A common question that we get is: "How do carbs fit into a healthy pregnancy diet routine?" In this age of low-carb diets, there's a lot of confusion and misleading information about the benefits and drawbacks of carbohydrates. Let's clear the confusion up once and for all. When it comes down to it, your body needs a little bit of everything, so cutting out one food group means possibly removing great sources of nutrients that you need and your baby needs to grow.
The FDA suggests that 55% of our daily calorie intake should come from carbohydrates. But here's the confusion that many low-carb diets don't spell out: what the FDA does not quantify is how much of that 55% should come from complex carbohydrates as opposed to simple carbohydrates. We'll try to clarify it for you as much as possible!
There is a very real difference between simple and complex carbohydrates. Let's look at them. Simple carbohydrates, found in rice, pasta, white potatoes, and some dairy products, contain sugars that are broken down quickly by your body. This will provide your body with a quick burst of energy, but if the carbohydrates are not used quickly, the sugar will turn to fat. That's why low-carb diets cut them out. But those diets often lump all carbs together. You will gain weight during pregnancy, and limiting carbs is not a safe way to try to avoid this. Instead, substitute complex carbs. Your baby needs the extra supplies!
