NET IMPACT CARBS
Subtract the total fiber from your total carbohydrate and will give you the net carbs. This is why your vegetables, some fruits, and foods high in fiber are so healthy.
However, the recent low-carb trend has led to strange new wording popping up in the health food sections of books, magazines, and advertisements. Many of us have seen and asked about “Netimpact Carbs”, “Actual Carbs” and “True Carbs”.
The advertising on the product label of many low-carb energy bars frequently states there are only two grams of “actual” carbs. The truth is that these bars still have just as many calories as regular bars - and they are often using sugar alcohols which can still spike your blood sugars.
Some sugar alcohols can be slightly better than sugar as they will cause less of a spike in your blood sugar, but they are still calories that you absorb. Manufacturers try to claim that these sugar alcohols do not count, but they do.
Some of the sugar alcohols that spike your blood sugars include:
- isomalt
- lactitol
- maltitol
- mannitol
- hydrogenated starch hydrolysates
- sorbitol.
Erythritol has the least impact on blood sugars and the fewest calories. But it’s expensive and almost never found in “diabetic” or “low carb” snack foods, Maltitol--the most frequently used sugar alcohol--provides the most carbs--3 calories per gram. That is only one gram less than the 4 calories you find in regular sugar and starch.
Be aware that Health Canada does not regulate low-carb advertising, so the only way to calculate the actual carb content and total calories in what you are eating is by looking at the “Nutrition Facts” box. Or better yet - make your own REAL food with Nutracelle!
