I confess I don't really understand after reading several sources about The Zone. What, precisely, is the difference between a favorable and an unfavorable carbohydrate? It has something to do with the speed of absorption NOT the amount of carbohydrate. Right? What makes the speed of absorption faster for some, the chemical composition being glucose and therefore directly used?

I ask mostly because my sister and I were discussing this this weekend. She and I both read "Diabetes Solution" by Dr. Bernstein. He claims that different carbs do NOT affect insulin response at different rates (or so my sister recalls. I don't recall that at all. )

This is entirely a matter of curiosity for both of us as I attempt to explain this dietary foundation to my sister. I already know full and well how awful I feel after a serving of mashed potatoes on white toast and a side of pasta.

Thanks

Stephanie

well some a carb isnt just a carb- it is made up of different things. (sugars, fiber and starches). Some carbs may have more sugars than other carbs. Some may have more fiber than others as well. Not only are there different amount of sugars present in carbs, there is also differnt types of sugars. For example there is glucose, fructose and sucrose to name a few.
The man writing the Diabetes Solution is dead wrong and this is why. Lets say you had 5 carbs from an apple, and 5 carbs from a peice of white wonder bread. The carbs from the Wonderbread are made up of 100 percent glucose sugars (and you probrably know by reading the zone that glucose is the fastest absorbing sugar) therefore it is broken down very quickly. Now lets look at the 5 carbs from the apple. The apples carbs are made up of about 60-70 percent fructose sugars. The fructose takes a longer time to be broken down which is why fructose sugar is so much better for you than glucose is. This longer time period creates a lesser impact on your insulin levels than the 5 grams from the bread, which is what you want.
A great idea is to get used to not eating bread or grains or starchy foods. We werent made to eat these. Get your carbs from vegetables and fruits and that will guarentee your eating favorable carbs. (note that there are some fruits and veggies that arent favorable but most of them are)

Whoa alex! You finally got it! Looks like you've been doing a little reading since you posted your qns about carbs! good job!

lol, oh yeah you could say that. I got obsessed for a little bit but now im ok... still confused on the sugar to carb ratio quesiton though :(, ima ask sears and see what he thinks. I was also thinking... Fruits are made up of mosty fructose, which is why they are a better source of carbs than bread and grains (that and all the added nutrients and fiber as well), then why are carrots an unfavorable carb because, yes they do have alot of sugar in them but isnt it the right sugar (like apples). Also w fruit juices, if you look on the label they usually have arond 40g a sugar per serving which is why they are so bad for you, but isnt is all fructose sugar becuase the majority of the carbs are coming from fruits???

Look at the visible physical differences between a piece of fruit and fruit juice. The piece for fruit has form to it and the carbs are distributed throughout it amongst the fiber which gives the fruit it's specific shape. The fruit itself has to be chewed and then digested in order for those carbs to enter the blood stream. This process takes some time. Now think about a small glass of juice. No form to it, and it has a huge surface area if you were to pour it onto the table. A couple gulps, and the carbs in it are quickly on their way into the bloodstream. It's large surface area of the juice as compared to the piece of fruit means it's getting into your bloodstream a lot quicker, and practically all at once. You know the rest. Blood sugar then spikes, too much insulin is produced, and you're out of the Zone.

so your saying if you just gorged an apple or a pear, it would do the same thing as fruit juice (maybe not becuase the juice is alot more processed than the fruit?)

No, I'm not saying that.

I'm saying this. If you eat a Zone balanced snack with 1/2 pear or 1/2 apple for the C block, most likely you'll stay in the Zone. If you eat the same snack but substitute apple juice for all the carb you'll most likely not stay in the Zone. It's because the carbs in the juice enter the blood stream much faster than the carbs in the piece of fruit. this stimulates the production of too much insulin, which takes you out of the Zone.

so its becuase the lquid doesnt need to be digest as much as the actual fruit?

yes, exactly

yeah that makes sense- i just bought some dried cranberries and blueberries at tthe grocery store- I was looking for them in the zone books but it doesnt include "dried", would the dried make them unfavorable or change the rate of carb absorbtion at all? I mixed 3block cottage cheese and 3 blocks blueberries w some almonds for breakfast this morning and it was one of the best meals ive had in a while

I think I remember reading that the dried fruit is unfavorable. All the ones I've checked out by label seem very high in sugar. Even the natural unsweetened ones seemed high to me.

I like dried fruit but usually the sweet stuff that I now avoid.

yeah, the sugar is real high, but sugar content is pretty much an irrelevent statistic to look at, all that matters is the glycemic response of the food-they taste pretty good though so im guessing they stimulate blood sugar easily

Turns out my sis was full of horse pucky. Dr. Berstein does NOT claim that rate of entry is the same for different carbs. That claim defied all common sense to me so I had to look it up. My sis had miscommunicated her point.