Common Foods You Eat Every Day Carb List

The following are foods that you eat on a regular basis with their calorie count, carb count and portion size.  Using this list can make planning a healthy, balanced meal much easier.  Counting the carbs is more important than counting the calories.  Both are listed here with the portion size to give you the best idea of better food choices.

COMMON FOODS
GRAINS	CALORIES	CARBS	SERVING SIZE
bagel	78	15g	¼ lg. Bagel
bread (wheat)	69	13g	1 slice
bread (white)	67	12g	1 slice
cereal (all bran)	81	23g	½ cup
cereal (corn flakes)	76	18g	¾ cup
crackers (graham)	99	18g	3 small rectangles
grits	71	16g	½ cup
pasta	62	13g	1/3 cup
popcorn (butter, popped)	97	11g	3 cups
rice (cooked, brown)	71	15g	1/3 cup
rice (cooked, white)	69	15g	1/3 cup
rice (fried)	150	22g	1/3 cup
tortilla (corn)	52	11g	1 medium
tortilla (flour)	112	19g	1 medium
VEGETABLES	CALORIES	CARBS	SERVING SIZE
broccoli (cooked)	33	7g	½ cup
carrots (raw)	50	12g	2 medium
cauliflower (cooked)	17	4g	½ cup
cauliflower (raw)	25	5g	1 cup
collard greens (cooked)	26	6g	½ cup
corn (cooked)	66	16g	½ ear
cucumber (raw)	16	4g	1 cup
green beans (cooked)	22	5g	½ cup
iceberg lettuce	7	2g	1 cup
McDonald's french fries	231	30g	1 small fries
onions (raw)	67	16g	1 cup
pea (frozen)	62	16g	½ cup
potato (baked)	79	18g	3 oz
potato (mashed with milk)	85	19g	½ cup
summer squash (cooked)	18	4g	½ cup
tomato	32	7g	1 tomato
Wendy's baked potato	440	70g	1 potato
yam (cooked)	79	19g	½ cup
zucchini (cooked)	14	4g	½ cup
FRUITS	CALORIES	CARBS	SERVING SIZE
apple	54	15g	1 small apple
applesauce (unsweetened)	52	14g	½ cup
banana	72	19g	1 extra small
blueberries	62	16g	¾ cup
cantaloupe	56	14g	1 cup
dates	69	19g	3 dates
grapefruit	53	13g	½ grapefruit
grapes	60	15g	17 grapes
orange	62	16g	1 medium
peach	57	14g	1 medium
pineapple	56	15g	¾ cup
raisins	54	14g	2 tbsps
strawberries	57	13g	1 ¼ cup
watermelon	57	14g	1 ¼ cup
DAIRY	CALORIES	CARBS	SERVING SIZE
American cheese (processed)	68	2g	1oz
buttermilk (low-fat)	98	12g	1 cup
cheddar cheese (fat-free)	45	2g	1 oz
cottage cheese (1%)	41	2g	¼ cup
cream chee4se (low-fat 2%)	54	1g	1 ½ cup
cream cheese (regular)	51	1g	1 tbsp
milk (fat-free)	90	13g	1 cup
milk (1%)	110	13g	1 cup
milk (2%)	130	12g	1 cup
milk (whole)	150	12g	1 cup
sour cream (regular)	62	1g	2 tbsps
sour cream (light)	61	3g	3 tbsps
yogurt (low-carb, plain)	70	28g	1 container
yogurt fruited (non-fat)	150	28g	1 container
MEAT, FISH & BEANS	CALORIES	CARBS	SERVING SIZE
bacon	85	0g	2 slices
beans (baked)	78	17g	1/3 cup
beans (black)	114	20g	½ cup
beans (lima)	99	18g	½ cup
beans (pinto)	122	22g	½ cup
chicken wings	441	0g	6 wings
chicken (roasted)	58	0g	1oz
cod (cooked)	30	0g	1 oz
egg	74	1g	1 egg
ground beef (extra-lean cooked)	57	0g	1 oz
hamburger	503	39g	1 hamburger
hot dog (beef/pork)	70	6g	1 hot dog
pork (baked or broiled)	57	g	1oz
refried beans	100	17g	½ cup
prime rib (roasted)	83	0g	1oz
salmon (baked or broiled)	61	0g	1oz
sausage (smoked)	40	3g	1oz
Taco Bell soft shell beef taco	210	21g	3 12 oz
tofu	80	2g	½ cup
turkey breast	38	0g	1 oz
veal	64	0g	1oz
OILS/FATS	CALORIES	GRAMS	SERVING SIZE
almonds (dry roasted)	48	2g	6 almonds
butter (salted)	34	0g	1 tsp
Canola oil	40	0g	1 tsp
cashews (salted)	52	3g	6 cashews
margarine	24	0g	1 tsp
mayonnaise	33	0g	1 tsp
olive oil	40	0g	1 tsp
olives (black)	40	2g	8 olives
peanut butter	48	2g	1 ½ tbsps
pistachios (roasted, salted)	64	3g	16 kernels
walnuts (halves)	52	1g	4 halves
salad dressing	69	2g	1 tbsp

Meal Planning that Will Help You Loose Weight

Portion control is as important as food choices.  You can make educated guesses to portion sizes by using a simple gauge.  A cup of food is about the size of your closed fist.  An ounce of nuts is a hand full and the size of protein should be about the size of your open palm.  Use nothing larger than a 9" plate and leave a border around the food.  Your meal should be divided as the plate shown here.  One half needs be made up of non-starchy vegetables, one quarter should be lean protein and one quarter should be starchy foods and grains.

EATING CHOICES TO AVOID:

Fried foods...instead choose baked, roasted, grilled or broiled
No added breading
Avoid fast foods
Avoid lunch-meats
Do not add salt unless absolutely necessary...use salt substitute like Mrs. Dash instead
No added sugar...be careful to check labels of foods that say they are sugar-free.  Some may have no or less sugar but are full of unwanted carbs
Keep portion sizes under control
Eat balanced meals
Coke or soda pop is loaded with sugar...sugar free is loaded with really bad additives that can actually make you gain weight
NEVER, EVER, consume Aspartame


The recommended daily requirement for each meal with one carb serving equaling 15 grams of carbohydrates.  For each meal there should be between 45 and 60 grams of carbohydrates for women and between 60 and 75 for men.  Counting carbs is more important and easier than counting calories.  Keep the carbs down and the calories will follow naturally.  Snacks for men should be under 200 and for women no more than 120 calories.  

Read your labels.  Make sure that you are eating portions according to the suggested serving size on the label.  Labels are based on a 2000 calorie a day intake.  A product may contain 20 servings but each serving may only be 1/4 cup.  If you eat 1/2 cup you have doubled your carbs and calories.  If one serving equals 60 grams in a 1/4 cup then eating 1/2 cup puts you way over your requirement for the meal. Watch the labels on the 100 calorie packages for dieters.  The sugar may be low but the fat content, cholesterol, may make the carbs too high.

Keep your carbs spread out over the day.  Eating no carbs at one meal and the next meal heavy in carbs is too hard on your body and can have a very negative effect.  This will make your blood sugar spike, your heart work harder.  Not a good idea.  Also, some carbs are slow carbs and some are fast carbs so it depends what types of foods you eat to make your sugar levels even.  Even sugar levels means a better acting metabolize.  

Foods that are high in carbohydrates are considered fast acting carbs.  The sugar is dumped on the body to digest very quickly making your body work hard to keep things level.  High carbohydrate foods are starchy vegetables, grains, fruit, dairy and sweets.  Stay away from anything white like white bread, white rice and so on.

Eating high fiber foods is always a good idea for appetite control, sugar levels and digestion.  It is best to eat 25 to 30 grams of high fiber foods each day.

Drinking alcohol will lower your sugar levels.  It is best to limit alcohol consumption and you should never drink alcohol on an empty stomach.  Your blood sugar can drop without warning and very suddenly.  This can cause serious health problems.

Healthy substitutions for better choices in eating can be instead of eating a candy bar have a piece of fruit to satisfy your sweet tooth or a snack bar (be sure to check the label first).  Instead of french fries you can eat a backed potato with a tablespoon of low-fat sour cream or margarine substitute.  Instead of fried rice you can eat 1/2 cup brown rice with 1/4 cup black beans.  Instead of fish sticks you can eat 3 oz of grilled salmon.  Instead of fried chicken you can eat 3 oz of baked chicken.  Instead of your sugary cereal you can have a cup of whole grain cereal with fruit added or plain oatmeal with a little raw honey added.

If you do follow these simple guidelines you will find you loose weight naturally plus making your body stronger and healthier.  Check out my food lists to better understand your food choices.



This book makes eating healthy easy...not just for diabetics but for anyone who wants a healthier lifestyle or seriously wants to prevent the onset of diabetes...

Diabetic Living Diabetes Meals by the Plate A visual guide to meal planning using the Plate Method, a simple graphic that divides the plate into three portions to show how to enjoy a full plate of food that is carb- and calorie-balanced. With 90 meals, each fully photographed showing the portion sizes for vegetables, protein, and starches (plus extras), eating healthy is easy: just fill your plate!