There exist several different kinds of carbohydrates. Some of them have a sweet taste, others not. All of them have their own characteristic glycemic index. The lower the glycemic index (GI), the lower the chance that they get stored as body fat. Let's take a closer look at some of the most important kinds of carbs.

Glucose

Glucose (also called dextrose) is a monosaccharide with a sweet taste that occurs a lot in products such as grapes, honey, and sweet fruits. Most carbohydrates that you eat are slowly transformed by the body into glucose during digestion. Glucose is the most important carbohydrate in the blood. If you eat products that contain lots of glucose, the glucose enters your blood very fast (GI>95), it is stored as body fat very easily as soon as there is too much glucose in the blood, and you become hungry again very fast. Products that contain lots of glucose should be avoided if you want to lose body fat.

Sucrose

Sucrose (table sugar) tastes about 33% sweeter than glucose and occurs in products such as white table sugar, honey, candy, jam, biscuits, chocolate, soft drinks, etc. Sucrose is a disaccharide that is split into glucose and fructose during digestion, and has a GI of about 75. The US food industry often uses High-Fructose Corn Syrup (HFCS) instead of sugar to sweeten food products. HFCS has almost identical properties as sugar. Avoid products that contain lots of sucrose or HFCS as much as possible. If you like soft drinks, pick the artificially sweetened ones that are sugar-free and contain zero calories.

Fructose

Fructose is the sweetest carbohydrate (about 70% sweeter than sucrose) and is the most important carb in fruits and some vegetables. This monosaccharide is converted into glucose very slowly and has a GI of about 20. Unfortunately, fructose is rather easily converted into fat by the liver, and therefore its consumption should remain moderate. Because fresh fruits mainly contain water and lots of fiber, it is fine to eat a few pieces of fruit every day. Do not eat dried fruit and jam because they contain too much sugar per gram. Also don't drink any fruit juices as they contain lots of sugar and get absorbed very fast.

Lactose

Lactose is the carb that occurs in milk and milk products, and it does not have a sweet taste. Lactose is a disaccharide that is split by the enzyme lactase into glucose and galactose during digestion. Lactose is a very good carb because it digests very slowly and has a low GI of about 45. This way, it is unlikely that is will be stored as body fat, and it takes a long time before you become hungry again. Drink only zero-fat milk and eat low-fat yogurt and cheese. Be careful, most cheese contains lots of fat.

Complex carbs

Complex carbs are basically long chains of glucose molecules that mainly occur in products such as starch, maltodextrin, bread, crisp bread, pasta, rice, potatoes, oats, corn, cereals, and vegetables. Complex carbs don't taste sweet. They digest rather fast into glucose (GI>80), especially when the products are cooked (not eaten raw) and/or contain little fiber. Don't eat too much bread, rice, potatoes, and pasta. It is better to eat uncooked vegetables because they contain lots of fiber that slows down the digestion.

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