The glycemic index is a measure of the ability of a food to raise blood sugar levels
after it is eaten. When a person’s blood sugar rises, insulin is produced to counteract
it. High levels of blood sugar and insulin can lead to problems like weight gain, insulin resistance, hypoglycemia, and heart disease. Choosing foods that have lower glycemic
indices can help minimize or avoid these problems.
Access the glycemic index database to find out the value for specific foods
(www.glycemicindex.com).
A value less than 55 indicates a low-glycemic-index food.
Talk to a doctor or a trained healthcare professional such as a registered
dietitian if you want to use the glycemic index as part of your overall eating plan.
Best bets: Whole grain breads and pasta, beans, and most vegetables and vegetable
juices
More about this diet
The glycemic index compares the blood sugar response to a particular food with the
body’s reaction to pure glucose, which is given the value of 100. For example, if a food
raises blood sugar only half as much as pure glucose, that food is given a glycemic index of
50. The portion size used to test the glycemic index of various foods is the amount that
contains 50 grams of carbohydrate. Some research has used white bread instead of glucose as
the standard of comparison for determining the glycemic index of foods. The glycemic index of
a food is governed by several factors, such as the form of carbohydrate it contains, the
amount and form of fiber it contains, how much processing and cooking it has been subjected
to, and the presence of other substances such as protein and fat.
Glycemic load is a related measurement calculated by multiplying the glycemic index of a
food by the amount of carbohydrate contained in a typical serving of that food, and then
dividing the result by 100. Glycemic load may be more reliable than glycemic index as a
predictor of how a food will affect the blood sugar level. That is because some foods with a
high glycemic index (such as carrots) contain
such a small amount of carbohydrate in a normal serving that they would not be expected to
raise the blood sugar level very much. Carrot juice, on the other hand, which contains a
relatively large amount of carbohydrate, would produce a substantial increase in the blood
sugar level.
How do people use the glycemic index?
People most often use the glycemic index to choose carbohydrate-containing foods that will
only minimally raise their blood sugar levels, with the intent of preventing health problems
associated with either high blood sugar or the body’s reaction to rising blood sugar.
These health problems may include weight gain, diabetes, the insulin resistance syndrome, hypoglycemia, and heart
disease. Foods with a glycemic index of 55 and below are considered ideal for those trying to
consume low-glycemic-index foods.
Athletes may choose high-glycemic-index foods after intense exercise, in order to rapidly
replenish depleted carbohydrate stores.
What do the advocates say?
The underlying premise for advocating eating low-glycemic-index foods is that
high-glycemic-index foods cause a rapid elevation in blood sugar that the body attempts to
balance by producing a large amount of insulin. Advocates claim that human physiology is not
designed to tolerate these rapid and prolonged elevations in blood sugar and insulin caused by
the prevalence of modern, high-glycemic-index foods in the diet. As human civilization has
evolved, primitive stone-age diets that featured naturally occurring, low-carbohydrate foods
have been replaced, first by unprocessed but higher-carbohydrate agricultural foods such as
whole grains and legumes, and more recently by highly processed, low-fiber flours and other
starchy foods, plus an increasing amount of sweets. This trend towards higher-glycemic-index
foods in the diet is therefore deemed unnatural and hazardous to the healthy functioning of
the body.
Research suggests that repeated overproduction of insulin could lead to insulin resistance,
in which cells that normally respond to insulin become less sensitive to its effects.
Excessive high-glycemic-index foods, high insulin levels, and insulin resistance have been
associated with many health concerns, including
obesity, type 2 diabetes, heart disease,
and some cancers. Changing to a low-glycemic-index diet has been shown in most studies to
reduce insulin resistance, help control appetite, improve weight loss results, enhance blood
sugar control in diabetics, lower blood levels of total and LDL ("bad") cholesterol, and raise blood levels of HDL ("good")
cholesterol.
What do the critics say?
Critics say that the way the glycemic index is measured (one food at a time in quantities
that contain a standard amount of carbohydrate) does not resemble the way people usually eat
(many items are eaten together in varying portion sizes, often mixing high-carbohydrate with
low-carbohydrate foods). They also criticize the complexity of the glycemic index concept and
the fact that eating large amounts of some low-glycemic-index foods, such as ice cream, would be unhealthful due to the detrimental
effects of other components of these foods, such as animal fats. In the case of type 2
diabetes, critics point out that the glycemic index only measures the short-term effects of
foods on blood sugar, whereas studies measuring longer-term effects of high-glycemic-index
foods in people with diabetes have found inconsistent results.
In answer to these criticisms, advocates point to the many studies linking diets containing
high-glycemic-index foods to common and serious health problems. They insist that the diet can
be made more healthful by integrating the glycemic index with other health concepts, such as
lowering animal fat consumption, to achieve the best results.
What should I avoid when I want to eat low-glycemic-index foods?
It is not necessary to completely avoid high-glycemic-index foods. When these foods are
combined in a meal with low-glycemic-index foods, protein foods, or fat, then the overall
glycemic effect is reduced. Another way to decrease the effect of high-glycemic foods is to
simply eat smaller portions, rather than avoiding them altogether. Of course, to lower the
overall glycemic index of the diet, low-glycemic-index foods should be emphasized. The basic
rules are to reduce intake of concentrated sugars and most potatoes, increase consumption of legumes and most vegetables and fruits, and choose grain products made by traditional methods (for
example, pasta, stone-ground flour products, old-fashioned oatmeal) rather than
those produced with modern technology (highly refined flour products, low-fiber flaked
breakfast cereals, quick-cooking starches,
etc.).
The following foods rank highest on the glycemic index. These foods should be avoided or
kept to a minimum by those wishing to consume a low-glycemic-index diet
Are there any groups or books associated with this diet?
The New Glucose Revolution by Jennie Brand-Miller, Thomas MS
Wolever, Kaye Foster-Powell, and Stephen Colagiuri. New York: Marlowe & Co., 2003.
The Glucose Revolution Pocket Guide to the Top 100 Low Glycemic
Foods by Jennie Brand-Miller, Kaye Foster-Powell, and Thomas MS Wolever. New York:
Marlowe & Co., 2000.
University of Sydney Glycemic Index Web site.
www.glycemicindex.com
Bibliography
Brand-Miller J, Wolever TM, Foster-Powell K, Colagiuri S. The New
Glucose Revolution. New York: Marlowe & Co, 2003.
Franz MJ. Carbohydrate and diabetes: is the source or the amount of
more importance? Curr Diab Rep 2001;1:177–86 [review].
Jenkins DJ, Kendall CW, Augustin LS, et al. Glycemic index: overview
of implications in health and disease. Am J Clin Nutr 2002;76:266S–73S
[review].
Ludwig DS. The glycemic index: physiological mechanisms relating to
obesity, diabetes, and cardiovascular disease. JAMA 2002;287:2414–23
[review].
Pi-Sunyer FX. Glycemic index and disease. Am J Clin Nutr
2002;76:290S–8S [review].
Pawlak DB, Ebbeling CB, Ludwig DS. Should obese patients be counselled
to follow a low-glycaemic index diet? Yes. Obes Rev 2002;3:235–43 [review].
Raben A. Should obese patients be counselled to follow a low-glycaemic
index diet? No. Obes Rev 2002;3:245–56 [review].
Roberts SB. High-glycemic index foods, hunger, and obesity: is there a
connection? Nutr Rev 2000;58:163–9 [review].
The information presented in the Food Guide is for informational purposes
only and was created by a team of US–registered dietitians and food experts. Consult
your doctor, practitioner, and/or pharmacist for any health problem and before using any
supplements, making dietary changes, or before making any changes in prescribed medications.
Information expires June 2009.
