Comments by "Laurence Fraser" (@laurencefraser) on "Thoughty2"
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@zukodude487987 we are designed to consume carbs, and there is a minimum we should be having... but there's also a maximum and these days it is fairly routinely exceeded. Said maximum is tied to amount and type of exertion, mind you. And the type of carbs in question is also relevant: Sugars are actually useful and necessary to brian function, but humans are wired up in ways that work great when your primary sugar source is Fruit, not so great when it's 'additives in the vast majority of foods in your diet', as the latter results in an excess of sugars in general, and an imbalance of sugar types, when treated (as the human brain is naturally inclined to) as though it were the former.
A fit and healthy adult doesn't necessarily need many, or even any, carbs for long distance running (provided they're getting enough of everything else, at least), but when they start lifting and moving heavy loads, digging, sprinting, etc? the carbs become quite necessary. And, of course, there's the matter of food storage. It seems like the human body is set up such that carbohydrates are quite significant to the body's ability to get through periods of shortage of anything else.
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How much you do or do not need carbs depends on how much of what you are doing for how long. Fit and healthy humans are pretty much Optimised for long distance running. Hard labour, on the other hand, is a different matter, as is anything requiring significant mental activity. Sugars are particularly useful for the latter, and humans are wired around the assumption that sugars are going to be... not scarce, exactly, but generally available only in small quantities at a time, so should be eaten whenever they're availalbe. This, of course, runs into problems when encountering modern food (and 'food') production processes.
There's other factors involved too... the ultimate conclusion of which is that you Should be eating Some carbs, but most people's diets include substantially more carbohydrates than they really should. (mind you, Potatoes are also SUPER nutrient dense, provided they were grown in good soil. Grains, not so much).
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