New Tide Nutrition

This.

Unfortunately, our modern diet is rich in damaging refined carbs—pizza, fries, bread, pasta. These are the types of nutrient-stripped foods that drive high blood sugar, inflammation, and insulin; raise your triglycerides; lower your good cholesterol; and fuel diabetes, cancer, dementia, and heart disease.

So when I tell my patients, don’t fear carbs, I mean slow carbs, especially veggies — for instance, arugula, kale, broccoli, bok choy, artichokes, cucumbers, peppers, and asparagus.

Another way to think about this is to consider the glycemic load of carbs. The glycemic load indicates how a food will impact blood sugar. Processed carbohydrates rank high on the glycemic load scale. Non-starchy veggies (bok choy, kale, spinach) barely register on the glycemic load scale. You want to fill 75 percent of your plate with non-starchy vegetables. In the Pegan Diet, these superfoods make up the bulk of what you eat. They contain a bunch of phytonutrients, rich in fiber, and won’t cause your blood sugar to spike.

While still nutritious, starchy vegetables rank slightly higher on the scale and can become problematic when overconsumed. For my patients who are diabetic, pre-diabetic, or struggling with weight gain, I recommend limiting starchy vegetables to half a cup up to three times a week.