Understanding glycemic index (GI) and how it affects blood glucose level

Understanding glycemic index (GI) and how it affects blood glucose level
Everything you wanted to know about Glycemic Index (GI) and GI foods.

Everything you wanted to know about Glycemic Index (GI) and GI foods. Read to find out.

How to understand numbers on glycemic index scale

GI is expressed in numbers which indicate the effect of food you consume on the blood glucose level. It helps you to know the breakdown of carbohydrates in the body, which takes into account the total carbohydrate minus fibre. A value of 100 represents the standard GI, which is equivalent to the amount of pure glucose. Read more on what is a glycemic index?

GI scale — In this, foods are ranked on a scale of 0 to 100. Low GI foods (55 or less) are more slowly absorbed, metabolised and digested in the body, which not only raises blood glucose levels slowly but also keeps insulin levels in check. Consuming these foods not only helps diabetics to keep their blood glucose levels under control but also helps non-diabetics  reduce their risk of developing diabetes. Hence, diabetics should plan their meals with low or medium GI (56- 69) foods. And if eating high GI foods (70 or higher ), then complementing with low GI foods helps in balancing the meal. So choose wisely. Here are 10 fruits and their recommended servings for diabetics (With GI values)

The GI rating system — what you need to know

Before taking the dive and binging on low GI foods, one must understand that there are several factors apart from the GI values that affect the way the body responds to carbohydrates. The age, level of physical activity level and metabolism play a role in determining how carbohydrates are processed. Moreover, the way a particular food is prepared can also change its GI value. Here is what GI is dependent on -

The size of starch: The smaller the particle size of starch in food, the greater is the glycemic index. Also, raw foods which have a large particle size are known to have a lower glycemic effect than cooked foods. Cooking method: Foods which involve long cooking processes have a higher GI value than those that include lesser time or cooked by dry or short-time methods like roasting. The amount of fibre: The last one is the amount of fibre present in the foods as those with high fibre content have low or medium GI value and hence, recommended for diabetics.Here is a sample diet plan for diabeticsby nutritionist Prema Kodical that can help you.

While there a host of other factors to keep in mind while selecting foods, knowing the GI of food gives more control over the diet. High and low blood sugar levels can adversely affect even those who do not suffer from diabetes. Therefore, everyone should become more aware of the nutritional content of the foods they eat, along with its place on the Glycemic Index or GI value. Here’s how foods with low glycemic indexhelp maintain weight and control diabetes.

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