What is a Carbohydrate: Simplified

Wondering, “what is a carbohydrate, really?” Let me explain what you need to know. 
 
Timestamps
0:20 What is a carbohydrate?
0:49 Monosaccharides
1:11 Disaccharides
2:00 Oligosaccharides 
2:08 Polysaccharides 

In this video, we’re going to talk about carbohydrates and sugars. I want to clear up some of the confusion around carbohydrates and sugars. 

What are carbohydrates?
Carbohydrates are made up of sugars, starches, and fiber. The biochemical name for a carbohydrate is a saccharide. Carbohydrates are a compound of saccharides, and carbohydrates are classified by the number of saccharides. The Greek word for saccharides is “sugar.”

Monosaccharides—Mono means “single” or “one.” So a monosaccharide would be one saccharide. Monosaccharides are glucose, fructose, or galactose. This would be considered a simple sugar. 

Disaccharides—Means two monosaccharides. An example would be table sugar or sucrose. Sucrose is composed of two monosaccharides: glucose and fructose. Disaccharides, oligosaccharides, and polysaccharides make up complex carbohydrates. 

Oligosaccharides—These are 3-9 monosaccharides.

Polysaccharides—Poly means “many.” This would be about ten or more monosaccharides. A few examples of polysaccharides would be starches like potatoes, rice, wheat, and corn. Fiber is also an example of a polysaccharide. Fiber helps decrease the absorption of sugar. Fiber also decreases the sugar response or sugar spike.

Dr. Eric Berg DC Bio:
Dr. Berg, 56 years of age is a chiropractor who specializes in Healthy Ketosis & Intermittent Fasting. He is the author of The New Body Type Guide and other books published by KB Publishing. He has taught students nutrition as an adjunct professor at Howard University. He no longer practices, but focuses on health education through social media.

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Disclaimer:
Dr. Eric Berg received his Doctor of Chiropractic degree from Palmer College of Chiropractic in 1988. His use of “doctor” or “Dr.” in relation to himself solely refers to that degree. Dr. Berg is a licensed chiropractor in Virginia, California, and Louisiana, but he no longer practices chiropractic in any state and does not see patients so he can focus on educating people as a full time activity, yet he maintains an active license. This video is for general informational purposes only. It should not be used to self-diagnose and it is not a substitute for a medical exam, cure, treatment, diagnosis, and prescription or recommendation. It does not create a doctor-patient relationship between Dr. Berg and you. You should not make any change in your health regimen or diet before first consulting a physician and obtaining a medical exam, diagnosis, and recommendation. Always seek the advice of a physician or other qualified health provider with any questions you may have regarding a medical condition.

Thanks for watching! If you’ve been wondering, “what is a carbohydrate?” I hope this video helps you out.