What Are Net Carbs?

Net carbs refers to the total grams carbohydrates in a food, minus the grams of fiber and sugar alcohols.

Fiber is a carbohydrate that resists digestion, is crucial for health and can help with weight control. Most Americans do not consume the recommended amount of dietary fiber.

Net carbs refers to the total amount of fully digestible carbohydrates a particular food contains. It’s the total number of grams of carbohydrates minus the grams of fiber and half the amount of sugar alcohols.

Fiber and sugar alcohols are both types of carbohydrates. Neither affects blood sugar the same way other types of carbs do, so people managing blood sugar may find it useful to have a more detailed log of carbs, fibers, and sugar alcohols to compare to blood sugar measures. 

Certain types of fiber aren’t digested by the body, but this still contributes to the total calories your body is consuming.

With the trends of low-carb and keto diets, the food industry started adding processed ingredients to packaged foods to increase the total fiber count. Another common issue with tracking net carbs is that it can lead to excessive calorie intake if someone has the idea that they can simply "cancel out" a higher-carb foods with higher fiber. Plus, on a mental level, tracking net carbs can lend itself to a lot of overthinking and may make it harder for someone to be able to enjoy a balanced meal when they don't know the breakdown of total carbs vs. fiber vs. sugar alcohols.

AIM suggests using the number beside “total carbohydrates,” rather than subtract fiber or sugar alcohol or count ‘net carbs.’ We recommend counting total carbohydrates, with most of your intake focused on whole food ingredients—the impact of the fiber from leafy greens, avocado, nuts, and seeds is superior to that in a processed products and additives.