Carbohydrate foods like rice, pasta, bread, potatoes, fruit and sugary drinks have sugar as their basic building blocks. These foods are digested and absorbed, raising the blood sugar level. This stimulates a hormone called insulin which clears excess sugar from the bloodstream and facilitates it’s storage as energy in the form of fat. Insulin blocks the release of fat from our fat stores. Having a low amount of dietary carbohydrate allows the insulin levels to stay low enough to allow fat burning and weight loss if desired.