How do I know if my diet is lacking carbohydrates? We have 8 clear signals for you!

Modern dietary trends, especially the various low-carb styles such as the popular keto diet, have led to a great deal of scepticism about carbohydrate consumption, and carbohydrates are, quite wrongly, dramatically demonised and blamed for our fat stores and all sorts of diseases of civilisation. But the truth is that fat stores are never due to a particular food or food group, but to an overall excess of calories. Modern trends proclaim the need to reduce all possible sources - sugar per se, fruits but also sources of complex carbohydrates and the need to replace them with fats. But is swapping your morning oatmeal and afternoon apple for eggs and avocado really the best way to promote overall health and reduce or maintain a healthy weight?

Today, we're not going to go into whether it's better to eat low carb, low fat, or in a balanced way, but we're just going to focus on the negatives that careless manipulation of carbohydrate intake can bring with it. The fact is that carbohydrate intake is perhaps the most individualized part of intake ever. It depends on our height, weight, type and intensity of training, occupation, daily schedule, metabolic status, preferences, genetic predispositions and many other factors. This doesn't mean that we shouldn't eat carbohydrates at all, or have any excessive fear of them. If you set your carb intake too low, your body will certainly let you know. And today, we're going to look at what signals your body sends out when it does.

THEORETICAL WINDOW - WHAT IS THE ROLE OF CARBOHYDRATES?

We've already coveredcarbohydrates a few times, but let's do a little rewind. Carbohydrates are our primary source of fuel and provide us with the energy we need to do daily activities, exercise and overall are very important for life. They are also our brain's primary fuel source and without enough carbohydrates it can't function as it should. When we ingest carbohydrates, our body breaks them down into sugar, which can be converted into energy directly from our bloodstream or stored as glycogen in our muscles and liver to be converted into energy later on. According to general recommendations, it is advisable to devote 40-60% of your total daily intake to carbohydrates. What are the body's signals to tell if we are deficient in carbohydrates? We need to be clear from the outset that we are not talking about people who are trying to enter ketosis and the following symptoms are actually fine for them.

PERMANENT FATIGUE AND BRAIN FOG

The first (and perhaps the most obvious) indicator that your body is lacking the carbohydrates it needs to function at its best is simply that you feel physically and mentally exhausted. We talked about the causes of permanent fatigue quite recently, so you'll recall that diet was mentioned. And no matter what, the absence of carbohydrates is what leads to excessive fatigue in most cases, because they have a significant impact on energy levels. Carbohydrates are converted into energy faster and more efficiently than protein or fat. If you're not getting enough of them, you'll feel sluggish, sleepy, but you may also struggle with headaches and difficulty concentrating.

HUNGER

If your diet lacks sufficient carbohydrates, you may experience significant mood changes, especially irritability, anxiety, lethargy and sometimes depression, in addition to permanent fatigue and difficulty concentrating. As well as being the brain's main source of fuel, carbohydrates also increase the production of serotonin, a hormone that helps regulate our moods and is also often a major factor in stimulating feelings of happiness and well-being.If you're noticing mood changes in yourself, it could be due to a lack of carbohydrates and a reduction in serotonin production, and it's this lack of serotonin that results in a reduction in the transmission of nerve impulses, causing mood swings, irritability, aggression, depression and sleep problems.

RAPID DETERIORATION IN PERFORMANCE

We hit on the fact that a lack of carbohydrates has a negative impact on our energy in the very first point, but excessive fatigue also leads to your performance in the gym weakening, or even worse, you start skipping workouts instead. Although lower carbohydrate intake may not actually be significantly detrimental in low-frequency activities,such as yoga, running, cycling, or other types of cardio exercise with a consistent load, where the body has an adequate supply of oxygen and can use fat to produce ATP, or energy, but a lack of carbohydrates can have a major negative impact on your performance in the gym duringstrength training,HIIT, or Crossfit. Why? Studies have confirmed that during higher intensity exercise, the body relies on glucose from carbohydrates in our bloodstream or stores stored in our muscles or liver for fuel because it can't produce the energy it needs fast enough using fat alone. Thus, a decrease in performance is associated with a higher consumption of oxygen, whereas in the case of carbohydrates the body can produce a much larger amount of ATP for the same volume of oxygen. The need for carbohydrates during athletic performance depends not only on the type of activity and its intensity, but also on the duration of the activity.

INDIGESTION

One of the other, very unpleasant signals that indicate that you are deficient in carbohydrates is indigestion, gas, bloating and difficulty defecating. Why? Because when you cut back on carbohydrates, you drastically reduceyour intake of the fiber they contain. If you cut out fruit, complex carbohydrates like potatoes, rice, oatmeal, whole grain breads and other sources, you're not only missing out on sources of energy, but also sources of valuable fiber, which is very important for overall health. Among other things, fibre adds volume to the stool, and so a lack of it very often leads to constipation or difficulty defecating. And given that a good percentage of the population already suffers from fibre deficiency, restricting carbohydrates is practically a sure step to developing or exacerbating digestive problems.

MOUTHWASH

One fact that we prefer not to talk much about, but is real. A lack of carbohydrates can lead to your breath smelling strongly. When you take in too few carbohydrates, your body turns fat into fuel to give it enough energy, and in the process of breaking down fat to produce energy, your body produces chemicals called ketones, which are released in your breath and have a strong unpleasant smell. If you notice a strange smell coming from your mouth that resembles the smell of ammonia or acetone, it's quite likely that your diet may be to blame.

HEAD PAINS

The importance of carbohydrates for brain function has already been discussed today. A lack of carbohydrates can also trigger low blood sugar levels, and headaches can strike as a result. An occasional headache is normal, but if you suffer from headaches regularly every day, it's a sign that you're probably lacking carbohydrates. When the brain registers that it doesn't have enough glucose, it starts the process of restoring stable blood sugar levels, and this can cause severe headaches. Headaches associated with low blood sugar tend to be described as dull, throbbing headaches. Headaches can also be caused by a lack of serotonin.

CALMING

Temperature regulation is controlled by hormones in our hypothalamus, the same place in the brain that controls hunger and satiety. If our diet is deficient in carbohydrates, hormone levels are skewed and then we feel it is virtually impossible to warm up. In addition, people who are deficient in carbohydrates for long periods of time put themselves at risk for decreased thyroid function, which also (among other things) lowers body temperature.

SWEET TOOTH

If you restrict carbohydrates too much, you also restrict your intake and if you can't balance it properly, cravings may appear. From our article on cravings , you know that up to 90% of cravings are caused by emotional reasons. If you are too tired during the day or not taking in enough calories, it is possible that cravings will appear because the body is under a lot of stress and discomfort. Your cravings are likely to revolve around carbohydrate-rich foods such as pastries, rice, but also sweets, chocolate and ice cream.

HOW TO FIGHT CARBOHYDRATE DEFICIENCY?

Do you observe any (or all) of the symptoms in yourself? Maybe it's time to focus on how much carbohydrate you're consuming and increase your intake to eliminate unpleasant symptoms. How to do it? Make sure the carbohydrate intake in your diet is between 40-60% of your total calorie intake. If you're not into counting calories, you can try the healthy plate method and measure the number of carbohydrates so that they should take up about ¼ of each plate.

Of course, it's not just the quantity that matters, but also the quality and the sources you take in. The bulk of your intake should consist of complex carbohydrates such as rice, flakes, quinoa, sweet potatoes, buckwheat, bulgur, couscous, whole grain breads, legumes, fruits and vegetables as well. If you're worried about gaining weight after adding carbs, you can try a reverse diet and increase your intake gradually. Carbohydrates also contain fibre, which affects satiety, so a reasonable amount of carbohydrates will help us stay full for longer, and this is a very desirable effect, not only when reducing. Less hunger, better performance, more concentration and a good amount of energy sounds like the ultimate win-win strategy, doesn't it?

WHAT TO TAKE AWAY FROM THE ARTICLE?

Carbohydrates are the modern demon of healthy eating, with many diets restricting or even completely eliminating them from the diet. But it's not at all unnecessary, and what's more, this strategy may not suit everyone. Carbohydrate sources - especially those that are high in fiber - are a highly desirable part of a balanced diet and help produce good bacteria in the gut microbiome, which contributes to good digestion, a boosted immune system and overall health. Carbohydrates are also an important source of energy for both the body and our brain. Today, we've listed a few signs that may indicate that you're lacking carbohydrates in your diet, and if you're noticing any of these and you're not exactly trying to enter ketosis, it's highly advisable to increase your intake.

Sources:
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3633265/
http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1043661812002277
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4963878/
https://www.livestrong.com/article/336671-low-carbohydrate-depression/
https://www.researchgate.net/blog/post/less-carbs-more-fat-ketogenic-diet-treats-migraine-patients
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3257631/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5433529/