The Glycemic Index, GI is a rating tool or a measuring system that gives you an idea about how much a particular food can increase your blood sugar levels. It is used to promote healthy eating habits and help diabetic patients increase awareness of what to eat in order to keep their weight, cholesterol and blood sugar levels under control.
The glycemic index of a food is determined based on various factors such as nutritive composition, ripeness of the food, how processed it is, sugar content and its cooking time and method. Foods are generally rated from 0 – 100 and are called low, medium or high glycemic food based on their ratings.
The three glycemic index ratings are:
Low glycemic foods – 55 or below
Medium glycemic foods – 56 – 69
High glycemic foods – 70 or above.The lower the glycemic rating, the longer the food takes to digest, bringing as lower rise in your blood sugar levels. Foods with a high glycemic index are usually digested quickly which makes you hungry sooner. If you eat more high glycemic foods, you will end up eating more unhealthy foods which would result in weight gain and high blood sugar levels. Low GI diets have also been reported to improve the serum lipid profile, reduce C-reactive protein (CRP)concentrations, and aid in weight control.
There are also some studies which found positive associations between dietary GI and risk of various cancers including those of colon, breast and prostate. Glycemic Index may have a role to play in the treatment and prevention of chronic diseases.
One limitation of GI values is that they don't reflect the likely quantity you would eat of a particular food. For example, watermelon has a GI value of 80, which would put it in the category of food to avoid. But watermelon has relatively few digestible carbohydrates in a typical serving. In other words, you have to eat a lot of watermelon to significantly raise your blood glucose level.
The idea of glycemic load (GL), a numerical value that indicates the change in blood glucose levels when you eat a typical serving of the food. For example, a 4.2-ounce (120-gram, or 3/4-cup) serving of watermelon has a GL value of 5, which would identify it as a healthy food choice. For comparison, a 2.8-ounce (80-gram, or 2/3-cup) serving of raw carrots has a GL value of 2. The values are generally grouped in the following manner:Low Gylcemic Meal List· Low GL:1 to 10;Medium GL: 11 to 19
High GL:20 or moreA Glycemic Load shows the number of caloriesyou will be consuming in a serving of that particular food. This helps youdetermine how much to eat in a serving in order to maintain your blood sugars.