Pasta and Your Weight

Pasta is a fat-free, low sodium food that can fit right in with a weight loss or management plan. One cup of cooked pasta contains just 200 calories, in addition to valuable vitamins and minerals. It also fills you up so you don’t feel hungry while trying to lose weight!

Pasta has a low Glycemic Index (GI) so it does not cause sugar in the blood to rise quickly. The GI measures how rapidly a carbohydrate triggers a rise in blood sugar – the higher the number, the greater the blood sugar response. A low GI means a slower rate of digestion, which can help with appetite control.

According to the USDA, a 1/2 cup serving of cooked pasta (spaghetti) contains a mere 99 calories, less than half a gram of fat and less than 5 milligrams of sodium. One cup of cooked pasta contains under 200 calories, in addition to fiber, vitamins and minerals. It also fills you up so you don’t feel hungry while trying to lose weight.

Multiple studies show that low-carb diets are no better than low-fat diets, and that you don’t have to cut carbs to lose weight.  In fact, a Canadian study showed that low-carb diets (less than 47% of total calories) are associated with greater chance of being overweight or obese.  The outcome is even more beneficial when including carbs like pasta as a part of the Mediterranean diet pattern.