There are plenty of carbohydrates if you are eating plentiful vegetables and gluten-free grain (or grain-like) foods. These include sweet potatoes, beets, carrots, turnips, quinoa, buckwheat, and gluten free whole oats. If you are trying to lose weight you want to limit these to a few times per week, but otherwise, one serving per day is fine. For satiety, make sure you are eating protein and healthy fat with every meal or snack in addition to vegetables and low-sugar fruits. Best!-Zoe

Hi, I do low carbs and no grains. I do have pretty good energy. I thought Grains were not good for the brain Zoe. gluten or gluten-free?

Hi DonnaMaria,
Most of our carbohydrates should come from a plethora of vegetables but there is room for some grain-like foods in a healthy diet, such as quinoa ( a seed), gluten-free whole oats (cereal grain), and buckwheat (a seed). These should be used in moderation as a side to a meal of various vegetables, high quality protein, and healthy fats. If you are not trying to lose weight, having 1/4-1/2 cup up to once per day is fine. 

Gluten in all its forms (crackers, bread, pasta, tortillas, pretzels, etc.) is definitely something we want to avoid for optimal brain function, as well as overall health. Gluten has been studied extensively in terms of its impact particularly on the gut, which influences so much of our wellness! However, be careful with many “gluten-free” products that are really just refined flour in a form other than wheat. These typically include white rice, white potato, and the like. These are void of nutritional value and spike our blood sugar similarly to refined wheat flours.

Hope that helps!
Zoe