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Examples of Low Carb Foods to Guide You on Your Diet

If you are about to start a low carbohydrate diet or if you’re very new to it, knowing which types of food to eat can be confusing, especially if you are not accustomed to reading nutrition labels. In this article, we’ll look at some examples of low carb foods to start you on your way to a slimmer, healthier body. After a while, if you decide not to give up, you’ll find that you’ll more or less know which kinds of food to enjoy and which to avoid and this will make dieting simpler and easier to do.

One thing you have to remember is that nearly all types of food contain some amount of carbohydrates in one form or another. The trick is to know which foods you should be focusing on. Not only should you patronize reduced-carb foods, but low glycemic foods as well. The glycemic index measures how high a certain type of food raises your blood sugar, which can lead to hunger, fat conversion and storage, and weight gain. You’ll find that most examples of low carb foods have a low glycemic load, which make them ideal for the controlled-carbohydrate diet.

Another rule of thumb is that foods rich in protein are generally approved for low-carb diets. Thus, you will find that most types of meat (pork, beef, lamb, veal, venison), poultry (chicken, quail, duck, turkey, pheasant, goose), fish (salmon, sardines, herring, tuna, trout, blue marlin) and shellfish (clams, crab, shrimp, squid, lobster) are all not only approved, but heartily encouraged in a low carb diet.

What about fruits and vegetables? Contrary to popular belief, these types of food ARE allowed on a reduced-carbohydrate diet. You just have to make sure that they fall under the category of low carb foods and low glycemic foods. Note, too, that fruits and some vegetables are not allowed during the first few weeks of certain controlled-carbohydrate diets (like Atkins). Salad vegetables like lettuce, cucumber, peppers, chives, and mushrooms have a low carbohydrate content. Other vegetables, such as eggplant, tomato, spinach, snow peas, bamboo shoots, zucchini, and pumpkin have a higher carb count, so these should be taken in moderation.

These are only some examples of low carb foods; you can be sure that there are many, many more. You might even be surprised to find that many of the dishes you like actually have low carb ingredients in them! All you need to learn is to adapt them to suit your low carb lifestyle.