What Happens If You Consume Too Many Carbohydrates?

By Phil Tucker

Everywhere you look people in the United States are eating carbs. Whether its huge heaping bowls of pasta or massive dishes of rice, whether its sandwiches or mashed potatoes, carbs are a favorite across the nation, enjoyed everywhere by one and all. However, what does such a massive intake of carbs do to our bodies? Despite what the Department of Health tells us to eat, encouraging us to chow down on so many grains that they make up over fifty percent of our diet, what is the consequence of eating so much carbs?

First let's take a look at what happens when you eat carbs. Your body takes the carbs and pushes them through your digestive system, turning them into glucose which is our body's primary source of fuel. This glucose sweeps through our blood, feeding all the cells that need energy, and what is left over is then stored as glycogen in our muscles and liver. Any excess carbs that result after this storage will then be turned into fat via a process called 'de novo lipogenesis' (DNL).

However, short term studies have shown that DNL does not happen much or contribute much to fat stores for average, healthy people. Instead, as long as your muscles and liver aren't tapped out for storage space for glycogen, you should be fine, storing that instead. However, DNL can take place if your glycogen stores are indeed filled, and that is what happens under the following circumstances.

Say you are an inactive individual who does not exercise or move around much. Instead you spend most of your time lying on the couch or in bed or at your desk. Your body therefor does not burn off your glycogen reserves, resulting in their being filled up. Then say that you eat a lot of carbs on top of this inactive lifestyle, then DNL will indeed convert the excess glucose into fat and add to your fat reserves.

That is why eating an excess of carbs, especially starchy carbs is a bad idea if you do not exercise regularly. This problem is only exacerbated by eating fat alongside your heavy doses of carbs, because then not only do your carbs get turned into fat through DNL, your dietary fat goes right into your fat stores instead of being burned because you have so much glucose and glycogen at your disposal. What is your take away from all this? That eating carbs supplies you with energy, but also prevents you from burning fat as best you can.

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