Why ditching pasta if you want to lose weight is a waste of time, reveals nutritionist

WHO doesn’t love a steaming bowl of pasta?

Lovers of beneficial carbohydrate intake often feel like they can’t indulge in as many of them as they would like.

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But according to a new study, eating pasta regularly doesn’t actually make you pack on the pounds. In fact, it could be an essential part of a healthy diet and help you lose weight.

Pasta lovers rejoice – you can now put your favorite starch back on the menu!

“Pasta is a staple carbohydrate in many cultures, but is associated with overweight and obesity due to its status as a refined carbohydrate,” wrote nutritionists Lisa Sanders and Joanne Slavin in a study published on MDPI.

The pair analyzed 38 published studies looking at pasta intake and body weight in both adults and children and found that “dietary habits high in pasta were generally not associated with the likelihood of being overweight or obese.” were inversely associated”.

In other words, they found no connection between the amount of pasta people consumed and their risk of being overweight.

In fact, one of the studies they examined even suggested that “pasta can be included in a healthy diet and does not contribute to weight gain or hinder weight loss,” the nutritionists write.

The researchers only examined data on regular white pasta and not whole-wheat pasta or gluten-free pasta, or egg or rice pasta.

Pasta often gets a bad rap because it is a white carbohydrate that is widely believed to be low in nutrients and fiber and has a high glycemic index (GI).

According to the NHS, the GI rating system shows how quickly food affects your blood sugar levels.

Foods with a high GI value are usually carbohydrates that are quickly broken down by the body, causing a rise in blood sugar levels and an increase in hunger.

Meanwhile, “low GI foods, which cause your blood sugar levels to rise and fall slowly, can help you feel fuller for longer,” the NHS guidance says.

However, Lisa and Joanne’s research appears to show that pasta has been unfairly lumped in with ingredients such as white bread, rice and potatoes.

“Clinical studies consistently show that pasta has a lower glycemic response compared to similar starchy foods such as rice, potatoes, bread and pasta,” they wrote.

The way you cook and serve your pasta could have a bigger impact on your waistline than simply consuming the popular carbs, nutritionists suggest.

Cooking pasta changes the structure of the starch and makes it easier to digest.

According to Dr. According to Tracey Robertson, a researcher in the University of Surrey’s Department of Nutritional Sciences, eating your pasta al dente (slightly chewy in the middle) can mean that it is still in its less digestible form, so it has less of an impact on your blood Sugar.

You could also eat it cold as a pasta salad, she told The Times, since cooling can give the carbohydrates time to convert back into resistant starch, lowering the GI even if you’ve overcooked it.

“There is the added benefit that resistant starch acts like fiber and can become a food source for the microbes in the gut,” said Dr. Robertson.

If you like your spaghetti hot enough to melt the cheese dust you spread over it, you may be disappointed.

However, the researcher said that reheating your pasta can also have a similar effect.

And if weight loss is one of your concerns, Dr. Robertson to change the sauce you pour over your pasta.

“If you eat it with a tomato or vegetable sauce, it will be much less fattening than if you eat it with a buttery, creamy or cheese-rich sauce like Alfredo,” she explained.