There’s nothing better at times than tucking into a bowl of pasta at tea time.
The warm, comforting, tasty dish always goes down a treat. However, some people tend to steer away from carbs when they’re trying to slim down, reports the Daily Star.
A leading American dietician has however said the popular food isn’t actually bad for you. It is the way many people eat it that can in fact be problematic.
Shyla Cadogan recently put together a piece for research hub, StudyFinds, where she explained the recommended serving size for pasta is two ounces (56.7g) of uncooked pasta.
This means you should be having about one cup of cooked pasta as a portion.
A typical serving contains roughly 200 calories, 40 grams of carbohydrates, six grams of protein, and one to two grams of fibre, according to Barilla. Due to it being full of carbs, many people claim they are “empty calories”.
But, the expert said carbs are actually the “preferred energy source” for the human body, which means it provides nutrition.
And whole grain pasta particularly contains more fibre and protein. These are two things that keep you full and limit the chances of overeating.
But, according to The New York Post, it all gets a bit nutritionally tricky when it comes to how the popular dish is prepared.
Topping the dish with meats, sauces, and cheeses also bumps up the calories. If you opt to tuck into pasta as your main dish, as opposed to a side addition, then you’re likely to end up eating more than you should.
Cadogan noted: “Virtually any food eaten in excess or as part of an overall unbalanced diet can become unhealthy fairly quickly. It comes down to balancing your plate.”
And with the general consensus that plates should contain a variety of colours, Cadogan says a marinara-based pasta dish with vegetables is a good source of fibre and protein.
Another healthy tip would be to have pasta as a side dish and not as a main. You can also opt for alternatives to traditional pasta.
You can now get chickpea pasta, protein pasta, edamame pasta and black bean pasta.
Cadogan added: “Pasta isn’t inherently unhealthy. It doesn’t deserve all of the disrespect.”
Scientists have concluded pasta is a mood booster. A previous study carried out by the Behavioral and Brain Lab, at the Free University of Languages and Communication IULM in Milan, Italy, found tucking into the comforting mood can give your mood a lift.
