High Carbohydrate, Low Protein Foods

A low-protein diet is often recommended for individuals with severe liver or kidney disease. Such individuals are unable to process protein naturally and will have specific guidelines on the amount of protein which can be safely ingested. This poses a unique situation in finding appropriate foods to eat. Although protein in high quantities is most often associated with meat, eggs, beans, seeds and nuts, large amounts of protein are also found in bread, pastas and cereal. There are a variety of fresh foods and commercially prepared foods that can offer carbohydrates with a limited amount of protein.

Fruit

Fruits are among the best methods for getting carbohydrates while limiting protein. Many fruits contain a high amount of carbohydrates by means of natural sugars, the glucose and fructose. Among the fruits with the highest carbohydrate count, consider pinapples, peaches, pears, melon, mango, kiwi, grapes, grapefruit, cherries, banannas and apples. These fruits all have a low protein count. When minimizing protein is more important for the day than getting the most carbohydrates, try apples, bananas, cherries, cranberries, grapes, kiwi, oranges, peaches and pears for the lowest possible protein count.

Vegetables

French fries using olive oil are a low-protein, high carbohydrate snack.

Vegetables are another easy way to get carbohydrates without protein. Vegetables on average contain 4 grams of protein or less, with the majority of vegetables containing 1 gram or less of protein per serving. Vegetables that should not be considered on a low-protein diet are French beans, lima beans, peas and seaweed. Among the vegetables with the highest carbohydrate count are beets, parsnip, potatoes and yams. Potatoes are one of the highest carbohydrate vegetables at 25 grams of carbohydrates per serving. Potatoes have only 4.33 grams of protein per serving.

Breads

Breads on average tend to have a high protein count. But there are commercially available bread products with lower protein counts. Among lower protein breads are whole grain waffles, pancakes and crackers. Also, instant white rice, regular white bread and bread crumbs are lower in protein content. Many of these breads will still have too many grams of protein for some diets. For very low protein bread, the most cost effective method to bake home made bread using low protein flour.

Sweets

Commercially available sweets which are low in protein and high in carbohydrates include hot cocoa, pudding packages, some sports drinks, Boston cream pie, butterscotch chips and marshmallows. For an easy way to make a high carbohydrate, low-protein dessert, use low-protein flour to make "no eggs" cookies. Cake flour is the lowest protein flour, and it is designed to hold a lot of sugar without causing the pastry to collapse.