THE GOOD
Fat consumption is down
THE BAD
The world is also eating way more meat, cheese, milk, and sugar than we were just two decades ago — and less rice, cereal, and wheat.
Most of that protein is coming from animal sources. Wealthy countries — where people already eat too much protein — account for most of the increase.
THE UGLY
People are eating way less grain.
People are drinking way more alcohol and eating way more sugar.
Source: Euromonitor, Nielsen XAOC, Credit Suisse Research
It is the holiday season. So beware of sugar – especially added sugar in processed food.
Funded by NIH, University of Utah researchers found that
Corn syrup was more toxic to female mice than table sugar, shortening their lives and cutting their rate of reproduction.
The mice on the fructose-glucose diet produced 26.4 percent fewer offspring than their counterparts on the diet containing added table sugar.
Between 13 and 25 percent of Americans are estimated to eat diets containing 25 percent or more of calories from added sugars, according to the paper.
REMEMBER
Sugar from any source supplies the glucose your body use for energy, but sugar added to sweets and beverages has a different impact on your health than the same sugar supplied by a piece of fruit.
Simple sugars gain quick access and cause a spike in blood sugar. All bad sugar is simple sugar, but not all simple sugar is bad. It depends on the source. Fruits, vegetables, beans, nuts and whole grains contain simple sugars. When simple sugars are naturally found in whole food, they come with vitamins, minerals, protein, phytochemicals and fiber. The presence of fiber makes a significant difference because it slows down the absorption of sugar, which moderates its impact on blood sugar.
Watch your added sugar in the Nutritional label
A sugar substitute is a food additive that duplicates the effect of sugar in taste, usually with less food energy. Some sugar substitutes are natural and some are synthetic.
Alternative sweeteners are highly consumed in America. According to research studies explained by The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, in 2003–2004, Americans two years of age and older consumed 585g per day of beverages and 375g per day of foods with caloric sweeteners. Some commonly consumed foods with alternative sweeteners are diet sodas, cereals, and sugar-free desserts such as ice cream.
In the United States, seven intensely sweet sugar substitutes have been approved for use. They are stevia, aspartame, sucralose, neotame, acesulfame potassium (Ace-K), saccharin, and advantame. The food and beverage industry is increasingly replacing sugar or corn syrup with artificial sweeteners in a range of products traditionally containing sugar.
Aspartame: Aspartame is a methyl ester. More than 6,000 products contain aspartame. It is approximately 200 times sweeter than sucrose, or table sugar. The FDA reviewed its safety in 2007 and concluded that aspartame is safe at current levels of consumption as a nonnutritive sweetener. However, people with the genetic condition phenylketonuria
PKU cannot ingest it. And pregnant women shouldn’t since they have been linked to premature births. In a study done in 1979, the effect of aspartame ingestion on blood and milk amino acid levels in lactating women was tested and found a small effect on the milk aspartate levels. The consumer advocacy group the Center for Science in the Public Interest continues to promote the position that aspartame is not safe.
Sucralose/Splenda:Splenda is twice as sweet as saccharin and three times as sweet as aspartame. The actual energy content of a single-serving (1-g packet) of Splenda is 3.36 kilocalories, 31% of those of a granulated sugar (10.8 kcal). In the United States, it is legally labelled “zero calories”. Some studies have determined that sucralose is not a biologically inert compound, having possible toxic effects, including creation of dioxin-like compounds when sucralose is heated.
Saccharine: Saccharin was produced first in 1878. It is 300 times as sweet as sucrose or table sugar, but has a bitter or metallic aftertaste, especially at high concentrations. The basic substance is benzoic sulfilimine. Studies have shown saccharine causes bladder cancer is rats, which eventually prompted safety warnings on products containing saccharine. However, in 2001, the FDA reversed its position, declaring it safe for consumption.
Neotame: The chemical formula is similar to aspartame, but it is between 7,000 and 13,000 times sweeter than sucrose (table sugar). It’s the only artificial sweetener deemed “safe” by the consumer advocacy group Center for Science in the Public Interest.
Truvia: Truvía’s ingredients are erythritol. The calorie-free, low-carb sweetener comes from the shrub-like stevia plant. This sugar substitute is about 100 times sweeter than sugar. The FDA first rejected it in the 1990s for use as a food ingredient. High dosages fed to rats affected reproduction. But in 2008 the FDA granted stevia “GRAS” status, meaning it is “generally recognized as safe.”
Comparison of sweetness based on energy content is not meaningful because many artificial sweeteners have little or no food energy.
| Name | Sweetness (by weight) | Trade name | Approval | Notes |
| Acesulfame potassium | 200 | Nutrinova | FDA 1988 | E950 |
| Advantame | 20,000 | FDA | ||
| Alitame | 2,000 | approved in Mexico, Australia, New Zealand and China. | Pfizer | |
| Aspartame | 160–200 | NutraSweet, Equal | FDA 1981, EU-wide 1994 | E951 |
| Salt of aspartame-acesulfame | 350 | Twinsweet | E962 | |
| sodium cyclamate | 30 | FDA Banned 1969, approved in EU | E952, Abbott | |
| Dulcin | 250 | FDA Banned 1950 | ||
| Glucin | 300 | |||
| Neohesperidin dihydrochalcone | 1,500 | E959 | ||
| Neotame | 8,000 | NutraSweet | FDA 2002 | E961 |
| P-4000 | 4,000 | FDA banned 1950 | ||
| Saccharin | 300 | Sweet’N Low | FDA 1958 | E954 |
| Sucralose | 600 | Kaltame, Splenda | Canada 1991, FDA 1998, EU 2004 | E955, Tate & Lyle |
ISSUES WITH CHEMICAL SWEETNERS
Animal studies have indicated that a sweet taste induces an insulin response in rats.
A 2014 study by a collaboration from nine Israeli research institutes presented experimental evidence that artificial sweeteners may exacerbate, rather than prevent, metabolic disorders such as Type 2 diabetes.
Source: Wikipedia
QUESTION: Doctor: You often say avoid “Added Sugar”. It is bad for a growing child. What is your view about Products made with sugar substitutes? How about Diet Soda? Which sugar substitute is good for my child?
MY VIEWS:
Children generally love sugary foods, and chances are the processed or packaged food your child eats has some amount of added sugar. The American Heart Association (AHA) recently released new guidelines limiting the amount of added sugar considered acceptable for a healthy diet. Per AHA,
However the reality per AHA study is
Obesity rates tripled in 30 years, and sugar-sweetened beverage consumption among children more than doubled in the last 2 decades of the twentieth century. Many children drink more sugar-sweetened beverages than milk. Sugar-sweetened beverages represent the largest category of daily caloric intake (7%–12%) for many demographic groups. Evidence suggests that increasing consumption of sugar-sweetened beverages raises weight and obesity rates.
This is why I recommend against “Added Sugar” in your child’s diet.
Now let’s look at Sugar Substitutes
Sugar substitutes provide sweetness to food without the calories of sugar. The FDA has approved five artificial sweeteners: saccharin, acesulfame, aspartame, neotame, and sucralose. It has also approved one natural low-calorie sweetener, stevia. How the human body and brain respond to these sweeteners is very complex. Of the above only Stevia is a natural sweetener. But just because something is natural does not always mean that it is safer. Sugar substitutes are found in most of the “light,” “reduced calorie” or “sugar-free” foods and drinks available today.
As the name says, Sugar substitutes are just as the name says – chemicals masquerading as sugar!
What does research say?:
Due to limited studies in children, the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) has no official recommendations regarding the use of noncaloric sweeteners.
So the best advice I can give is probably to
· HOW DOES SUGAR AFFECT YOUR BRAIN?
· SUGARY DRINKS – POUNDING YOUR YOUNG
Adult Obesity
Obesity is defined as a body mass index (BMI) of 30 or higher.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention released a new map detailing adult obesity rates across the country. In 1995, when the CDC first collected this data in all states, not a single one had an obesity rate higher than 19%. In 2013, the CDC announced, every single state in the country had an obesity rate of at least 20%.
Obesity prevalence in 2013 varies across states and regions
· No state had a prevalence of obesity less than 20%.
· 7 states and the District of Columbia had a prevalence of obesity between 20% and <25%.
· 23 states had a prevalence of obesity between 25% and <30%.
· 18 states had a prevalence of obesity between 30% and <35%.
· 2 states (Mississippi and West Virginia) had a prevalence of obesity of 35% or greater.
· The South had the highest prevalence of obesity (30.2%), followed by the Midwest (30.1%), the Northeast (26.5%), and the West (24.9%).
Rates of obesity were highest in Mississippi (35.1%) and West Virginia (35.1%) and lowest in Hawaii (21.8%) and Colorado (21.3%).
Here is the new map showing that grim picture:
http://www.cdc.gov/obesity/images/2013-state-obesity-prevalence-map.png
Childhood Obesity Facts:
In children and adolescents aged 2 to 19 years, obesity was defined as a body mass index (BMI) at or above the 95th percentile of the sex-specific CDC BMI-for-age growth charts.
· Approximately 17% (or 12.7 million) of children and adolescents aged 2—19 years had obesity.
· The prevalence of obesity among children aged 2 to 5 years decreased significantly from 13.9% in 2003-2004 to 8.4% in 2011-2012.
· There are significant racial and age disparities in obesity prevalence among children and adolescents. In 2011-2012, obesity prevalence was higher among Hispanics (22.4%) and non-Hispanic black youth (20.2%) than non-Hispanic white youth (14.1%). The prevalence of obesity was lower in non-Hispanic Asian youth (8.6%) than in youth who were non-Hispanic white, non-Hispanic black or Hispanic.
· In 2011-2012, 8.4% of 2- to 5-year-olds had obesity compared with 17.7% of 6- to 11-year-olds and 20.5% of 12- to 19-year-olds.
· Overall, obesity prevalence among children whose adult head of household completed college was approximately half that of those whose adult head of household did not complete high school (9% vs 19% among girls; 11% vs 21% among boys) in 1999–2010.
· Among non-Hispanic white children, the lowest prevalence of obesity was observed among those whose adult head of household completed college; however, this was not the case for non-Hispanic black children.
· Over time, the prevalence of obesity among girls whose adult head of household had not finished high school increased from 17% (1999–2002) to 23% (2007–2010), but decreased for girls whose adult head of household completed college from 11% (1999–2002) to 7% (2007–2010). There was not a similar finding among boys.
· Obesity prevalence was the highest among children in families with an income-to-poverty ratio of 100% or less (household income that is at or below the poverty threshold), followed by those in families with an income-to-poverty ratio of 101%–130%, and then found to be lower in children in families with an income-to-poverty ratio of 131% or larger (greater household income).
· Obesity prevalence on the basis of family income among children from low-income households was:
o 14.2% among children in families with an income-to-poverty ratio of less than or equal to 50%.
o 14.5% among children in families with an income-to-poverty ratio of 51–100%.
o 13.4% among children in families with an income-to-poverty ratio of 101–130%.
o 12.4% among children in families with an income-to-poverty ratio of 131–150%.
o 11.8% among children in families with an income-to-poverty ratio of 151-185%.
Don’t brush aside Obesity. Talk to your child’s doctor about it.
Source: CDC & Business Insider
Just kidding. We have practically eliminated food that have corn syrup from our diet.
Look for food made of Agave, honey, maple syrup or cane sugar as (not good but ok) substitute.
The World Health Organization recently proposed new guidelines that recommend consuming less than 5% of our total daily calories from added sugars. For an adult at a normal body mass index, or BMI, 5% would be around 25 grams of sugar — or six teaspoons.
Now, if you are trying to lower the sugar you take, cut processed food and beverages.
Check out CNN’s side-by-side comparison of foods and its sugar equivalent here
A Quiz:
Check this out: http://ed.ted.com/lessons/how-sugar-affects-the-brain-nicole-avena#review
STUDY: New research again suggests that added sugar in diet increases the risk of death from heart disease. Too much sugar have been a linked to
– higher risk of obesity,
– high blood pressure,
– dementia,
– type 2 diabetes,
– dyslipidemia (a bad assortment of blood fats),
– cirrhosis of the liver, and,
– cardiovascular disease.
Studying over 15 years the found now that the more added sugar a person consumed, the greater his or her risk of dying from heart disease.
70% of adults consume 10% or more of their daily calories from added sugar.
About 10% of adults consume more than 25% of their calories from added sugar.
JUST SOME FACTS
There are 16 calories in 1 teaspoon of Granulated Sugar.
There are 11 calories in 1 teaspoon unpacked of Brown Sugar.
There are 64 calories in 1 tablespoon of Corn Syrup (and Sugar).
Serving Size Calories
1 tsp 16
1 lump, 2 cubes 19
1 individual packet 23
1 cup 774
TAKEAWAY
The American Heart Association recommends having added sugar make up no more than 150 calories for men and 100 calories for women.
These numbers average out to about 6 to 9 teaspoons of sugar a day.
Preschoolers shouldn’t consume any more than 4 teaspoons, of added sugar a day.
Children ages 4-8 should consume no more than 3 teaspoons a day
As your child grows into his pre-teen and teen years, the maximum amount of added sugar included in his daily diet should be 5 to 8 teaspoons.
People have been sounding warnings about the dangers of too much sugar for a long time. As early as 1957, John Yudkin, a professor of nutrition at Queen Elizabeth College in London, began arguing that when it came to heart disease and other chronic ailments, sugar — not fat — was the culprit.
SINS OF SUGAR
1. Cavities: Tooth decay occurs when the bacteria that line the teeth feed on simple sugars, creating acid that destroys enamel. Because acid is a key culprit, sour candies are especially bad.
2. Weight gain & Obesity: Sugary foods are full of calories but will do little to satiate your hunger. Just one can of soda each day could lead to 15 pounds of weight gain in a single year, and each can of soda increases the odds of becoming obese, a JAMA study noted.
3. Insulin resistance. Sugar causes insulin to rise. When insulin levels are consistently high, your body’s sensitivity to the hormone is reduced, and glucose builds up in the blood.
4. Diabetes: study that followed 51,603 women between 1991 and 1999 found an increased risk of diabetes among those who consumed more sugar-sweetened beverages (soda, sweetened ice tea, energy drinks).
5. Liver failure: High doses of sugar can make the liver go into overdrive. That’s one reason excess fructose is a “key player” in the development of nonalcoholic fatty liver disease, where fat accumulates in the liver. People with this diagnosis have been found to have almost double the soda intake of the average person.
6. Pancreatic cancer: A handful of studies have found that high-sugar diets are associated with a slightly elevated risk of pancreatic cancer, one of the deadliest cancers.
7. Kidney disease: Rats fed extremely high-sugar diets — consuming about 12 times the percentage of sugar recommended in the WHO’s new guidelines — developed enlarged kidneys and a host of problems with regular kidney function.
8. High blood pressure & Heart Disease: eating lots of added sugar has indeed been linked to high blood pressure. a CDC study of 11,733 adults concluded that there is “a significant relationship between added sugar consumption and increased risk for CVD [cardiovascular disease] mortality.”
9. Nutritional deficiencies: “High-sugar foods displace whole foods (eg, soft drinks displace milk and juice consumption in children) and contribute to nutritional deficiencies,” noted a statement from the American Heart Association.
Source: British Medical Journal, 2008; Advances in Chronic Kidney Disease, 2012 & http://www.businessinsider.com/effects-of-eating-too-much-sugar-2014-3#ixzz2zuToMJ8Q
Is your child a guinea pig for the fancy new chemicals masquerading as the next new in food?
If it was up to Marketers and food chemist, you would be. But luckily they have you as a parent, who is concerned about their health and reads articles like these.
What are artificial sweeteners? They are a proprietary patented chemical that has something to do with phenylalanine.
The way artificial sweeteners were discovered could have been a scene out of the old classic comedy. In 1879, Ira Ramsen a researcher from John Hopkins spilled some chemical his hand that turned out to be sweet when he tasted it. He was trying to create some antiulcer drug in his lab when this accident occurred. His spill set the stage for the development of saccharin – an artificial sweetener known today by many names. Now more than 125 years later, saccharin is joined by a growing list of artificial sweeteners with varying chemical structures. And there are a whole host of new ones on the horizon. These products substitute sugar and corn syrup.
Are they safe? Can they help people to shed their extra weight? What role should they play in person’s and children’s diet-if any?
Artificial sweeteners also called sugar substitutes are compounds that offer the sweetness of sugar without the same calories. They are anywhere from 30 to 8000 times sweeter than sugar and as a result, they have much fewer calories than foods made with table sugar (sucrose). Each gram of refined table sugar contains 4 calories. Many sugar substitutes have zero calories per gram.
Is it safe for kids?
For children, sugar is a health hazard. But artificial sweetener poses its own problem. The jury is still not out on exactly how toxic artificial sweetener is to growing little bodies, but in general, the less the better, is a safe rule of the thumb for any lab-made food. The U.S. food and drug administration has set limits on the amount of artificial sweeteners infants and children should consume.
Sugar alcohols, mannitol and sorbitol cause diarrhea in adults as well as children when consumed in amounts over 20 – 50 grams per day. Artificial sweeteners such as saccharin, used in some formulas could cause irritability and muscle dysfunction in infants, although this is unproven according to Medicine.Net.
More kids are drinking diet and artificially sweetened beverages. Aspartame has had the most complaints of any food additives available to the public. It has been linked with MS, lupus, fibromyalgia and other central nervous disorders. Possible effects of aspartame include headache, migraines, panic-attacks, dizziness, irritability, nausea, intestinal discomfort, skin rash and nervousness. Some researchers have linked it with depression and manic episodes. Parents particularly should be concerned about the neurotoxicity of aspartame. Dr. Olney pointed out in 1980 that aspartame killed neurons in lab rats and that children’s nervous system aren’t protected by the blood-brain barrier. He told the FDA, “We can be reasonably certain there is no margin of safety for the use of aspartame in the child’s diet.” Yet we have it.
A review of studies conducted by The University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio has published in the 2008 issue of “obesity” that an increased intake of artificial sweeteners correlates to an increase, rather than a decrease, in obesity. It’s advised that children with PKU should never consume artificial sweeteners.
So, what can you do?
Artificial sweeteners change the way people perceive food tastes, according to the Harvard Health Letter. Foods sweetened with artificial sweeteners also fill children up without providing any nutritional benefit, registered dietician Karen Ansel warns on the Academy of Dietics and Nutrition website. The AAP states that artificial sweeteners shouldn’t have any significant place in a child’s diet. An occasional taste of a treat made with artificial sweetener won’t harm your child.
Want sweet substitutes?
Cinnamon is a sweet tasting spice that has recently been shown to have a beneficial effect on stabilizing blood insulin levels. Sprinkle cinnamon on oatmeal or in a smoothie.
Try fruit toppings. Instead of sweetened yogurt (Avoid any yoghurt labeled ‘light’ these almost always contain artificial sweeteners.) Try plain yoghurt mixed with a tsp. of fresh thawed frozen blueberries.
Use Agave Nectar or Honey if a bit of sweetness is desired.
But avoid raw sugar and any sweetener (including those marketed as Natural sweetener) like the PLAGUE.
According to the fashion, our wardrobe changes. In fashion, it is vital to know about the next new thing. Unfortunately the food business has started to follow the same with Artificial Sweetener/Sugar. Chemists create a new “food” in a lab, advertisers promote it and once it’s in every shelf of super market we all buy and use it.
What are artificial sweeteners?
Artificial sweeteners also called sugar substitutes are compounds that offer the sweetness of sugar without the same calories. They are anywhere from 30 to 8000 times sweeter than sugar and as a result, they have much fewer calories than foods made with table sugar (sucrose). Each gram of refined table sugar contains 4 calories. However sugar substitutes have zero calories per gram. It is a proprietary patented chemical (typically phenylalanine) that gives sweetness.
The way artificial sweeteners were discovered could have been a scene out of the old classic comedy. In 1879, Ira Ramsen a researcher from John Hopkins spilled a chemical on his hand; it turned out to be sweet when he tasted it. He was trying to create some antiulcer drug in his lab when this accident occurred. His spill set the stage for the development of saccharin-an artificial sweetener known today by many names
Now more than 125 years later, saccharin is joined by a growing list of artificial sweeteners with varying chemical structures. There’s a whole host of new ones on the horizon. These products substitute sugar and may even replace the dreaded high fructose corn syrup.
Are they safe?
More kids are drinking artificially sweetened beverages like DIET Coke/Pepsi/Sprite.
Can they help people to shed their extra weight? What role should they play in person’s or children’s diet-if any?
For children, sugar is considered poison. Read this if you want to know why.
Artificial sweepers pose its own potential problems in infants and children.
Sugar alcohols mannitol and sorbitol can cause diarrhea in adults as well as children
Artificial sweeteners such as saccharin, used in some formulas could cause irritability and muscle dysfunction in infants, although this is unproven according to Medicine.Net.
Aspartame has the most complaints of any additives available to the public. It has been linked with Multiple Sclerosis, lupus, fibromyalgia and other central nervous disorders. Possible other side effects of aspartame include headache, migraines, panic-attacks, dizziness, irritability, nausea, intestinal discomfort, skin rash and nervousness. Some researchers have also linked it with depression and manic episodes.
Parents particularly should be concerned about the neurotoxicity of aspartame. Dr. Olney pointed out in 1980 that aspartame killed neurons in lab rats and that children’s nervous system aren’t protected by the blood-brain barrier. He told the FDA, “We can be reasonably certain there is no margin of safety for the use of aspartame in the child’s diet.”
Obesity and sweeteners in children.
A review of studies conducted by The University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio, published in the 2008, found that an increased intake of artificial sweeteners correlated with an increase, rather than a decrease, in obesity.
Artificial sweeteners changes the way people perceive food tastes, according to the Harvard Health Letter. Foods sweetened with artificial sweeteners also fill children up without providing any nutritional benefit.
The AAP clearly states that artificial sweeteners shouldn’t have significant place in a child’s diet.
So what do you do?
An occasional taste of a treat made with artificial sweetener won’t harm your child.
But in general, we avoid “artificial” food like a plague.
We recommend that you offer sweet substitutes.
Cinnamon is a sweet tasting spice that has recently been shown to have a beneficial effect on stabilizing blood insulin levels. Sprinkle cinnamon on oatmeal or in a smoothie.
Molasses, Honey and Agave nectar are other less dangerous alternatives.
Best, try fruit toppings or dates.
STUDY: Preschool children who regularly have sugary drinks tend to pack on more pounds than other youngsters.
DETAILS: Journal Pediatrics
Researchers found that among the 2- to 5-year-olds they followed, those who routinely had sugar-sweetened drinks at age 5 were 43% more likely to be obese than their peers who rarely had those drinks.
Sugar-sweetened beverages are the largest source of added sugars in the diet of U.S. youth.
Childhood obesity has more than tripled in the past 30 years.
Obesity among children aged 6 to 11 years increased from 6.5% in 1980 to 19.6% in 2008.
Among adolescents aged 12 to 19 years, obesity increased from 5.0% to 18.1%
What Can You Do
Plenty of factors influence childhood obesity, including genes, overall diet and physical activity.
Although the study cannot prove it’s the beverages causing the added weight, experts said parents should opt for water and milk to quench preschoolers’ thirst.
U.S. kids would slash 235 daily calories from their diets if they swapped sugary drinks or 100 percent fruit juice for water.
Kids should
· Reduce their consumption of regular soda or pop, sports drinks, and other sugar-sweetened beverages.
· Increase their consumption of water and low-fat or fat-free milk.
· Drink limited amounts of 100% fruit juices.
Source: http://www.cdc.gov/features/healthybeverages/, Pediatrics Journal
Improving your lifestyle is equally important in treatment of type 2 diabetes. Some lifestyle changes which reduces risk of diabetes
· Avoid smoking
· Do exercise regularly
· Do not skip meals
· Prefer whole food instead of refined food
· Enjoy adequate sleep
· Avoid sugary drinks
· Spread meals throughout the day
· Manage body weight
· Do yoga – here is list of some good yoga for diabetes
For Adults
· Avoid alcohol
· Learn and practice meditation for emotional and mental balance
P.J. Skerrett, Managing Editor, Harvard Health
A diabetic should know Glycemic index (GI). Even if you aren’t, know about GI as low glycemic index diets have been linked to reduced risks for cancer, heart disease, and other conditions. Glycemic index rates carbohydrate-containing foods by how much they boost blood sugar (blood glucose).
Carbohydrates are the main nutrient in bread, pasta, cereals, beans, vegetables, and dairy foods. All carbs are made up of sugar molecules. carbohydrate-containing food affects blood sugar depending on its sugar content and on how quickly the digestive system breaks the food into sugar molecules. The glycemic index measures how well a food boosts blood sugar compared to pure glucose. A food with a glycemic index of 30 boosts blood sugar only 30% as much as pure glucose.
GI and Health benefit
WHAT SHOULD YOU DO?
If you are diabetic, pay attention.
You can’t rely on the glycemic index alone for choosing a healthy diet. Some foods, like carrot and watermelon, have a high glycemic index, but a serving contains so little carbohydrate that the effect on blood sugar is small.
The glycemic index of a particular food can also be influenced by what it is eaten with.
There are three categories of carbohydrate-containing foods:
· Low glycemic index (GI of 55 or less): Most fruits and vegetables, beans, minimally processed grains, oats, pasta, low-fat dairy foods, and nuts.
· Moderate glycemic index (GI 56 to 69): White and sweet potatoes, corn, white rice, couscous, breakfast cereals such as Cream of Wheat and Mini Wheats.
· High glycemic index (GI of 70 or higher): White bread, rice cakes, most crackers, bagels, cakes, doughnuts, croissants, waffles, most packaged breakfast cereals.
| Instead of this high glycemic index food | Eat this lower glycemic index food |
| White rice | Brown rice or converted rice |
| Cornflakes | Bran flakes |
| Baked potato | Pasta |
| White bread | Whole-grain bread |
| Corn | Peas or leafy greens |
| Fruit roll-up | Whole fruit |
MORE INFORMATION?
The complete list of the glycemic index and glycemic load for more than 1,000 foods can be found in the article "International tables of glycemic index and glycemic load values: 2008" by Fiona S. Atkinson, Kaye Foster-Powell, and Jennie C. Brand-Miller in the December 2008 issue of Diabetes Care, Vol. 31, number 12, pages 2281-2283.
