What Are Net Carbohydrates And How To Calculate Them

Calculating carbohydrates is an important part of any diet. Many diets are based on them and their quantity. The so-called net carbohydrates. The most popular diets that pay special attention to them are high-fat, low-carbohydrate and keto diets.

There are several types of carbohydrates absorbed by the body in different ways - some completely and others not. Those that are digested are called net, and of the total amount in a food, they matter.

What are net carbohydrates?

The key difference between total and net carbohydrates is that total includes all types of carbohydrates that are found in food - starches, sugars and fiber.

The net includes only those that are completely absorbed by the body and that are converted into glucose.

The two main types of carbohydrates are simple and complex - simple ones are made up of just one or two sugar molecules, which means that the body absorbs them easily.

Simple carbohydrates are common in foods and beverages such as:

• fruits
• carbonated drinks
• candy
• desserts
• milk
• honey
• Maple syrup
• molasses
• agave syrup
• coconut sugar

Complex carbohydrates, on the other hand, include chains of more complex molecules, which means that it takes more time for the body to break them down, making them a more lasting source of energy.

Such foods are:

• cereals
• pasta
• rice
• corn
• beans and lentils

How to calculate net carbohydrates?

To calculate the net carbohydrates of a food, it is necessary to find the amount of fiber in a food and subtract it from the total carbohydrates indicated on the label.

For example, if a food contains 20 grams of carbohydrates and 10 of them are fiber, it means that the net is 10 grams. It is these 10 grams that the body processes into glucose.

Sugar alcohols are sweeteners that have about half the calories of regular sugar. They are found naturally in certain fruits and vegetables, but some are man-made and added to processed foods.

Many foods labeled "sugar-free" or "sugar-free" contain sugar alcohols. The most common are

• Erythritol;
• Maltitol;
• Mannitol;
• Sorbitol;
• Xylitol;
• Hydrogenated starches;
• isomalt.

Food companies often combine sugar alcohols and sweeteners to make food sweeter and lower in calories.

It is very important to note here that sugar alcohols are carbohydrates that affect glucose, although there are some that are completely indigestible, such as erythritol.

If the label of the product you have purchased contains the content of erythritol, then you must remove the entire amount to get the net carbohydrates (for example, if the total is 20 grams and erythritol 10, then the net is 10).

However, if there are other sugar alcohols in the selected product, you must subtract half the amount, ie if the label states 10 grams of sugar alcohols (of any kind), it is necessary to subtract from 20 grams a total of 5 grams of sugar alcohols, so the net is 15 grams.

Some ready-to-eat foods, such as energy bars, contain both fiber and sugar alcohols.

In this case, calculating them again is not difficult - subtract the total amount of fiber and half the amount of sugar alcohols, in the familiar way - a total of 20 grams of carbohydrates, fiber and sugar are 10 grams, subtract 10 grams of fiber and 5 grams of sugar alcohols. Thus, it turns out that for 20 grams of total carbohydrates, the net is 5 grams (20 total - 10 fiber - 5 alcoholic sugars).

Advantages and disadvantages

• Promoting a healthy intake of fiber, which increases the feeling of satiety and helps control blood sugar;
• They increase the quality of nutrition, as many fruits and vegetables are rich in fiber and contribute to fewer carbohydrates in a person's daily life, so the choice is focused on healthy food;
• There is also an advantage to calculating net carbohydrates for people with diabetes who calculate the amount of insulin based on the amount of carbohydrates they take.

• label values ​​do not always correspond to 100% truth;
• not every organism reacts in the same way, so calculating net carbohydrates may not work out an exact equation for your body.