Author Topic: Carb Counts  (Read 3876 times)

morgan

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Carb Counts
« on: June 26, 2013, 08:40:23 PM »
Is there an easy explanation as to why there are different carb counts on the same product?  Take brazil nuts (as this is my latest bugbear).  They are a raw product, yet I picked up a different bag as I was at a different supermarket and checked the nutrition label - my usual ones state 0.2c/30g and these state 3.5-1.1? fiber and yet another said something else and when I went on a nutrition facts site it was 3c-2 fibre = 1c.  It is a raw product, how can they vary so much?    Any ideas?



shawn116

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Re: Carb Counts
« Reply #1 on: June 26, 2013, 09:24:41 PM »
I hate that too Morgan.   It doesn't make any sense that a raw whole food product have different nutritional information.   ???  Maybe the product had different weight or sizes?  Such as a large, small or medium size?  That is the only excuse I could think of other than they may have added something to help extend the shelf life.  I know these aren't raw but I noticed that my favorite roasted almonds now list corn maltodextrin in their ingredients  >:( >:(  Fooy!!!  If it's a raw food I would just go by Dougs counts that he lists in the book.  Do make sure there isn't anything extra listed in the ingredients first though   ;) ;)   I feel your frustration girl!! 

MarkMoxom

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Re: Carb Counts
« Reply #2 on: June 28, 2013, 12:51:55 AM »
So why does the nutritional value of the food that we eat vary from brand to brand, country to country or even farm to farm, well for that matter, from garden to garden? Well there are three basic things to bear in mind here.

The first is that when you're dealing with crops that are grown intensively or on a commercial basis - chiefly things like nuts - even though they're often taken from the same tree, the nutrients will vary. Those that you find in the nut will be directly proportional to the nutrients available to the tree as it produces the nuts. Now as the tree can't move, it is obviously dependent on the nutrients being brought to it. The chief way in which that happens in nature is that the water flowing through the soil will be the major carrier of the nutrients that eventually goes through the tree and end up in the nut. Just taking water as an example, you'll see that the amount of water a tree gets when it's producing nuts will determine how much water ends up in the nut. So in wet areas for instance each nut will have proportionally more water in it. That means it will have proportionally less, fat, less protein and less carbohydrate. So you can very quickly see that even just looking at something as simple as water content - that will obviously change from tree to tree, farm to farm, country to country and continent to continent.

The other thing that affects the nutritional value are things like the quality of the soil.  Nuts produced from trees grown in rich soil will have a greater range of nutrients, vitamins and minerals for instance. Also the age of the tree will have quite a considerable bearing on the nutrient balance of the nuts that particular tree produces over its lifetime. What is grown around the tree will have a similar effect. Plants that deplete the soil of the nutrients the tree needs will reduce the nutritional value and plants that enrich the soil will increase its nutritional value. I think now you're beginning to understand just why in a natural product like nuts or any other thing that's grown, the nutritional value will vary.

The other thing that will determine the final nutritional value of something like a nut is whether it is raw or cooked and even the manner of cooking. For instance, heat treated nuts will have an increase in things like trans fats. Nuts that are dry roasted will have fat leached out of them. Nuts that are roasted in oil will absorb more oil and nuts that are boiled will have less oil and a higher water content. So you can see there are legitimate reasons exactly why the nutritional value of the nuts that you eat changes, even the raw ones. So there will always be slight variations and I suspect the best way to deal with it is to take the highest value just to be on the safe side.

Of course when it comes to nuts it only really matters if you're eating large quantities of them and that is always the problems with nuts, isn't it? They're just too damn moreish.
« Last Edit: June 28, 2013, 08:14:14 AM by MarkMoxom »
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morgan

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Re: Carb Counts
« Reply #3 on: June 28, 2013, 01:57:53 AM »
Wow. Very informative. Who knew? I had decided to go with the information on the nutritional label and take them at their word. :)



umpa

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Re: Carb Counts
« Reply #4 on: June 28, 2013, 08:44:49 AM »
Mark I always enjoy reading your posts,very informative ;)

shawn116

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Re: Carb Counts
« Reply #5 on: June 28, 2013, 04:52:51 PM »
Yes...very interesting  Thanks Mark  :)

jay12

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Re: Re: Carb Counts
« Reply #6 on: July 06, 2013, 11:28:03 PM »
Wow. Thank you Mark for that information. I learned something new today.

mouseissue

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Re: Carb Counts
« Reply #7 on: July 07, 2013, 03:32:39 PM »
Great info, Mark! :)

And it's something to consider when we eat home grown foods or foods purchased at local farmer's markets.
But when it comes to prepackaged foods at the grocery store, I don't think it's as much of a concern.

Take Blue Diamond almonds, for example.
Blue Diamond has HUGE groves of almond trees that they feed and water to produce good almonds.
To get consistent quality, they have to be fertilized and watered consistently between trees and between groves.
The soil too must be consistently managed for proper pH levels, pest management, etc..
Doing all that also helps Blue Diamond manage costs (which is important in any business).

So the end result is almond quality that is consistent from one package to the next.
A desirable result for both Blue Diamond and almond eaters! ;)

Tony
What you do today is what matters!




umpa

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Re: Carb Counts
« Reply #8 on: July 08, 2013, 10:25:14 AM »
I buy the blue diamond almonds in the shell.The shells slow me down.They have them at big lots ;)

mouseissue

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Re: Carb Counts
« Reply #9 on: July 08, 2013, 03:11:15 PM »
I buy the blue diamond almonds in the shell.The shells slow me down.They have them at big lots ;)

Good idea! :) :) :)

Another thing, never eat ANYTHING while watching TV!!!
We become "disconnected" from our eating, and will eat too much before we know it! :o

Tony
What you do today is what matters!




morgan

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Re: Carb Counts
« Reply #10 on: July 08, 2013, 05:22:21 PM »
I do like to eat watching tv, but never ever take the whole bag or packet with you.   I take a portioned amount, no more. If I want more I  actually have to get up and go to the kitchen (any exercise is good exercise  ;D) and while on my way, think if I really need or want and can afford the carbs.



mouseissue

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Re: Carb Counts
« Reply #11 on: July 08, 2013, 07:19:54 PM »
Excellent, Morgan! :)

By taking preventative measures to avoid overeating snacks, you will succeed!

But with meals, it's best to focus on eating.
TV watching disconnects our minds from what we're doing.

Tony
What you do today is what matters!




umpa

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Re: Carb Counts
« Reply #12 on: July 09, 2013, 08:14:54 AM »
One of my favorite movie snacks is cajun hot nuts,you can only eat so many without lighting your mouth on fire ;)