Glycemic Index and How It Affects Your Diet - Cleveland Clinic ...

“The glycemic index is used to classify foods that contain carbohydrates, their potential for raising blood sugar and how quickly they raise ... Skiptocontent Coronavirus:NowschedulingCOVID-19vaccineappointments.Learnmoreaboutvaccineavailability. icon-arrow--blue ClevelandClinic Menu PrimaryMenu AdvertisingPolicy Health&WellnessTips Fitness,healthandwellnesstipssenttoyouweekly Youhavesuccessfullysubscribedtoournewsletter. Growingup,youwereprobablytoldtolimitsweets.ThatmeantnotoverdoingitonHalloweencandy,forexample,orhavingthatextrabowlofsugarybreakfastcereal.Whileadult-youmightbetemptedtothrowcautiontothewindandeatwhateveryouwant,maintainingahealthydietismoreimportantthanever. AdvertisingPolicy ClevelandClinicisanon-profitacademicmedicalcenter.Advertisingonoursitehelpssupportourmission.Wedonotendorsenon-ClevelandClinicproductsorservices. Policy Onewayoflookingatahealthydietisconsideringwherefoodsfallontheglycemicindex. “Theglycemicindexisusedtoclassifyfoodsthatcontaincarbohydrates,theirpotentialforraisingbloodsugarandhowquicklytheyraiseyourbloodsugar,”saysendocrinologistAlexanderWilliams,MD. Theglycemicindexisbasedontheunderstandingthatnoteverycarbiscreatedequal.“Saysomeonesaidthatyoucouldhave100gramsofcarbsaday,”saysDr.Williams.“Ifyouhadthatallinsoda,intuitivelyyouwouldunderstandthat’snottheoptimalwaytogetyourcarbswhenyoucaninstead,eatwholegrainrice,vegetables,fruitsandotherthings.” Thereasonforthesedifferencescomesfromhowcarbsreactinyourbody.Simplecarbohydrates—say,thesugarsfoundinsodaandsweetdesserts—arebrokendownfasterthanthemorecomplexcarbohydratesfoundinsomevegetablesandwhole-grainfoods.Asaresult,yourbloodsugarspikesandthenfallsrapidly.Overtime,doctorsbelievetheseconstantsurgesandretreatsplayapartinpeoplebecominginsulinresistant. Howistheglycemicindexdetermined? Todetermineglycemicindexnumbers,doctorsobservehowhealthypeople’sbloodsugarlevelschangeafteringestingcarb-containingfoods.Bymeasuringsubsequentbloodsugarlevels—andcomparingittoabaseline—theycandeterminewhereafoodfallsonascaleofzeroto100,where100representspureglucoseandzeroisafoodwithnosugaratall. “Essentially,theglycemicindexistryingtoshowthatnoteverythingthatcontainstheexactsameamountofgramsofcarbswillbehavethesamewayinyourbody,”saysDr.Williams.“Youactuallymeasurehowyourbodyrespondstoacupoforangejuiceversushowitreactstootherfooditems:abanana,25gramsofcandyor25gramsofwhole-grainbread.” Doctorshavemeasuredtheglycemicindexnumbersonlyforcertainfoodsorclassesoffoods.“Noteverysinglefooditem,noteveryvegetableorfruitorpieceofbread,hasbeenstudied,”saysDr.Williams.However,youcanuseexistingdataandmakeagoodestimateforfoodsthataren’tstudied.  AdvertisingPolicy Whatisalowglycemicindexdiet? Alowglycemicindexdietisonebasedonfoodsthatwon’tcausewildswingsinyourbloodsugar.“Eatingfoodswithalowerglycemicindexmeanstheywillcauseaslowerandlowerriseinyourbloodsugar,”Dr.Williamssays,notingthiswillhelpyouabsorbfoodmoreslowlyandstayfullforlonger,andthereforeeatless.“Foodswithahighglycemicindex,orsimplesugars,giveyouthisquickburstofenergywithariseinbloodsugarquickly. Butthenyou’lltendtofeelprettytiredafterwardandwillgethungryquickly.” Certainkindsoffoodsfallintothesecategories—forexample,Dr.Williamsnotesthatfoodshigherinfatandprotein“tendtobeabsorbedslower,andthereforehavealowerglycemicindex.Buttheglycemicindexisn’tnecessarilyameasurethat’seasytouseasanutritionguide,thewaythatyoucanwithcalories.Andfoodswithalowglycemicindexaren’tnecessarilypackedwithnutrients.Eatingabalanceoffoodsfromallfivefoodgroups—fruits,vegetables,grains,proteins,anddairy—isstillabetterruletofollow.  Infact,Dr.WilliamsagreeswiththeAmericanDiabetesAssociation’sassessmentthattheglycemicindexnumbersare“noteasilyaccessibleformealplanning.”“Idon’tknowhowimportantthenumbersareifyou’rethinkingaboutgoingtothestoreanddecidingwhattopreparefordinner,”hesays.“It’smoreaboutthinkingwhatkindsoffoodshavealowerglycemicindexandtryingtomakesurethatthere’sagoodportionoftheseineachmealinsteadofotherfoodsthathaveahighglycemicindex.” Thebenefitsofalowglycemicindexdiet Alowglycemicindexdietcanimproveyouroverallhealthandhelppreventcertainillnesses.“ThereisincreasingevidencethatfoodswithalowglycemicindexcanreduceyourriskofdevelopingType2diabetes,”saysDr.Williams.“Ifyoualreadyhavediabetes,itcouldpotentiallyreducetheriskoflong-termcomplications.Otherstudiesshowthatit’sbeneficialforcertaincholesterollevels.” Itstandstoreasonthatadietfullofhighglycemicindexfoodswould(amongotherthings)upyourriskforType2diabetesorinsulinresistance.“Itcandefinitelycontributetoweightgain,andthenthecomplicationsthatgoalongwiththat,suchasstressonthecardiovascularsystem,”Dr.Williamssays.“It’sdefinitelygoingtomakeyourcholesterolmetabolismworseoff.” Dr.Williamssaystherearen’tmanydownsidestoalowglycemicindexdiet,saveforafewexceptions.“Ifyou’realreadyoninsulinanddrasticallychangethewayyoueatwithoutchanginginsulindosages,thiscouldputyouatincreasedriskforlowbloodsugar,”hesays.Additionally,ifyourcholesterolincreasesaftergoingonalow-carbdiet(forexample,theketodiet),alowglycemicindexdietalsomightnotbethebestchoice. Lowglycemicindexfoods Dr.Williamssayslowglycemicindexfoodsareoneswithanumberthat’s50orless.Someoftheseinclude: Vegetables:Peppers,broccoli,tomatoes,lettuce,eggplants.Fruits:Strawberries,apples,pears.Legumes:Chickpeas,beans(driedorboiled),legumes.Dairy:Whole/full-fatmilk,plainyogurt.Sweets:Darkchocolatewithmorethan70%cocoa.Nuts:Cashews,peanuts. Highglycemicindexfoods Highglycemicindexfoodstendtohaveanumberover70andinclude: AdvertisingPolicy Processedfoods:Cornchips,pretzels.Sugar-containingbeverages:Soda,sweettea,sportsdrinks.Fastfood:Cheeseburgers,friedchicken,pizza.Bakery/grains:Doughnuts,whitebread,cereals(unlesswholegrain).Potatoes:Mashedpotatoes,Frenchfries. Sampleglycemicindexnumbers GoingbytheUniversityofSydney’sglycemicindexdatabase,hereisasamplingoftheglycemicindexnumbersforcertainfoods: Banana(yellowandripe):51Quinoa(cooked,refrigeratedandreheated):53Carrots(raw):16Brownrice(steamed):50Sweetpotato(orange,peeled,cutandboiledfor8minutes):61Apple(raw,goldendelicious):39Honey(pure):58Potato(white,cooked):41Popcorn:55Watermelon(raw):72or80CoconutSugar:54 Whytheglycemicindexoffoodsdiffers Dr.Williamscautionsthatdeterminingtheglycemicindexratingsforindividualfoodsisanimperfectscience.“It’sgoingtobedifferentforeachfood,dependingonhowit’sprocessedorprepared,andthenhoweachindividualpersonresponds,”henotes. Forexample,hesaysonestudyofinstantoatmealshowedthatithadaglycemicindexof79,whichisthehighrange.Yetsteel-cutrolledoatshaveaglycemicindexof55,whichputsitinamediumglycemicindex. Differentversionsofthesamefoodwillalsovaryduetoingredients.“Yogurtthat’smarketedforkidsisgoingtotastedeliciousbecauseithasalotofsugarorartificialsweeteners,likehighfructosecornsyrup—versusplainGreek,regularfatyogurt.Theymighthaveverysimilaramountsofcarbs,buttheglycemicindexisverydifferentbecauseofthenumberofproteinsandfatsandthequalityandquantityofthesugarthat’sinthere.” Howmuchyoueatofacertaincarb-heavyfoodcanalsohaveaneffect.Forexample,asmallsiportwoofsodawon’thaveasbiganimpactonyourbodyasalargeportionofwhole-grainrice—eventhoughthelatterisgenerallyperceivedashealthier. Aswithmanydiets,Dr.Williamsstressesthat“moderation”iskey,asisstrikingabalancebetweeneatinglowandhighglycemicindexfoods.“We’reallhuman,”hesays.“It’sverydifficultformostofustotrytoeliminateanyonekindoffoodifwelikeit.Soit’sallabouthavingportionsthatarereasonableandnotgoingoverboard.” AdvertisingPolicy AdvertisingPolicy ClevelandClinicisanon-profitacademicmedicalcenter.Advertisingonoursitehelpssupportourmission.Wedonotendorsenon-ClevelandClinicproductsorservices. Policy AdvertisingPolicy AdvertisingPolicy AdvertisingPolicy AdvertisingPolicy AdvertisingPolicy RelatedArticles April28,2020 /Wellness April28,2020 /Wellness The5Best(andWorst)SweetenersYouCanEat September7,2021 /Nutrition September7,2021 /Nutrition HowtoTreatReactiveHypoglycemia June4,2021 /Women'sHealth June4,2021 /Women'sHealth WhatShouldYouEatDuringYourPeriod? October31,2018 /HeartHealth October31,2018 /HeartHealth HowtoProtectYourHeartWhenYouHavePrediabetes April15,2021 /Nutrition April15,2021 /Nutrition WhatYouShouldKnowAboutSugarAlcohols September22,2021 /Nutrition September22,2021 /Nutrition IsMapleSyrupBetterforYouThanSugar? TrendingTopics 1 7HealthBenefitsofTurmeric 2 IsTikTokCausingTicsinTeenGirls?WhatParentsNeedtoKnow 3 DoesaBadNight’sSleepAffectYourHealth? Facebook Twitter YouTube Instagram LinkedIn Pinterest Snapchat 1/1 LeftArrow Previous RightArrow Next WhatIstheGlycemicIndex? Theglycemicindexcanidentifywhichfoodscausewildswingsinbloodsugar.Here’sarundownofwhatfoodsarepartofalowglycemicindexdiet,andwhichtoavoid. Sharethisarticleviaemailwithoneormorepeopleusingtheformbelow. To* From* Yes!SendmeexpertinsightseachweekinHealthEssentialsNews Submit