Tag Archives: Low-glycemic index diet
Things You Need To Know About the Glycemic Index Food List

Things You Need To Know About the Glycemic Index Food List

glycemic index lowThe glycemic index of foods is a very good source of proper nutrition. It is also referred to as GI, is a food-rating index. It uses a 0 to 100 scale to score foods. The body converts carbohydrates to sugar, which causes a glucose response in the blood. It helps rank the food according to how fast they raise the blood sugar level. A high GI food will produce a higher blood glucose peak and overall blood glucose response as opposed to low GI foods, which have a lower blood glucose response. The caloric amounts in GI foods vary with the type of food item. Eating foods with low carbs has a lot of benefits as the glucose level in the body raise slowly.

Here’s how it is scored:

  • 55 or less- foods with lower carbohydrate density
  • 55-70- foods with medium amount of carbohydrates
  • 70 and above- foods that are very rich in carbohydrates

Di you know that eating foods with a high amount of carbohydrate can make you hungry fast? It is because carbohydrate is converted into glucose at a faster rate.  Food with high amount of carbohydrate is unhealthy because it helps in building up of cholesterol and fats. Another disadvantage you may get is the sudden increase of sugar in your body. When there’s too much sugar on your body, it will send a message to your brain as the glucose will affect the brain to feel hungry. Even if it is not a need for your body to eat yet but your brain makes you feel hungry, hence you overeat. As a result, you grow fat. When you are overweight, you are prone to different diseases. You are more at risk of heart disease, high blood pressure, diabetes, feel lazy and give you an inactive lifestyle. On the other hand, foods with low GI, makes a stable blood glucose level, resulting in improved energy levels and reduced cravings for sugar and sweet foods. Also, helps improve blood glucose control for people with diabetes. Research shows that a low GI diet can help to improve blood lipid profile. A range of low GI foods provide important vitamins, minerals and fiber especially when eating fruits and vegetables.

Active people can use a combination of high and low GI foods to ensure optimal energy stores for exercise performance. Using the GI foods as a reference to guide you and help you maintain the proper nutrition that your body needs. Fruits are rich in antioxidants that help protect the body from free radicals that cause cell damage and some types of cancer, according to the National Institutes of Health. They are an essential part of a balanced diet. A diet rich in vegetables can decrease your chances of having a heart attack or stroke, protect you against some cancers, lower your blood pressure, and protect against diverticulitis, an intestinal ailment. To maintain a good health, include two servings of vegetables and another one serving of fruit per day. However, not all fruits and vegetables are low in GI, most of them are in low or medium index rankings.

Here are some of the foods you will see on the glycemic index of foods rate according to its GI value:

FOODS WITH LOW SCORE IN GI

Fruits that are low in GI include cherries, grapefruit, peach, apples, strawberries, coconut and oranges. Also foods like Oats, porridge or natural muesli, multi-grain bread, pasta, low-fat milk and yoghurt, sweet corn, sweet potato and legumes. When it comes to vegetables– broccoli , cabbage, lettuce, mushrooms, onions, red peppers, carrots and green peas, has the lowest GI value indicated.

FOODS WITH MEDIUM SCORE IN GI

Foods that have a medium score on the GI list are papaya, raisins, apricots, fresh kiwi, figs (dried), apricots (canned)  , cantaloupe and pineapple (fresh). When it comes to daily breakfast and cereals, oat bran, bran chex, raisin bran, cream of wheat, quick oats, pancakes and puffed wheat. Beets, pumpkin and fresh corn have medium score in GI Index. Included here are your favorite pizza and the macaroni and cheese.

FOODS WITH MEDIUM SCORE IN GI

Watermelon and dates have high index rating. Dates have the highest amount of simple carbohydrates. Also, foods like grapenuts, cheerio, cream of wheat instant, shredded wheat, waffles, rice krispies and corn flakes. And also, short grain (white), instant (white), wild rice and glutinous (sticky).

It is important to remember that although low GI carbohydrates are a preferred choice, this does not mean you can eat as much as you like! A mistake that many people make is replacing fat in the diet with carbohydrates, often in unlimited and excessive volumes. Eating too much of any nutrient, including carbohydrates, can lead to over consumption of kilojoules and this will prevent body fat break down and result in subsequent body fat gain. Portion sizes should be appropriate for activity level and individual energy requirements. A reduction in carbohydrate intake or total calorie intake may be warranted in many situations, however severe restriction of carbohydrate has a number of negative consequences.

Lose Weight with Low Glycemic Diets

Lose Weight with Low Glycemic Diets

glycemic index lowHow does Glycemic Index help an overweight person? GI is a measure of the effects of carbohydrates on blood sugar levels. Carbohydrates that break down quickly during digestion and release glucose rapidly into the bloodstream have a high GI; carbohydrates that break down more slowly, releasing glucose more gradually into the bloodstream, have a low GI. Overweight people or those who are on strict diet can benefit from the glycemic index in various ways. It’s a good basis when it comes to getting the right nutrition you need. GI helps you in preparing a healthy meal that you need to help you lose weight faster. Low glycemic index foods can help you lose weight faster. And this is what you need to eat.

Health professionals recommend you to focus on low glycemic diets than following a diet that restrains you from eating carbs and foods with fats. Carbohydrates are found in many of the foods we eat each day and are an important consideration for weight loss.  Low GI foods are a great source of carbohydrates when trying to lose weight as the slow release of energy will help increase indulgence levels.

Here are the most that you can get on low glycemic index foods:

  1. Stable blood glucose levels, resulting in improved energy levels and reduced cravings for sugar and sweet foods.
  2. Keeps you full for longer, reducing total daily kilo joule intake
  3. Improved blood glucose control for people with diabetes
  4. Foods with low glycemic index contains a lot of fiber nutrients
  5. Most foods with low glycemic index are fruits and vegetables that have high amounts of fruits and vegetables
  6. Weight loss is gradual but consistent
  7. Research shows that a low GI diet can help to improve blood lipid profile
  8. Active people can use a combination of high and low GI foods to ensure optimal energy stores for exercise performance
  9. Decreased risk of cancer; a study in Australia showed that consumption of white bread and cereals high in sugar for breakfast over a sustained period of time increases the risk of cancer; it is also well-known that cancer cells feed on sugar.

Broadly speaking, our bodies do not like extremes. Thus, because of their tendency to escalate blood glucose levels at a quick rate, high glycemic foods can be detrimental to health, especially in the long-run. To help you get started, it is best to first familiarize yourself with foods with low glycemic index. Once you know these foods, you can now determine which foods are good for you and which ones are not. Here are some of low glycemic index foods: breakfast cereals (which are based on wheat bran, barley and oats), wholegrain break, fruit, lentils, soybeans, baked beans, frozen green peas       , frozen sweet corn, raw carrots, boiled carrots, eggplant/aborigine, broccoli, cauliflower, cabbage, mushrooms, tomatoes, chilies, lettuce, green Beans, red Pepper, onions

It is quite clear that consuming low glycemic index foods, as well as the adopting of an overall low glycemic diet, come with significant health benefits in the long run. As most of us consume many high glycemic, sugary and refined foods and snacks, this is something well worth looking into as far as healthy diet and nutrition is concerned. Do take note that foods with no or little carbohydrates in them do not typically have a value on the glycemic index. If this is the first time that you heard of this diet, do further research for you to determine what kind of foods will help you lose weight faster.


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Diet 101: From traditional diet program to Low Glycemic Index Food Diet

Diet 101: From traditional diet program to Low Glycemic Index Food Diet

glycemic index lowFollowing a reduced glycemic index food diet maybe a tough job especially when you have been doing other diet programs for years already. However, this type of diet program does not necessitate you to forget what you have been used to but would introduce you gradually with various categories to choose from. Hence, it is not actually the program that is hard to do, it is the “changing” of diet program per se that makes it quite a tough work.

Altering your diet program from the ones you have been doing to low GI diet maybe hard for you as you have been getting used to the old practices you’ve been practically doing for years. But, be reminded that people need to be at par with the ever-changing world and diet is among these changes which you might best consider. As they say, nothing is permanent and change is inevitable. So in order to take full control of your sugar, low GI diet is the best way to start.

You have to know the kind of change you want to dwell into and alter the ones you have been doing in healthy ways. Instead of the refined sugars which we usually use or buy in the market, you may use fruit sugars and honey which contain essential vitamins and nutrients needed by our body.

Watching your glycemic index is the best way to take full control of your blood sugar. This way, you are able to know the rate at which a food is converted into sugar in the blood. Foods that are high glycemic would increase your sugar level and subsequently raise your energy level and mood. This is just very quick because the body has the natural capacity to react immediately and lower your sugar level. To know more about your glycemic index, you may research online. The internet is just a powerful tool that gives you all the information you want in knowing your glycemic index.


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