World Health Organization Reinforces the Need for Quality Carbs to Optimize Your Health
Are you confused whether to quit carbs? You are not alone. The good news is there is no need to quit on carbohydrates, but the quality does matter.
The World Health Organization has recently updated its guidelines and reinforces the need to include quality carbohydrates to promote your overall wellbeing and health. So, what are quality carbohydrates? The World Health Organization defines quality carbohydrates as ‘the nature and composition of carbohydrates in a food or in the diet, including the proportion of sugars, how quickly polysaccharides are metabolized and release glucose into the body (i.e. digestibility), and the amount of dietary fiber. The quality of carbohydrates in the diet can broadly impact health.’
The World Health Organization recommends the following to reduce your risk of developing non-communicable diseases. These include diseases like heart disease, type two diabetes, stroke, and cancer.:
‘1. WHO recommends that carbohydrate intake should come primarily from whole grains, vegetables, fruits and pulses (strong recommendation, relevant for all individuals 2 years of age and older).
2. In adults, WHO recommends an intake of at least 400 g of vegetables and fruits per day (strong recommendation).
3. In children and adolescents, WHO suggests the following intakes of vegetables and fruits (conditional recommendation):
• 2–5 years old, at least 250 g per day
• 6–9 years old, at least 350 g per day
• 10 years or older, at least 400 g per day.
4. In adults, WHO recommends an intake of at least 25 g per day of naturally occurring dietary fiber as consumed in foods (strong recommendation).
5. In children and adolescents, WHO suggests the following intakes of naturally occurring dietary fiber as consumed in foods (conditional recommendation):
• 2–5 years old, at least 15 g per day
• 6–9 years old, at least 21 g per day
• 10 years or older, at least 25 g per day.’
Wholegrains include foods such as oats, wholegrain pasta, rice and couscous, quinoa, and wholegrain contain foods like Corn Thins slices and wholegrain crackers. Wholegrains are also a source of dietary fiber which will help you to meet recommendations 4 and 5.
Take home message: There is no need to quit carbohydrates all together. In fact, quality carbohydrates are recommended to be included as part of an overall balanced diet to promote your overall health and longevity and to reduce your risk of developing non-communicable diseases.
References
- Carbohydrate intake for adults and children: WHO guideline. Geneva: World Health Organization; 2023. Licence: CC BY-NC-SA 3.0 IGO. Cataloguing-in-Publication (CIP) data.
- Piovani D, Nikolopoulos GK, Bonovas S. Non-Communicable Diseases: The Invisible Epidemic. J Clin Med. 2022 Oct 8;11(19):5939. doi: 10.3390/jcm11195939. PMID: 36233805; PMCID: PMC9572583.