Are You Afraid of Pancakes for Breakfast? 3 Myths About Carbohydrates
By Katherine Metzelaar, MSN, RDN, CD
If you are reading this, you can relate.
Whether this is now or in your past, you can connect to the feeling of being afraid of eating pancakes or other such carbohydrate-rich foods for breakfast. And no wonder! In this dieting culture, you have been told over and over to avoid eating grain-based carbs at all costs which leads to feeling lots of fear of them over time.
Feeling fear of food is something that you learn from the culture, your family of origin, friends, partners, and people who influence you. And while most fears around food are either rooted in fear of your body changing or in loss/change of health status, it can be helpful to examine the food rules that you hold and really begin to unpack them. So, let’s dive into and take a look at fear you may currently hold: eating carbohydrates at breakfast. And yes, I mean the yummy ones like pancakes, waffles, french toast, muffins, pastries, etc.
Diet culture perpetuates this myth that avoiding eating carbohydrates at breakfast is beneficial for your health (really having carbs at any meal, but I digress). And what usually happens for many people, and individuals I have worked with over the years, is that they will follow this recommendation to avoid eating carbs for some time, but eventually this becomes unsustainable. Because here's the thing: you will eventually eat the foods that you are afraid of and when this happens it often leads to feelings of tremendous guilt, shame, panic, and regret.
The stress of this experience, whether this is when you are restricting carbs for breakfast or finally allowing yourself to have them, is hard on the body which is not so healthy after all. It’s also mentally hard on you as it often takes up a ton of head space and doesn’t allow you to be in the moment and enjoy food. The stress of food deprivation and restriction leads many to avoid social situations, going out to meals, and being with friends for fear of eating the “wrong” foods.
In addition to the impact of stress and anxiety that is involved in avoiding carbs (at breakfast), there are also very real consequences of food restriction on the brain and body. Being told to stay away from or refrain from eating them will often lead you to eating to the point of discomfort or bingeing. And when you do end up bingeing or eating beyond your fullness (not your fault), diet culture will always be there to say “You see, you couldn’t handle yourself. Now you need to restrict more. Carbs (at breakfast) are bad!” And in this way, the cycle keeps going. Restricting carbs at breakfast, and grain-based carbs in general, in the long run will only lead to worse outcomes. Despite years of health campaigns fear mongering people into thinking they will develop diabetes from eating certain carbs or “too many” carbs, and years of diet culture shaming people for loving carbs, we know humans are not naturally out of control around carbohydrates. And the reality is that years of nutrition research support that the human body needs carbohydrates.
So let’s talk about some of the myths around carbs for breakfast, shall we?
Myth #1: You will feel sluggish when you eat carbs.
This myth is a bummer because carbs are the most easily digested by the body (fat is the hardest btw). So my best guess is that this is something that has been circulating for some time to get people to stop eating carbs and is mostly rooted in fatphobia and an incomplete understanding of glucose metabolism. Carbs give you energy at breakfast and at other meals times.
Myth #2: Protein is more important than carbs at breakfast.
In diet culture, protein is elevated as the “most important” macronutrient group and maybe fat gets thrown in there sometimes depending on the year. But carbs are often excluded from the three most important groups of food that a body needs to function best. Carbohydrates ARE NUTRIENTS (i.e. macroNUTRIENTS). Your brain and body need them and without enough of them you will experience low energy, constipation, brain fog, feeling frenzied around carbs/feeling addicted to them, constantly thinking about carbs, and much more.
Myth #3: Carbs spike blood sugar, especially those yummy ones at breakfast.
When you eat carbohydrates they break down into glucose (aka your body cell’s food) which is then absorbed into the bloodstream in your small intestine. This “cell food” is then eventually used by your cells for energy or put into your liver for storage when you need it (aka energy for later). So, it’s not that carbs don’t impact your blood sugar (they do), but if your systems for regulating glucose are working as they should be, your body can handle it. What this means is that some carbs will have a faster or slower impact on your blood sugar, but your body has the ability to regulate your blood glucose, even if you eat a large amount of pancakes or pastries for breakfast. Your body knows what to do. And in the case where you may have your carbohydrate metabolism affected (in the case of PCOS, pre-diabetes, or diabetes) this does not mean that eliminating carbs is the answer. In fact, this will often led to worse outcomes, increased bingeing, and super duper low energy.
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Do you find yourself restricting foods with carbohydrates or feeling guilty when you eat them?
Creating a better, more intuitive relationship with all foods takes time, especially when foods like carbohydrates are demonized and you have been told to avoid them. The caring dietitians from our Seattle, WA-based nutrition counseling practice would be honored to help you heal your relationship to food. We offer a variety of services including support for eating disorders, body image, intuitive eating, Bulimia treatment, Anorexia treatment, and chronic dieting. We also offer a body image support group. For more information, please feel free to visit our blog, FAQ, resources page, or contact us now!