Is pasta healthy or fattening?

Many people who are trying to lose weight wonder if pasta is healthy or fattening. Pasta, like many carbohydrate-rich foods, often gets a bad rap for being fattening; however, this does not have to be true.

Carbohydrates, though recently considered villains, are actually necessary to keep your body and mind running smoothly. When carbohydrates are broken down, they provide an important source of glucose. Glucose is the main source of energy for your body and the only source of energy for your brain. Many people who have tried to stick to very low carbohydrate diets have suffered from low energy and low mood. I know I would be in a bad mood if I could never eat my favorite pasta!

Eating too many carbs can make you fat, but pasta itself isn’t fattening; cooked pasta has only about 200 calories per cup. Where you really get into trouble is with your pasta sauce. Pasta sauces that contain high-calorie fatty meats, creams, cheese, and other fattening ingredients can really make a pasta dish fattening. Tomato pasta sauces are not usually very fattening! Americans also tend to eat too much pasta—portion control is important when watching calories. Italians traditionally serve pasta as a side dish or as one side of a multi-course meal; not in the large mounds that are so common in the United States.

In addition to being fattening, pasta has been criticized for being a simple carbohydrate and lumped into the same category as cakes, pastries, and white bread. The problem with all of these simple carbs is that they raise your blood sugar, which causes excess insulin to be secreted, which encourages weight gain and a consequent drop in energy. Simple carbohydrates have a high Glycemic Index (GI) which is a number used to measure how quickly the body’s blood sugar level rises after eating a food. The good news is that pasta has a GI of 41, which is similar to pears and lower than many types of bread. And an easy way to lower the GI of pasta is to cook it like the Italians: “al dente”.

Most of today’s pasta is made with semolina flour obtained from durum wheat. This creates a firm dough which in turn also lowers the GI, while also providing a good source of nutrition. Homemade, dry pasta contains many B vitamins, folic acid, and iron. It’s low in sodium, and despite a prevailing myth, the pasta isn’t high in cholesterol even though it’s usually made with eggs. It was once thought that the consumption of eggs needed to be drastically reduced due to their high cholesterol content, but later research has shown that eggs in moderation are quite healthy and contribute greatly to the health benefits of pasta. However, for those on a strict diet, the pasta can be made without eggs, while the flour and olive oil content still makes this pasta healthy.

Another option is to use dry pasta. This pasta does not usually contain eggs or oil, but it is made with 100% semolina flour and is quite firm when cooked. The firmness of this pasta helps lower the GI index to less than white bread, potatoes, and rice, while also providing B vitamins, fiber, and iron. Dried pasta can be stored for up to 3 years, but be sure not to store pasta in glass containers as sunlight depletes the B vitamins.

Is pasta healthy in other ways too?

Yes, homemade pasta can be quite healthy. It is not difficult to learn how to make pasta and homemade pasta can be made even more nutritious with the inclusion of whole wheat flour, spinach, garlic and herbs that add to the vitamin, mineral and fiber content of the pasta. Fiber is another nutrient that is often missing out on modern diets, but fiber is necessary for digestive health, hormone balance, and the prevention of certain types of cancer.

There are many easy pasta recipes that make this nutritious food very convenient for the modern busy cook as well. When trying to eat healthier, you don’t have to wonder if pasta is healthy, as there are many ways to prepare pasta that are. So go ahead and enjoy your pasta guilt free, just remember to be careful with fattening meats and sauces and enjoy your pasta in moderation!