Glycemic Index of Common Foods

May 14, 2011 by Tatianna

 

I did this experiment where I in a period of several month’s I asked random people if they new what is a Glycemic Index. All of the answers that I got were pretty similar, many people either didn’t know what it meant, and some just replied ” Isn’t that a diet of some kind?”. No it is not a diet. But I would like to explain what it is and how you can use it to help you loose weight ( if you are trying to loose weight ), or just with the understanding of how it works.

Every time we eat a food that has any kind of carb content, the blood sugar in our body increases, that blood sugar is referred to as glucose. The glycemic index refers to the relative degree to which blood glucose increases after the consumption of food. The the faster blood glucose increases, the more insulin spike it causes ( insulin is a fat storing hormone ).
A food is always measured relative to the effect of pure glucose. High – Glycemic index foods can raise blood glucose levels very quickly, while Low – Glycemic foods do not significantly raise blood glucose levels and insulin after eating.

Pure Glucose has a value of 100, while other foods are given an index number representing their relative effect on blood glucose levels. For example a banana has a glycemic index of 54, which means a banana raises blood glucose levels 54 percent as much as pure glucose.

In general, foods below 55 are considered Low – Glycemic index foods, 55 to 70 represents Mid-Glycemic index foods, and foods over 70 are considered High – Glycemic.
Below, I am going to list common foods that are Low – Glycemic, and High – Glycemic.

 

Low – Glycemic Foods

 

Breads, Pasta and Rice

Mixed Grain Bread – 28

Oat Bran Bread – 48

Sourdough Bread – 53

Fettucine Pasta – 27

Protein Enriched Spaghetti – 27

Vermicelli – 35

Linguine – 46

Long Grain White Rice – 44

 

Cereals and Snacks

Rice Bran – 19

Oatmeal – 49

Special K – 54

Peanuts -15

 

Fruits and Veggies

Grapefruit – 25

Fresh Pear – 37

Apple – 38

Orange – 44

Grapes – 46

Carrots – 39

Sweet Potato – 44

 

Legumes

Lentils, red – 25

Kidney Beans – 29

Butter Beans – 31

Pinto Beans – 39

Kidney Beans – 52

 

Dairy

Low fat yogurt – 14

Skim Milk – 32

 

High – Glycemic Foods

 

Breads and Rice

Whole Wheat Bread – 69

White Bread – 71

Bagel, white – 71

Short Grain White Rice – 55

Wild Rice – 87

Instant Boiled 6 min Rice – 90

 

Cereals and Snacks

Cheerios – 74

Total – 76

Cornflakes – 83

Crispix – 87

Graham Crackers – 74

Rice Cakes – 82

Pretzels – 81

French Fries – 75

Doughnut – 76

 

Fruits and Veggies

Watermelon – 72

Dates – 102

Mashed Potato – 70

Baked Potato – 85

 

Sugars

Maltodextrin and Maltose ( artificial sweeteners have a Glycemic Index of 105, which is above Glucose it self ). It is important to know that, because these are the sweeteners that are being added to Sugar Free foods. That means, if you are buying a sugar free food, your glucose levels will run a marathon! Sugar Free is actually worst to eat, than the actual sugar.

Another point I must make before I finish this super long post, is there are many factors that can influence the index of foods, like food preparation, age of food, fiber content, protein and fat content.

But as I always say, it’s good to know information about your nutrition, don’t obsess with what your are eating, just be aware of what eating.