If your first thought is rice, pasta or spuds, then it could be time to rethink the balance on your plate.
Although carbohydrate is important, we tend to overdo the starchy foods. You know how we love to double carb – pasta with garlic bread, chips with lasagne, or pizza and dough balls.
Shifting the balance on our plate too far towards white, refined carbs can affect our weight, mood, energy and appetite, as well as our long term health. A diet that is laden with white, refined carbohydrate is not good news for our health in the long run. It increases our risk of developing type 2 diabetes, weight gain and cardiovascular disease.
Striking a better balance helps fuel our bodies more effectively, supports metabolism and energy and even makes us feel fuller for longer. It takes out the battle with our willpower, because once we add in some fibre, our appetite becomes more balanced, cravings are reduced and that makes it easier to choose healthy, nourishing food, rather than reach for a quick fix.
Whether your health goal is to lose weight, look after your mental health, improve your energy or simply to eat in a way that optimises your health, resetting the balance on your plate is a big deal.
That’s not to say skip that we should carbs completely. Carbohydrate is an important macronutrient for energy and if we get the right type of carbs on our plate, they are also an important source of fibre.
Quality and quantity
Quality and quantity matter when it comes to our carbohydrate balance. Broadly speaking, carbohydrate can be divided into two categories. The high GI, fast release, white, refined and low fibre sort (think white bread, white rice, white pasta), and the low GI, slow release, higher fibre sort (think wholegrains like brown rice, wholemeal pasta, oats, etc.).
The additional fibre in the low GI carbs makes them much more satisfying, helping you to feel fuller for longer, not to mention the additional benefits of fibre for your digestive system. When we make the switch to low GI carbohydrate, less is more. The fibre helps us to feel fuller, so a smaller quantity is more satisfying. We also get the benefits of extra minerals and phytonutrients from these higher fibre choices.
It can take a little while to tip the balance, so start small. The next time you are in the supermarket, choose one or two wholegrains for your mid-week meals. Wholemeal pasta is a great place to start – once you have your pesto, Bolognese or sauce with it, you (and your kids) are unlikely to notice much difference in taste or texture. Try brown basmati rice with its lovely nutty texture and aromatic flavour with a curry, or pick up some wholemeal wraps for this week’s fajitas.
A palm-sized portion
The ideal balance on our plate is to aim for a fist-sized portion of those higher fibre carbohydrates and balance it out with a palm sized-portion of protein and a couple of portions of vegetables.
This could be a meat and two veg kind of dinner, or it could be a one-pot wonder. Pack more vegetables into your mid-week meals – tinned tomatoes, grated carrot, peppers, onion and a leek in spaghetti Bolognese, or frozen onion, spinach and sweet potato packed into a curry. Serve up more Bolognese, less pasta; or more curry, less rice. Choosing the wholemeal pasta or brown rice will make this an easy switch without leaving you feeling hungry.
Don’t be afraid of fat
Fat is an essential nutrient and one of the big three macronutrients in our diet. We need fat as a source of the essential fats omega 3 and 6, and to provide us with the fat soluble vitamins A, D, E and K.
Include a source of healthy fats with dinner. Oily fish a couple of times a week, some nuts and seeds, olive oil, or avocado with your fajitas are good options.
