When eating: look at the glycemic load, not only the glycemic index & bull; hello healthy

What is the glycemic index?

The glycemic index can be defined as how quickly your body converts the carbohydrates you eat into glucose, or it can be defined as how quickly food can increase your blood sugar levels. The glycemic index is a number from 0-100.

The higher the glycemic index of food, the faster the food is converted to sugar, so the food increases blood sugar faster. This is why people with diabetes should avoid foods with a high glycemic index.

Conversely, the lower the glycemic index, the slower the food is digested or absorbed by the body, leading to a slower increase in blood sugar levels. Foods that are high in fiber, protein, and fat usually have a low glycemic index. However, foods with a low glycemic index are not always high in nutrients.

The glycemic index of a food can be divided into three groups, namely:

Low, if it has a glycemic index of 55 or less. Examples: apples (36), bananas (48), pears (38), oranges (45), milk (31), nuts (13), macaroni (50), oatmeal (55), and others.
Moderate, if it has a glycemic index of 56-69. Examples: black wine (59), ice cream (62), honey (61), pita bread (68), and others.
High, if it has a glycemic index of 70 or more. Examples: watermelon (72), potatoes (82), white bread (75), and others.

Foods with a low glycemic index can help you maintain your weight, can also increase insulin resistance and reduce glucose, cholesterol, and triglyceride levels in people with type 2 diabetes mellitus. Meanwhile, foods with a high glycemic index are more useful for muscle recovery for those of you who just finished exercising.

You need to know that two foods with the same number of carbohydrates can have different glycemic index numbers. How can?

Factors that can affect the glycemic index of food

The glycemic index of a food can change, depending on several things, such as:

How is the food processed?

Food processing also affects the glycemic index of a food. The longer the food is cooked, the higher the glycemic index that the food has. The addition of fat, fiber, and acids (such as lemon juice or vinegar, can lower the glycemic index of foods.

How cooked is the food?

Fruit groups, such as bananas, have a higher glycemic index when they are ripe. Fruits that are not yet ripe, or usually those that don't taste sweet, have a lower glycemic index.

What is the food eaten with?

If you eat foods with a high glycemic index together with foods that contain a low glycemic index, it can lower the glycemic index of all these foods. For example, you eat bread (which contains a high glycemic index) accompanied by vegetables, such as lettuce and cucumber (which contain a lower glycemic index).

Apart from the three factors above, factors from the condition of your body also affect the glycemic index of the food you eat. Age, activity, and body abilities Digesting your food can also affect how quickly your body reacts to carbohydrates from food that enter the body.

Then, what is glycemic load?

To determine the glycemic load of a food, we need to know the glycemic index that the food has. We can get the glycemic load of food by knowing the glycemic index of a food and the amount of carbohydrates contained in that food.

In essence, this glycemic load focuses more on how much carbohydrates the body absorbs from food. This means that the more portions of carbohydrate foods you eat, the greater the glycemic load you receive.

For example, 100 grams of cooked carrots contain 10 grams of carbohydrates. Carrots have a glycemic index of 49, so the glycemic load of carrots is 10 x 49/100 = 4,9.

The glycemic load can also be classified, as follows:

Low, when food has a glycemic load of 1-10
Medium, when food has a glycemic load of 11-19
High, when food has a glycemic load of 20 or higher

The glycemic load can be a determinant of post-meal blood glucose levels. As in a 2011 study in the journal The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition , which suggests that the glycemic load of one type of food or several foods is a better predictor of post-meal blood glucose levels than the amount of carbohydrates in those foods. However, this study was conducted on normal people, so the results are not known if it was done in people with diabetes.

Conclusion

So, when you eat food, you better consider the glycemic load you receive from these foods, especially for diabetics who need to control their blood sugar levels. The glycemic load helps you know the quantity and quality of carbohydrates you are eating at one time. Just knowing the glycemic index of a food is not enough to know how much the increase in blood sugar levels after eating.

In fact, it's not necessarily that foods with a low glycemic index are high in nutrients or that you can eat large amounts of them. So, you still have to control your food portions, even though these foods contain a low glycemic index. Remember, the portions of your meals also affect your blood sugar levels.