Total Carbs Vs. Net Carbs… What’s the Difference?

Not all carbohydrates (carbs) are bad, and some of them are vital to maintaining good health. For example refined sugar and white flour are “bad” carbs, because they are just empty calories and eating too much of them isn’t healthy and may lead to weight gain (and worse). Bad carbs typically cause a spike in blood sugar.

Dietary fiber, on the other hand is a carb, but one that is very good for you. Good carbs like fiber and non-sugar natural sweeteners don’t cause a spike in blood sugar and are often much lower in calories than the bad carbs.

A net carb calculation then, is designed to isolate the “bad” carbs in a product at a glance.

Total Carbs: All Carbs added together, whether bad or good including sugars (bad) and fiber (good).

Net Carbs: Total Carbs minus the good carbs like fiber and non-sugar sweeteners.

So, in a nutshell, a product with high net carbs is probably high in bad carbs, and low in the good carbs. A product with low net carbs is probably low in the bad carbs, and high in the good carbs.

One last thing… There is another big difference between the good and bad carbs. Bad carbs like sugar and refined white flour are cheap. That’s why you can buy a brand name baking mix at the store for under $4. They have something like 24 total carbs per serving and 23 net carbs (not good).

To get a baking mix that has only 9 total carbs and 2 net carbs, like Silver Fern™ Brand Baking Mixes, that requires, hard to find ingredients that are much more expensive. The better these good ingredients taste, the more expensive they are.

Keep an eye on this blog. In a few weeks we will post a more detailed examination of the difference between Total Carbs, Net Carbs, Good Carbs and Bad Carbs.