This post has been updated since it was originally published on April 24, 2022.
Inflammation can cause a myriad of serious health issues, especially when it becomes chronic. Not only is this a painful condition that can impact your overall health and lead to conditions like heart disease, cancer, and diabetes, but it can also be detrimental to your weight loss goals, nutritionist and creator of the Candida Diet Lisa Richards says. This is because inflammation can cause your metabolism to slow down.
Eating certain carbohydrates could be one major reason you’re experiencing high levels of inflammation—and, in turn, weight gain. We spoke to Richards about three particular carbs that you should stop eating if you want to avoid inflammation and lose weight faster: white bread, pasta, and high-sugar cereals.
White bread
If you're still choosing white bread over whole-grain options, we have some unfortunate news: this food is seriously bad for your health. It's a major culprit of inflammation, weight gain, and more.
"White bread is made with refined carbohydrates and lacking in fiber and other beneficial nutrients," Richards notes. Those refined carbs are the real killer; Richards says they're extremely inflammatory and "turn to sugar quickly, causing a quick rise in glucose."
This is one of the worst foods you can eat when it comes to inflammation. "You will experience fatigue and brain fog from the inflammatory nature of these ingredients," Richards says. "Refined carbs create a state of low-level inflammation in the body which causes a host of health issues, including declined cognitive function."
Additionally, according to dietitian Dr. Lee, “White bread is packed with flour and sugar with high total carbohydrates to levels of [more than] 20 grams per slice. Oftentimes, it is made with preservatives, wheat, and soy which a lot of people are now ‘intolerant’ to and have side effects to high intake of these ingredients.”
White bread is an especially bad option if you're trying to lose weight. That's because the refined carbs quickly break down, and your body stores them as fat. Yikes! We'll choose wheat instead.
Pasta
Pasta is one high-carb food that may lead to or worsen inflammation and weight gain.
Richards says that our standard diets today contain more carbohydrates than our bodies need—and more often than not, those carbs are coming from highly processed foods like pasta. "Even many pastas today are processed and enriched which can cause inflammation, gastrointestinal issues, and ultimately weight gain," she warns.
Richard says consumers should also be wary of so-called "healthy" types of pasta made from whole grains or rice, as these, too can cause inflammation and related health issues.
At the end of the day, pasta just likely isn't a good meal choice if you're trying to avoid inflammation or lose weight.
High-sugar cereals
High-sugar cereals can lead to major health complications, including inflammation. For this reason, it may be a good idea to cut this breakfast food out of your diet—even the types that label themselves as "healthy."
"Many [cereals] are made with refined carbohydrates which are highly inflammatory and turn to sugar quickly in the body," Richards explains. That's why she recommends always checking the ingredients and opting for choices that don't include any enriched flour or sugars that may be listed as HFCS, fructose, sucrose, caramel, castor sugar, sorghum syrup, invert sugar, evaporated cane juice, or agave nectar.
"Refined sugar is also highly inflammatory and a source of empty calories that can impede your health goals," she warns. We'll definitely keep that in mind next time we're at the grocery store!
At the end of the day, no diet is perfect. But if you're serious about avoiding inflammation and sticking to your weight loss goals, it may be best to cut these carbs out of your diet.
