Low Glycemic Diet Better for Weight Loss Than High Glycemic Foods

Google is buzzing with activity about the disadvantages of high glycemic foods (some carbohydrates) and the benefit of a low glycemic diet. According to the bostonhearld.com, Australia has just added the glycemic index symbol and information to food labels. The glycemic index of a food is the measurement of the effect that food has on a person's blood glucose level. Foods that make the blood glucose level fluctuate more have a high glycemic index and medical professionals usually advise those people with diabetes to limit this type of food. The reason for most of the interest in this subject is that high glycemic foods are also not as conducive to weight loss. A low glycemic diet helps to control a person's appetite and delay hunger because the blood glucose level stays more level.

The popular South Beach Diet is one that uses the principle of a low glycemic diet. According to this site and others, a high glycemic food is one that has a glycemic index of more than 70. A person would have a low glycemic diet if the carbohydrates that they consumed were mostly ones than had a glycemic index of 55 or less. This does not mean that one should avoid all high glycemic foods. Baked potatoes, for instance have a glycemic index of 85, but they are still a nutritious and beneficial food. Sweet potatoes are also nutritious and they have a low glycemic index of 54. Cereals are usually high glycemic foods. Golden Grahams have a glycemic index of 71 and cornflakes have a high glycemic index of 83. Fruit is a very healthy, nutritious food, but some fruit is more conducive to losing weight and keeping it off. Watermelon is just over the dividing line between mid and high glycemic foods with an index of 72. According to the South Beach Diet website, watermelon is still a very low calorie and nutritious food. Dates do have some nutritional value but they are a very high glycemic food with a whopping 103 glycemic index. The person who is concerned about weight should eat them very occasionally.

Some of the foods that are good for a low glycemic diet include low fat yogurt (14), broccoli (15), green beans (15), tomatoes (15), and peanuts (15). Peanuts are high in fat, however and should be eaten in moderation by the person who is concerned about weight. A chart detailing the glycemic indexes for foods can be viewed on the South Beach website.

A study done by Jennie Brand-Miller who is a professor of nutrition at the University of Sydney and author of The New Glucose Revolution found that high glycemic foods can change chemistry under certain conditions. According to the bostonhearld.com website, the professor states that a hot baked potato is a high glycemic food with an index close to 90, but when the potato is cooled in the fridge for a few hours, the starch is altered to a form that is more resistant to digestion and the glycemic index changes to 56. A ripe banana is a high glycemic food with an index of 80, while a slightly green banana would qualify as part of a low glycemic diet with an index of just 56.

There are a number of benefits to a low glycemic diet besides weight loss and the obvious benefit for the diabetic. The Home of the Glycemic Index states that a low glycemic diet is not only beneficial for heart health and cholesterol levels, it can help with a condition called Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome. Another surprising benefit of a low glycemic diet is in The Official Glycemic Index Newsletter. It states that according to a paper published November 2007 in Obstetrics & Gynecology, women whose infertility problems stem from a failure to ovulate can be helped by a low glycemic diet. Researchers from the Harvard School of Public Health and Harvard Medical School followed a group of 17,544 married women. Other details of this study can be read on the site.

Most available research agrees that a low glycemic diet is a sensible and healthy approach to eating and that high glycemic foods should be eaten in moderation.

Sources Used:
www.bostonherald.com/entertainment/health/nutrition/view.bg?articleid=1066762&srvc=rss
www.ginews.blogspot.com
www.southbeach-diet-plan.com/glycemicfoodchart.htm
www.4women.gov/faq/pcos.htm