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Carbohydrates
Made up of individual sugar units
 Sugars – a simple sugar or monosaccharide
e.g.fructose, glucose, honey, sweets etc
 a disaccharide is a CHO with 2 units of sugar e.g.
sucrose (table sugar), lactose (milk sugar)
 Starches-complex CHO have more than 2 units of sugar
linked together e.g. cereals, grains, bread etc.
Carbohydrates=energy
Starches & sugars
Both are digestible CHO but starchy foods are more slowly
absorbed than sugars & so they are better for us
Starchy foods are made from cereals and potato eg.bread,
chapati, rice, noodles, pasta
-Fibre is CHO that we cannot digest fully, so it travels
through our digestive tract: good for bowel, heart health as
well as makes us feel full
Fibre
Fibre comes from the cell walls of plants (cereals & fruit &
veg) but is often removed during food processing.
Brown rice/wild rice, medium brown chapati flour
/wholemeal/oats, beans & lentils are healthier alternatives
to white starchy foods
Fruits, veg, nuts and seeds contain fibre too
Why choose wholegrain?
 Evidence is growing that eating wholegrains as part of a
healthy diet and lifestyle helps to keep us healthy and
may assist to reduce the risk of many diseases.
 It is not only the fibre but seems to be the complete
package of nutrients working together to offer protection