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Carbohydrates can be divided into two, fast and slow-digesting carbohydrates, or what others would refer to as simple and complex carbs. Fast digesting carbs mean precisely that, once you ingest them, they’re quickly absorbed into the bloodstream for a quick burst of energy.
Consuming fast digesting carbs in excess can lead to weight gain over time, increasing your risk of obesity and other health issues. Instead, you want to be strategic. Learn more about them as we discuss the best time to eat them and when to avoid them.
Fast digesting carbohydrates are also known as simple carbs, which include refined sugars. They are quickly absorbed into the bloodstream, leading to increased blood sugar and, consequently, a quick release of energy.
Carbohydrates as a whole are made of small sugar molecules called saccharides. They can be single, double, multiple, otherwise referred to as monosaccharides, disaccharides, and polysaccharides (12). Simple carbs only have one or two sugar molecules. Hence, they can only be monosaccharides and disaccharides.
There are three kinds of monosaccharides:
These are a combination of two sugar molecules. There are three types of disaccharides:
These two form the fundamentals of simple carbs, but there are way more foods in this category. Up next is a fast-digesting carbs list that highlights all the examples of food items with simple sugars.
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Now that you know what these carbs are let’s look at a list of fast-digesting carbs. We have divided them into four sections, namely:
From the explanation above, fruits contain simple sugars. However, they also contain fiber when eaten whole, which can slow down digestion and absorption of the entire fruit, including the sugar. Here are some of those fruits:
Fast-releasing carbs are absorbed into the bloodstream as soon as you ingest them. They include;
The less fiber the food has, the faster it is to digest, meaning processed, refined sugars such as cookies and biscuits release energy faster than sweet potatoes or white rice.
The glycemic index(GI) is an indicator of how quickly foods raise your blood sugar. It measures how fast carbs are digested and absorbed into the bloodstream as glucose. GI can rank from 0 to 100, where foods between 0 to 50 have a low GI, 50 to 70 have a medium GI, and foods above 70 have a high GI.
Foods with a high glycemic index mean that they’re easily digested and absorbed in the body, producing energy fast. Simple carbs have medium-high glycemic indexes.
Example of such foods include:
The cooking time of foods will affect their glycemic indexes. For clarity, you can check this glycemic index guide on foods.
Lastly, here’s a list of simple carbs as labeled on processed foods. You should find them in the ingredients list of the product:
Any one of these is added to certain foods, which would then qualify as simple carbs. A good example is an energy bar with glucose or brown sugar, chocolate syrup spread, and even raw sugar added to fast-digesting carbs such as pancakes. They are typically considered added sugars, and are there to improve the taste and extend the shelf life. We are usually recommended to limit our intake of these added sugars.
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Simple carbs provide a quick burst of energy as most of them are absorbed into the body as soon as they’re ingested. For better understanding, let’s have a look at its pathway.
Carbohydrate digestion begins in the mouth, but that’s only for polysaccharides and disaccharides (5). As you chew on the food, the salivary glands secrete saliva, which coats the food particles and breaks down the sugar molecules into smaller units, thanks to an enzyme called salivary amylase.
Polysaccharides will be broken down into smaller chains of glucose which are dextrins and maltose. After which, more digestion takes place in the small intestines.
Because there’s no amylase in the stomach, the food passes right to the small intestines. Pancreatic juice from the pancreas will break down maltose and dextrins into glucose using the enzyme pancreatic amylase.
Here’s where the disaccharides are broken down into single sugar molecules. For example, sucrase breaks sucrose into glucose and fructose molecules, maltase breaks the bond between the two glucose units of maltose, and lactase breaks the bond between galactose and glucose.
From there, single sugar units are now easily transported into intestinal cells, then into the bloodstream.
After digestion, absorption, and transportation, the liver will receive glucose, fructose, and galactose as the first organ. The liver will leave the glucose needed for active energy, and the remaining molecules will be stored as glycogen stores.
Once the insulin-secreting cells in the pancreas sense the increase in blood glucose, they’ll release insulin into the blood. Insulin sends a signal to the body’s cells to remove glucose from the blood by transporting it into different organ cells around the body and using it to make energy and as a source of fuel.
Insulin also triggers the muscle tissue to store away glucose as glycogen for use later during the day or on your next workout.
In summary, simple carbs will be absorbed into the body through the bloodstream, where they provide glucose for energy and build up energy as glycogen in the muscles and liver. Monosaccharides will not be digested further as they’re only single sugar molecules. Instead, they’re transported to the liver as soon as ingested.
The best time to consume fast-digesting carbs is after your workout. Usually, consuming simple sugars will cause insulin to convert excess glucose into fat storage. However, post-workout, these high insulin levels will drive recovery nutrients such as creatine, glucose, and amino acids into muscle cells to restock glycogen.
In nutrient timing, there’s an anabolic window of opportunity which comes after your workout. Your body will be in an anabolic phase where glycogen from your muscles is depleted and in need of replenishment and energy boost (10).
To get the glycogen you’ll need for muscle growth and maintenance; your best bet is a fast-digesting carb that offers a quick release of energy. Simple sugars will provide a quick boost of energy that quickly raises your blood sugar levels and restores your muscles’ supply of glycogen (11).
Taking simple carbs after a workout also helps to prevent muscle catabolism or muscle protein breakdown. Fast digesting carbs will increase your insulin levels in the body leading to reduced muscle protein breakdown. Studies show that insulin reduces muscle protein breakdown where a simple way to do that is by ingesting simple carbohydrates (3).
In line with reducing muscle protein breakdown, quick-digesting carbohydrates can also help promote muscle synthesis, especially when taken along with protein after a workout. Muscles need nutrients to grow, and the quickest way to get them what they need is by stimulating insulin, the anabolic hormone that facilitates tissue growth (3).
Therefore, this concludes that consuming fast-digesting carbs post-workout offers the most benefit.
We have established that you need simple carbs right after your workout to help with replenishing your glycogen. To raise your insulin levels, you need the right simple carbs that will rapidly increase your blood glucose. These carbohydrates have three characteristics:
With that in mind, go for foods that meet this criterion such as low-fiber fruits, low-fat milk, and white grains.
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Fast digesting carbs are great post-workout for the reasons stated above. However, when you consume too many simple sugars, the excess glucose is stored as body fat leading to weight gain. Therefore, avoid too many fast-digesting carbs when you want to lose weight, or you’re trying to maintain your weight.
With these fast-releasing carbs, Timing is everything. You want the proper nutrients at the right time; otherwise, you risk weight gain, which can lead to obesity, among other health risks. Ideally, you can stick to healthy fast-digesting carbs such as white grains, pasta, and fruits instead of cookies, candies, and sugary beverages, but the fact remains that simple sugars have their risks.
Quick digesting carbohydrates are often tagged “bad” because when you take them when your body doesn’t need replenishment, the extra glucose is simply body fat. Hence, when these carbs are taken often as snacks, they lead to weight gain and prolonged insulin problems (1).
Studies reveal that fructose can also increase your hunger cues, creating more appetite. Moreover, excessive fructose consumption may cause resistance to leptin, an important hormone that regulates hunger and tells your body to stop eating (1, 4).
It’s a fact that fast-digesting carbs don’t last long in the body. The glucose from these foods is used up quickly, causing you to feed again and again. Eventually, your calories build up, and you begin to gain weight.
In other studies, there’s clear evidence that constantly taking these simple carbs can lead to obesity, inflammation, and high triglyceride, blood sugar, and blood pressure levels, all risk factors for heart disease (14).
Additionally, it can also lead to atherosclerosis, a disease characterized by fatty, artery-clogging deposits and metabolic syndrome (9). It’s manifested by elevated serum triglycerides, low high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol, central obesity, insulin resistance, glucose intolerance, and high blood pressure. Again, these are associated with an increased risk of type two diabetes and coronary heart disease (9).
Whether you have a sweet tooth or simply need to reward yourself after an intense workout session, having a filling dessert is the best way to do it. You’ll need something sweet but also high in carbs to replenish muscle glycogen.
This dessert has a mix of carbs and protein which are essential after a workout. The carbs replenish muscle glycogen while the protein works toward muscle regeneration. This treat also offers antioxidants that help neutralize free radicals that occur naturally during endurance exercise.
Because the sweet potato parfait is easy to make, it can be a go-to snack that needs no meal prep or extensive list of ingredients.
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This treat is full of antioxidants and healthy fats to help you cope with post workout inflammation. It also has a variety of fast and slow digesting carbs to encourage glycogen replenishment. Topped off with some protein, it is the perfect treat for muscle resynthesis after a gruelling hour at the gym.
This article is intended for general informational purposes only and does not address individual circumstances. It is not a substitute for professional advice or help and should not be relied on to make decisions of any kind. Any action you take upon the information presented in this article is strictly at your own risk and responsibility!