carbohydrates

[Sunna]

as a man needs 2500 cal a day to live on how if forageing for your food would you get the carbs needed to live.

a rabbit has no carbs , also a fish , also a deer , i cant think of any bug that has carbs so how would you get the energy to live.

[bigpaul]

foraging is only 1 part of a larger whole to surviving post SHTF, if we put "all our eggs in one basket" then we might fail.

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if a person is relying on foraging only to survive then that person might not survive especially in a harsh winter.

[Mortblanc]

Carbs are not necessary for sustaining health. They are bulk in the diet. Often bulk calories that contribute little to your health. Unless carbs are contributing fiber they are doing little to benefit the body that protein and fats can not do better.

Modern people eat a carb heavy diet because that is more efficient agriculturally, not for health reasons.

I have noticed that you Brits have a definite preference for the meat and potatoes as constant sustenance. (in other parts of the world it is rice, chick peas or various breads that form the base)

Americans tend to do the same with the government pushing a carb heavy base diet, then admonishing us for being overweight!

This carb heavy diet is the reason we now have an obesity crisis and type 2 diabetes is epidemic.

While one can starve to death eating a constant diet of rabbit, that is due to the shortage of fats, not carbs.

Primitive man often lived on a diet of meat with a few roots and greens on the side. Oddly enough, as soon as the archeological records show a switch to farming and a carb based diet humans got smaller, sicker and started having dental problems.

Some of those carbs will turn to sugar while still in your mouth. That is why you crave them!

Due to a heart attack 10 years ago I have been on a strict carb allowance for a decade. My daily carb intake is equal to one slice of bread and that is spread over the entire day of eating.

Small servings of lean meat and lots of greens and selected non-carb veggies are my basic sustenance.

I usually eat no sweets at all.

[Scythe13]

In a worse case scenario just go extreme and hit up a CKD or Atkins diet haha. The Inuit cope pretty well with pretty much zero carbs.

This is where knowing your plants is important. Fruits, berries, roots, nuts, leaves, and even bark (granted it's inner bark) can all contain plenty of carbs. The smart observer will notice I've not included things like grains, seeds, and those kinds, even legumes, peas, and that kind of thing. Well, they're easy enough to plant and grow. I have been sneaky and planted plenty around where I live and in a few other areas.

If you're smart enough with your foraging, you'll have already popped a few things into areas that you've already checked out.

Did someone mention that getting to know your mushrooms is also very important? Yes there will be some that won't take time to get to know mushrooms....fair does. I've gotten to know a few that are near impossible to I.D. wrong, and am sticking with those few. The words "It's the only mushroom that looks like X" are keys for my mushroom knowledge. If it looks like no other mushroom, and is 100% easy to identify...then I'm okay to eat it. If there's a chance I could get it wrong, I stay well away!

[Devonian]

Good sources of carbohydrates include:

Dandelion roots
Burdock roots
Pignut

Probably plenty of others as well, not one of strong points - needs more work putting in!!

[SecretPrepper]

You are more likely to rely on fats from meats and nuts. There are more calories in fat than carbs anyway. Dependant on your area there maybe fruit which has carbs in the form of sugars and fibre.

The body does react when you eat a lot less carbs. Your body does have to work harder to digest fat and protein. You may feel lethargic, disoriented and even confused. This is because the brain needs fuel from the breakdown of carbohydrates. Without them the body needs to work harder to breakdown protein. This is call ketosis. You should look into the wild edibles in your area and find their nutritional content online. But farming is something to look into even if just a few staples like potatoes

[Mortblanc]

Ketosis in not a certainty in every carb restricted diet and is not a risk unless the subject is diabetic.

Some medical people feel it is a risk, others feel it is a risk only for those with type 1 diabetes.

It must be noted that severe carb restriction is the first and most effective medically advised treatment for adult onset diabetes. In many cases the carb restriction, and the resulting weight loss due to increased digestive metabolism, place the diabetic into remission with no need for further medication or treatment other than maintaining the restricted diet.

Modern diabetic treatment is as concerned with carb intake as they are with sugar intake, especially in type 2 cases.

[Sunna]

how many roots would you need to give the body what is needed for a day x that by how many in your group.
has anybody done this or is it just guess work .

[Mortblanc]

Every root does not have the same content of either carbs, vitamins, minerals or fiber.

Look on the back of a bag of crisps! Following dietary standards one small bag of crisps is nearly a week of carb intake with no food value present. They are all carb and fat with ZERO basic nutrition.

Most of what we refer too as "junk food" is the high carb/high sugar product which perpetuates the quick conversion to glucose and resulting euphoric sugar buzz.

If all you are after is a carb unit then eating paper will do the trick. There is more food value in the packaging of most high carb breakfast cereals than in the contents of the box.

[CharlesHarris]

Perhaps we sbould be going back tothe wartime concentration camp bread receipes containing 30% shredded paper or sawdust.