Are Carbs the Enemy? The Truth About Bread, Pasta, and Your Weight Loss Goals.

For years, I thought carbs were the enemy.
A slice of bread felt like a crime.
If I ordered pasta, I’d be planning my “compensation workout” before the waiter even brought the bill.

When I was trying to lose my 20kg, my inner rulebook was simple:

“No bread. No pasta. Fruit only before noon. Carbs = danger.”

You might recognize that voice.

Here’s the deal.
The diet industry did a fantastic job of turning one whole group of foods into a villain.
Carbs. All of them.
White bread, oatmeal, fruit, cookies – thrown into the same “bad” bucket.

In this article I want to walk you through, like a friend over coffee, three things:

• why so many of us are scared of carbs;
• what carbs actually do in your body;
• and who the real bad guy is (hint: it’s not your bowl of oatmeal).

The "Carb Phobia" Epidemic

Let’s be real. Carbs didn’t suddenly become evil in the 90s.

Carb fear grew out of low-carb trends, dramatic “before/after” photos, and catchy headlines like “Sugar is toxic” or “Bread makes you fat.”
It’s simple. It sounds logical. It sells.

The problem?
We put everything with carbs into one big “do not touch” category.
A donut and a baked potato.
Candy and an apple.
White toast and dense sourdough.

Same label. “Bad.”

That’s like saying “Water is dangerous, people drown in it,” and then refusing to drink water at all.
Blaming all carbs for weight gain is like blaming all water for drowning.
The context matters.

It’s not that people suddenly became weak or undisciplined.
They just got one very oversimplified message:
“Want to lose weight? Cut carbs. The lower, the better.”

And when you believe that, every bite of bread feels like failure.
Not just food. A moral scorecard.

That mindset alone can do more damage to your relationship with food than any plate of pasta ever could.

Your Brain and Body Run on Carbs. Here's How.

Now, I’m not going to turn this into a biology lecture, but we need a bit of science here. The kind you can actually use.

Your brain’s favorite fuel is glucose.
Not coconut oil. Not butter coffee.
Plain old glucose.

When you eat carbs, your body breaks them down into glucose.
Some of it is used right away for energy.
Some is stored as glycogen in your muscles and liver – like your built-in power bank for later.

This is normal. This is not a bug. This is literally how you’re designed.

Where it gets confusing is the “good carbs vs bad carbs” conversation.
I don’t love those labels, but they help explain the idea.

Think about:

• A bowl of oats with berries and some yogurt.
• Versus a bag of gummy candies.

Both have carbs.
Both give you glucose.
But they act very differently in your body.

Oats, beans, whole grains, potatoes, fruit – they come with fiber, water, and volume.
They raise blood sugar more steadily and help you feel full.

Candy, soda, sweetened drinks, pastries – they hit your system fast, but they don’t stick around.
You get a quick spike, a quick drop, and usually a quick “I want more.”

So when someone says “carbs make you tired, bloated, hungry,” what they often mean is:
“Ultra-processed, low-fiber, sugary stuff makes me feel that way.”

Carbs themselves are not the problem.
The package they come in is.

The Real Culprit Isn’t Carbs, It’s…

When I was still stuck in “eat clean or fail” mode, my days often looked like this:

• Super “clean” breakfast: eggs and veggies.
• “Clean” lunch: chicken and salad, no bread.
• Late afternoon: I’m starving, tired, and suddenly half a bag of “healthy granola” disappears in front of my laptop.

I thought the problem was:
“I can’t handle carbs. I have no discipline.”

But the real issue was what I was actually eating when my guard dropped.

The true culprit is not carbs in general.
It’s hyper-palatable, ultra-processed foods that combine:

• a lot of sugar or refined starch,
• a lot of fat,
• very little fiber,
• and a texture designed to make you keep going.

Your brain loves these foods.
They light up the reward system like a Christmas tree.

Think about:

• “Healthy” granola baked with oil, honey, and sugar.
• Low-fat yogurt packed with syrups and sweeteners.
• Protein bars with more syrup than protein.
• “No sugar added” cookies that are still basically refined flour and fat.

The marketing says: “natural,” “fit,” “clean,” “no guilt.”
But your body experiences them as: “that thing I can’t stop eating once I start.”

Same with chips vs boiled potatoes.
Both come from the same plant.
But chips are starch + oil + salt + crunch.
That combination makes self-control a lot harder than with a plain potato.

So when you look at your day and think,
“I ate almost nothing, just some nuts, granola, dried fruit and a bar,”
you might actually be overeating calories without getting much fullness.

It’s not because you’re broken.
It’s because those foods are engineered to be eaten in large amounts.

The enemy isn’t the carb.
It’s the combination of high sugar, high fat, low fiber, and clever marketing.

Why “Eating Clean” Makes You Feel Like You’re Failing

Here’s the painful part.

You do your best.
You cut bread.
You avoid pasta.
You skip dessert.
You say no to fruit in the evening “just in case.”

But your “clean” day quietly adds up to:

• sweetened yogurt,
• a handful of nuts (then another),
• “just a bit” of granola from the box,
• a date or two with nut butter,
• maybe a bar on the go.

Technically? All “real” food.
Emotionally? You feel out of control.

Then you step on the scale. It hasn’t moved. Or it’s up.
And your brain tells you:
“See? Carbs are bad for you. You can’t be trusted. You have to be stricter.”

So you double down. More rules. Less flexibility. More guilt around every bite.

But the real pattern is this:

• You undereat or eat very “light” during the day.
• You rely on willpower instead of proper fueling.
• Your body eventually rebels and pushes you towards fast, tasty, high-energy foods.

That’s not a character flaw.
That’s physiology.

Your body doesn’t care about “eating clean.”
It cares about survival and enough energy.

So What Should You Actually Do With Carbs?

Instead of asking, “Are carbs good or bad?” try asking:

• Do my carbs come with fiber, volume, and nutrients?
• Do they show up in balanced meals, or as random snacks I inhale when I’m exhausted?
• Which foods make me feel steady and satisfied, and which turn into mindless eating?

In real life, that could mean:

• Keeping carbs that actually help you feel good: oats, potatoes, rice, fruit, wholegrain bread, beans.
• Pairing them with protein and fat: rice with fish and veggies, sourdough with eggs and avocado, yogurt with fruit and a small sprinkle of nuts.
• Being honest about which “healthy” snacks you can’t eat mindfully right now (looking at you, granola and snack bars).

When I stopped demonizing carbs and started looking at patterns instead, a few things changed:

• I could eat pasta and still lose weight, because it lived inside a balanced meal, not in a binge.
• I had enough energy, so I stopped “losing control” at night.
• The number on the scale started to move without the constant mental war.

That’s what I mean when I say:
Science-backed. Human-proven.
Not “perfect macros” in a spreadsheet, but a way of eating you can actually live with.

The Truth About Carbs: They Were Never the Villain

Carbs are not a moral issue.
You’re not a better person when you say no to rice, and you’re not a worse person when you say yes to bread.

Your brain needs glucose.
Your body uses carbs every single day.
Especially if you work, think, walk, train, or just live a normal human life.

The real shift is this:
Stop asking “How do I cut carbs more?”
Start asking “How do I build meals that keep me full, energized, and calm around food?”

Because you don’t need another war with your plate.
You need a system that respects both physiology and real life.

So go ahead, enjoy that slice of sourdough.
Maybe add some avocado, an egg, a bit of tomato on the side.
Eat it, feel the actual satisfaction of a real meal, and get on with your day.

Your body will thank you for it.