What Are the Best Low Glycemic Foods for Diabetics?
The food people consume contains carbohydrates that provide energy when it gets metabolized in the body. Blood sugar levels increase as carbohydrates are absorbed in the blood.
- The glycemic index (GI) is higher if the carbs are digested quicker.
- This results in high blood glucose levels in the body.
- So, it is recommended that people with diabetes consume food with a low glycemic index.
- This helps digest slowly and releases glucose gradually into the blood, which helps maintain good blood glucose levels.
The GI Index is classified as:
- Low GI: 1 to 55
- Medium GI: 56 to 69
- High GI: 70 and higher
Studies report that raw green vegetables, most citrus fruits, raw carrots, kidney beans, chickpeas, lentils, and bran breakfast cereals are low GI foods.
| Food | Serving size in grams | Glycemic index (GI) | Glycemic load (GL) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Coarse barley bread, 75 to 80 percent kernels, average | 30 | 34 | 7 |
| 100 percent whole-grain bread (natural ovens) | 30 | 51 | 7 |
| Corn tortilla | 50 | 52 | 12 |
| Wheat tortilla | 50 | 30 | 8 |
| Oatmeal | 250 | 55 | 13 |
| Pearled barley | 150 | 28 | 12 |
| Quinoa | 150 | 53 | 13 |
| Brown rice | 150 | 50 | 16 |
| Converted, white rice | 150 | 38 | 14 |
| Whole wheat kernels | 50 | 30 | 11 |
| Bulgur | 150 | 48 | 12 |
| Milk, full fat | 250 mL | 41 | 5 |
| Milk, skim | 250 mL | 32 | 4 |
| Reduced-fat yogurt with fruit | 200 | 33 | 11 |
| Apple | 120 | 39 | 6 |
| Dates, dried | 60 | 42 | 18 |
| Grapefruit | 120 | 25 | 3 |
| Orange | 120 | 40 | 4 |
| Peach | 120 | 42 | 5 |
| Peach, canned in light syrup | 120 | 40 | 5 |
| Pear | 120 | 38 | 4 |
| Pear, canned in pear juice | 120 | 43 | 5 |
| Prunes pitted | 60 | 29 | 10 |
| Baked beans | 150 | 40 | 6 |
| Blackeye peas | 150 | 33 | 10 |
| Black beans | 150 | 30 | 7 |
| Chickpeas | 150 | 10 | 3 |
| Chickpeas, canned in brine | 150 | 38 | 9 |
| Navy beans | 150 | 31 | 9 |
| Kidney beans | 150 | 29 | 7 |
| Lentils | 150 | 29 | 5 |
| Soybeans | 150 | 15 | 1 |
| Cashews, salted | 50 | 27 | 3 |
| Peanuts | 50 | 7 | 0 |
| Green peas | 80 | 51 | 4 |
| Carrots | 80 | 35 | 2 |
| Parsnips | 80 | 52 | 4 |
| Yam | 150 | 54 | 20 |
| Fettuccine | 180 | 32 | 15 |
| Macaroni | 180 | 47 | 23 |
| Spaghetti, white, boiled | 180 | 46 | 22 |
| Spaghetti, whole grain, boiled | 180 | 42 | 17 |
What is the importance of glycemic index in people with diabetes?
According to the American Heart Association, people with diabetes are two to four times more likely than people without diabetes to die from heart disease or have a life-threatening stroke.
For people who do not effectively manage their condition, the chances of developing health problems ranging from cardiovascular problems to nerve damage and renal disease increase tremendously. That is why people with diabetes need to maintain good blood sugar levels. This may be achieved by consuming food with a low glycemic index.
Glycemic index (GI) indicates how much sugar levels are raised in the blood after consuming a particular food.
GI ranges from 0 to 100, and they are classified as:
- The low glycemic index ranges from 0 to 55
- The moderate glycemic index ranges from 55 to 70
- The high glycemic index ranges from 70 to 100
What are the indications of consuming food with different glycemic indexes in people with diabetes?
Low glycemic index foods
Foods having a low glycemic index (GI) aid in weight loss and increase satiety. People who have diabetes or are at risk of developing it should consume foods with a low GI.
Insulin is the hormone that regulates blood glucose levels and blood sugar levels may rise when a person consumes high-glycemic meals in the absence of insulin. Low-glycemic meals release sugar gradually, preventing a rapid rise in blood sugar.
Diabetes is of two types.
- Type I diabetes: The patient naturally has low insulin levels.
- Type II diabetes: The patient has a high level of insulin resistance
High glycemic index foods
Foods with a high GI are easily digested and actively absorbed raising the blood glucose levels, so they are to be avoided by people with diabetes.
This type of food can be taken after strenuous physical activity when the body needs more glucose to work and during bouts of hypoglycemia (low blood sugar levels).
What is the glycemic load and what is its importance in people with diabetes?
The glycemic load (GL) is a relatively recent method of assessing the impact of a carbohydrate diet that includes the glycemic index (GI) but provides a better picture than the GI alone.
A GI rating merely reflects how quickly a carbohydrate converts to sugar. It does not say how much of that carbohydrate is in a serving of a certain dish. People must understand both GI and GL to understand how food affects blood sugar levels.
There is a formula to determine the glycemic load (GL) in a particular food.
- To calculate, the glycemic index (GI) and weight of carbohydrates in grams of that food are needed.
- GI is calculated by multiplying total carbohydrates in grams with glycemic index and divided by 100.
GL = Total no. of carbohydrates in grams × glycemic index (GI)/100.