Tips For Healthy Living

First, let’s look at exactly what Glycemic Index is. The Glycemic Index is a rating system for foods that gives carbohydrates a numerical value assigned based on its components and how each food affects the body’s sugar levels.

Dr. David Jenkins, a Canadian professor and scientist from the University of Toronto developed the concept of a rating index in 1981. He wanted to show that all foods affect our bodys’ blood sugar levels differently and they have many different degrees of being simple and complex carbohydrates.

Basically, as food breaks down in our digestive system, many of the food’s components, like sugar or vitamins and minerals are absorbed into our blood stream and immediately affect our system. Foods that break down quickly and have high glucose or sugar levels will give us a “spiked” feeling of energy and euphoria. This feeling is commonly referred to as a “sugar high”. Other foods break down more slowly and release their sugars, starches and nutrients over a longer period of time, which avoids any sudden increases to our sugar levels and keeps our insulin levels low.

The Glycemic Index uses pure glucose (or in some cases, white bread) as its control food and rates all other carbohydrates in relation to it. The control food, or standard, either the glucose or the white bread, is given a rating of “100” and all other foods are tested as to how they affect a person’s blood sugar, insulin and lipid levels compared to the standard.

Each tested food is given a number rating and defined as either “High”, “Medium” or “Low” on the Glycemic Index. Foods fall into the High Glycemic Index when they are rated at 70 or above. If the Glycemic Index for a food is at 55 or lower, it is considered to be a Low Glycemic Index food item. This means that Medium Glycemic Index foods are those that after being tested, fall into the range of 56 to 69.

The actual testing to determine a food’s Glycemic Index is very scientific and takes into consideration many test subjects who undergo multiple tests with the same food and with the control, glucose.

Let’s say that the test subject had to ingest pure glucose in the amount of 50 grams of carbohydrates. If the food item being tested were a banana, the test subject would eat the equivalent of 50 grams of carbohydrates in banana. Then, their blood would be drawn and tested at the same times as with the control test with the glucose. The results of their blood sugar levels would be entered on to the same graph as the glucose tests and the results would be compared. This process is repeated over the next several days to ensure more reliable results.

It was found that banana affects a person’s blood sugar levels only 53% as much when compared to the levels that pure glucose affects them. Therefore, a banana is rated as 53 on the Glycemic Index, which puts it in the Medium Range.

So, why should you care about the glycemic index of the food you eat?

Eating a lot of high Glycemic Index foods on a regular basis forces your insulin to continuously be released. Calling upon your insulin to react to all of this glucose can cause something called “insulin resistance” where your insulin cannot keep up with the workload and simply diminishes.

People who have dimished insulin response are considered to have ‘type 2′ diabetes. Caught early, it can usually be controlled with diet and exercise.

The good news is that by paying attentions to the Glycemic Index of the foods you eat, you can significantly reduce your risk of develp[ing type 2 diabetes. In fact, focusing most of your diet on foods from the low Glycemic Index list can even improve your insulin response.

Eating right and making the best choices will have your internal systems and organs looking and working as good as the outside of you will look.

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