Carbohydrates: Starches and Sugars
Excerpt from Classic Health Book "The
Hygiene System"
This is the name given to certain organic compounds of
carbon that are produced by plants in the process of
growth from carbon, hydrogen and oxygen, with the oxygen
and hydrogen in proportions to form water.
In everyday language we know the most important of these
carbohydrates as starches and sugars. As will be seen
later, carbohydrates are complex substances composed, in
most instances, of simpler substances, or building
blocks, called sugars. Chief among the carbohydrates
are:
Fruits--Bananas, all sweet fruits, hubbard squash, etc.
Nuts--A few varieties--acorns, chestnuts and cocoanuts.
Tubers--potatoes, sweet potatoes, carrots, artichokes,
parsnips, etc.
Legumes--Most beans, except some varieties of soybeans,
all peas, peanuts. Cereals--All grains and practically
all cereal products. (Gluten bread is not a
carbohydrate.)
The reader will notice that grains and legumes are
classed both as proteins and carbohydrates. This is due
to the fact that they contain enough of each of these
food elements to be placed in both classes.
Nuts, for the same reason, are classed both as proteins
and as fats. Milk, commonly classed as a protein is
really low in protein. It may with equal justification
be classed as a sugar or carbohydrate. All foods contain
more or less carbohydrates, as they all contain more or
less protein. Most foods contain some fats, but there is
none in most fruits nor in the green leaves of
vegetables.
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