The Science of the Glycemic Index
The Glycemic Index is just plain brilliant because it’s
based on the science of how foods, specifically
carbohydrates, work in your body. But the Glycemic Index
isn’t merely someone’s good idea or an interesting
intellectual theory. The Glycemic Index has been
research-tested on real people who have the same kinds of
weight-loss and heath issues as you.
Is the Glycemic Index just another fad? The answer is a
resounding “NO.” It’s a medically-sound
scientifically-tested explanation for how the body reacts to
the foods we eat. The Glycemic Index has been researched
since the 1980s and is used by nutritionists around the
world to guide people—especially those with eating
challenges, such as persons with diabetes.
What Is the Glycemic Index?
Here’s a simple definition: The glycemic index is a
scientific measurement of how a person’s blood sugar levels
change eating different types of carbohydrate foods. The
glycemic index’s ranking system is only for carbohydrates
and not for proteins or fats.
How Does the Glycemic Index Help With Weight Loss?
By using the glycemic index as a reference when you eat, you
actually know how a food will affect your weight and health.
With many food theories, such as food combining, or
vegetarian eating, personal testimonials are often the only
evidence. And these are often based on a person’s internal
belief systems and perhaps a desire to prove a point (or
not). With actual testing, well, let’s put it this way--it
would have been really difficult and most likely impossible
for a volunteer to fool the blood sugar test.
Understanding the Glycemic Index
For simple clarification, the glycemic index groups carbs
into three groups.
- Low-glycemic carbs are those with a
glycemic index of 55 or lower.
- Medium-glycemic carbs are
those scoring 56 to 69.
- High-glycemic carbs are those
scoring 70 or higher.
Pure glucose was used to set the
baseline at 100.
High-glycemic foods include:
Breads, rice crackers, some cookies and cakes, most
muffins, and most foods made with enriched white flour. The
more easily digestible the starches and sugars in a food,
the higher it is on the glycemic index. Refined grain
products are usually high as well as most breakfast cereals,
white potatoes, and modified food starch.
Medium-glycemic foods include:
Stone-ground breads that don’t contain white flour,
whole-grain cereals, some cakes and cookies, corn taco
shells, table sugar, and energy bars. Some of the tropical
fruits, such as papaya and pineapple, are medium-glycemic.
Low-glycemic foods include:
All vegetables, most fruits, some whole grain products
like steel-cut oats and whole barley, and some pasta.
Legumes, such as lentils and pinto beans, are low-glycemic.
Dark chocolate is too. Nuts and seeds are low, and most
dairy products, provided they don’t have added sugar, are
also low.