grain consumption is for half of all grains to be whole grains. This recommendation was criticized for not aiming to eat all whole grains.
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Total Carbohydrate Intake Recommendations
Carbohydrates should be 45-65% of total calories. The 2015 Dietary Guidelines recommend:
- Choose whole grains (at least half of the grains should come from whole grains)
- Food manufactures are now listing “grams of whole grains” on their packaging. If there is a whole grain stamp on a package, it's most likely a processed food.
- If half of your grains are whole, that means that the other half are refined. The goal should be to consume all whole grains.
- Minimize refined carbohydrates (ie: packaged and processed CHO foods)
- Eat a variety of fruits and vegetables (fruits and vegetables are mostly carbohydrate!)
- Choose legumes (beans, peas, lentils) multiple times a week
Added Sugar Intake Recommendations
The 2015 Dietary Guidelines recommended < 10% of total calories from added sugar. I think the American Heart Association (AHA) recommendation of < 5% of total calories from added sugar is more appropriate. This refers to added sugar, not naturally occurring sugar. Naturally occurring sugar occurs in milk, fruits, vegetables, legumes and other plant foods.
For a 2000 calorie diet, 5% would be 100 calories of added sugar or 25 grams.
Using this recommendation:
Think of the recommendation for "added sugar" as 0-5% of your total calories.
For a 2000 calorie diet, 5% would be 100 calories of added sugar or 25 grams.
- A Venti Mocha Frappuccino has 69 grams of sugar, 45 grams (11 teaspoons) is added sugar!
Using this recommendation:
- No more than 100 calories from added sugar for women (~5% of total calories)
- No more than 150 calories from added sugar for men (~5% of total calories)
- That means a max of 6 teaspoons of added sugar for women and 9 for men per day (4 grams/tsp).
- I like to think of it as 25-35 grams of added sugar per day
Think of the recommendation for "added sugar" as 0-5% of your total calories.
Sources of Added Sugar in the US Diet
Sources of Added Sugar in the US Diet
Almost half of the US added sugar intake comes from sugar sweetened beverages, including soft drinks, fruit drinks, sport and energy drinks, coffee, tea and alcoholic beverages. About 30% of added sugar intake comes from snacks and sweets. Other contributors include grains, dairy, mixed dishes, condiments and spreads. It's important to recognize that desserts only make up about 1/3rd of the added sugar intake.
Most of our sugar intake should come from whole foods. Fruit, vegetables, milk and plant foods are the only natural sources of sugar, occurring as fructose, lactose and to a small extent glucose and sucrose. There are small amounts of naturally occurring sugar in legumes and nuts. Honey is also a naturally occurring sugar. If a sugar (no matter what type of sugar) is added to a food, it's considered an "added sugar". It doesn't matter if it's organic cane sugar, honey, dehydrated cane juice, crystallized fructose ... if it's added to a food ... it's an added sugar.
Most of our sugar intake should come from whole foods. Fruit, vegetables, milk and plant foods are the only natural sources of sugar, occurring as fructose, lactose and to a small extent glucose and sucrose. There are small amounts of naturally occurring sugar in legumes and nuts. Honey is also a naturally occurring sugar. If a sugar (no matter what type of sugar) is added to a food, it's considered an "added sugar". It doesn't matter if it's organic cane sugar, honey, dehydrated cane juice, crystallized fructose ... if it's added to a food ... it's an added sugar.
References
- Dietary Guidelines. A Closer Look at Current Intakes and Recommended Shifts. http://health.gov/dietaryguidelines/2015/guidelines/chapter-2/a-closer-look-at-current-intakes-and-recommended-shifts/
- Dietary Guidelines. Appendix 7. Nutritional Goals for Age-Sex Groups Based on Dietary Reference Intakes and Dietary Guidelines Recommendations. http://health.gov/dietaryguidelines/2015/guidelines/appendix-7/
- Alexandra Sifferlin. Here’s What 10 Experts Think of the Government’s New Diet Advice. TIME. Jan. 7, 2016. Last accessed March 13, 2016
Last updated April 9, 2016