Nutrition (Carbs)

Your body needs carbohydrates for overall nutrition. Eat whole grains -- use whole-wheat flour in your recipes instead of white flour. Complex carbs are what you should look for instead of simple or refined carbs

Good carbs: all veggies and fruits, brown rice, 100 percent whole-wheat anything (bread, cereal and so on); buy food whole and green and unprocessed.

Bad carbs: white rice, white flour, white pasta, pastries, donuts, cakes, cookies, white bread of all kinds, refined sugary cereals -- most food that comes in a box.

Go for fiber, eat the skins on all fruit

The best carbs are the ones with the highest fiber possible. Stay away from the usual cookies, cakes, etc. Fat-Free yogurt is good too.

Avoid refined foods, slowly digested carbs will fill you up and keep you full longer without adding glucose. Slowly digested carbs include soybeans, any dried beans and whole wheat tortillas. Avoid "soft" (refined) carbs like baked goods, white flour, sugar and alcoholic drinks.

Avoid sugar, try not to eat or drink anything with too many sugars, such as juice. Juice is just extra carbs and extra calories my bodies do not need.

Cut the carbs - Try half a whole grain bagel, a smaller bowl of cereal, 100 percent whole-wheat bread , 100 percent whole-wheat pasta , and sweet potatoes (versus normal)

Try to save simple carbs -- white flour, sugar, and their products -- for special occasions.

The mantra is "Everything in moderation." Your body needs carbohydrates for energy, but portion control is the key.

Eating a balance of protein/carbs and fat at every meal and snack allows the blood sugar to stay above baseline. When it drops, you tend to grab the first carb you see and eat and eat -- usually those are the bad carbs (processed ones -- crackers, bagels etc.).