More Glycemic Index Tips

Aside from helping a diabetic decrease the sugar in his or her blood, here are other health benefits of low GI (Glycemic Index) food:

1. It may reduce your cancer risk - low GI eating is linked to a lower risk of breast, pancreatic and colon cancers.

2. It helps your heart - people who eat lots of high GI carbohydrates have 76 per cent more triglycerides (a harmful form of fat) in their body than low GI eaters.

3. It may reduce Alzheimer's risk: Korean researchers found swapping high GI rice for other wholegrains cut levels of a harmful amino acid called homocysteine in their blood that is believed to be a major contributor to Alzheimer's.

4. It might cure acne. Research from Colorado State University found high insulin levels increase levels of male type hormones in the skin - something linked to the development of spots.

5. It may reduce stroke risk. Switching one portion of carbs a day from high GI to low, cuts risk of stroke by 40 per cent in women, say Harvard researchers.


More tips about the Glycemic Index (GI) of food, which I have explained in my last two previous posts:

1. The more fiber a food contains, the lower GI, which is why brown bread is better than white, and the more fat a food contains, the slower it converts, which is why crisps have a lower GI than most other forms of potato.

2. Pasta is a low-GI food - many people think all white foods are a no-no in GI diets, but because the flour in pasta is high in protein it does not convert quickly to sugar in your body.

3. Adding vinegar to a food lowers its GI - the acid slows the rate at which any food converts to sugar by around 30 per cent. Squeezing lemon juice over a dish also works.

4. Eating a low GI breakfast cuts the amount of calories people tend to eat over the rest of the day by half.

5. New potatoes are the only low GI potato. That's because they're picked early in their growing season so they have lower levels of sugary starches than other spuds.


Five steps to GI success:

All you have to do is remember the following five, simple rules...

1. All meals and snacks should be made up mainly of low GI foods.

2. If you're trying to lose weight, you shouldn't eat more than one high GI food and two medium GI foods a day.

3. When you do eat a high or medium GI food, you should always combine it with at least two low-GI foods at the same meal. Do this and you slow down the speed at which the high-GI food converts to sugar.

4. Eat three small meals a day and two snacks: this keeps blood sugar levels more balanced than eating three large meals.

5. Always remember, portion sizes count: because fat affects the sugar rating of a food, some GI foods can be high in calories and fat, so for the health of your waistline and your heart, you do have to watch the quantities you eat.

Portion control:

1. Fruit and vegetables are unlimited, but meat portions should be roughly 75g (3oz), fish 100g (4oz).

2. Starchy carbohydrates like pasta or grains should be 50g (2oz) dry weight, a portion of dairy products is roughly 25g (1oz) cheese, 150ml skimmed milk or a small pot (roughly 125g) of yoghurt.

3. Nuts and seed portions are roughly 10 of a small nut like almonds, six of big nuts like brazil or a small handful of seeds.

4. Chocolate can be enjoyed two or three times a week in the form of a small bar like a Milky Way or two-three squares of pure chocolate.

AT-A-GLANCE GI GUIDE...

GREEN GO!
CARBS: Granary bread, rye bread with grains, wholewheat tortillas, soy bread, All Bran, porridge oats, barley, bulgar wheat (aka taboulleh), quinoa, buckwheat, glass noodles, egg noodles, new potatoes, yams, pasta.
FRUIT: Apples, dried apricots, avocado, berries, cherries, grapefruit, citrus fruits, pears, plums, prunes.
VEGETABLES: All except those listed in orange/red columns.
PROTEINS: All fresh meat, fish, shellfish plus processed foods (burgers, sausages, fish fingers).
PULSES: All beans (except broad beans), lentils - and any products made from them like tofu, hummus, falafel and unsweetened soya milk.
DRINKS: Water, tea, herbal tea, milk.
OTHERS: Yoghurt, cheese, nuts, seeds, olives, chocolate (though remember, calories count).

ORANGE CAUTION!
CARBS: Brown bread, fruit bread, pitta bread, high fibre bread, sourdough, muesli, wheat cereals (like Weetabix), couscous, soba noodles, udon noodles, crisps, sweet potatoes, basmati, brown and white rice.
FRUIT: Fresh apricots, bananas, melon, figs, red grapes, mango, papaya, canned fruit, raisins, sultanas.
VEGETABLES: Beetroot, corn, sweetcorn, peas.
PROTEINS: There are no medium GI proteins.
PULSES: There are no medium GI pulses.
DRINKS: Fruit juices, wine, squashes.
OTHERS: Ice cream, biscuits, cakes.

RED STOP!
CARBS: Bagels, white/French bread, flaked cereals, honey-coated cereals, puffed cereal, mashed potato, jacket potatoes, chips, any rice that takes less than 20 minutes to cook.
FRUIT: Watermelon, dates.
VEG: Parsnips, pumpkin, swede, turnips.
PROTEINS: There are no high GI proteins.
PULSES: Broad beans.
DRINKS: Cola, fizzy orange, sports drinks, beer.
OTHERS: Boiled sweets, doughnuts, popcorn, rice cakes.

Note: Helen Foster's book The Easy GI Diet is published by Hamlyn, £12.99.