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Glycemic Index

How quickly do foods raise your blood sugar?

The glycemic index measures how fast a food is likely to raise your blood sugar* and can be helpful for managing blood sugars. For example, if your blood sugar is low and continuing to drop during exercise, you would prefer to eat a carb that will raise your blood sugar quickly. On the other hand, if you would like to keep your blood sugar from dropping during a few hours of mild activity, you may prefer to eat a carb that has a lower glycemic index and longer action time. If your blood sugar tends to spike after breakfast, you may want to select a cereal that has a lower glycemic index.

The numbers below give that food's glycemic index based on glucose, which is one of the fastest carbohydrates available. Glucose is given an arbitrary value of 100 and other carbs are given a number relative to glucose. Faster carbs (higher numbers) are great for raising low blood sugars and for covering brief periods of intense exercise. Slower carbs (lower numbers) are helpful for preventing overnight drops in the blood sugar and for long periods of exercise.

Note that these numbers are compiled from a wide range of research labs, and often from more than one study. These numbers will be close but may not be identical to other glycemic index lists. The impact a food will have on the blood sugar depends on many other factors such as ripeness, cooking time, fiber and fat content, time of day, blood insulin levels, and recent activity. Use the Glycemic Index as just one of the many tools you have available to improve your control.

Glycemic Index

Cereals

Snacks

Pasta

Beans

All Bran

51

chocolate bar

49

cheese tortellini

50

baked

44

Bran Buds + psyll

45

corn chips

72

fettucini

32

black beans, boiled

30

Bran Flakes

74

croissant

67

linguini

50

butter, boiled

33

Cheerios

74

doughnut

76

macaroni

46

cannellini beans

31

Corn Chex

83

graham crakers

74

spagh, 5 min boiled

33

garbanzo, boiled

34

Cornflakes

83

jelly beans

80

spagh, 15 min boiled

44

kidney, boiled

29

Cream of Wheat

66

Life Savers

70

spagh, prot enrich

28

kidney, canned

52

Frosted Flakes

55

oatmeal cookie

57

vermicelli

35

lentils, green, brown

30

Grapenuts

67

pizza, cheese & tom

60

Soups/Vegetables

lima, boiled

32

Life

66

Pizza Hut, supreme

33

beets, canned

64

navy beans

38

muesli, natural

54

popcorn, light micro

55

black bean soup

64

pinto, boiled

39

Nutri-grain

66

potato chips

56

carrots, fresh, boil

49

red lentils, boiled

27

oatmeal, old fach

48

pound cake

54

corn, sweet

56

soy, boiled

16

Puffed Wheat

67

Power bars

58

green pea, soup

66

Breads

Raisin Bran

73

pretzels

83

green pea, frozen

47

bagel, plain

72

Rice Chex

89

saltine crakers

74

lima beans, frozen

32

baquette, Frnch

95

Shredded Wheat

67

shortbread cookies

64

parsnips

97

croissant

67

Special K

54

Snickers bar

41

peas, fresh, boil

48

dark rye

76

Total

76

strawberry jam

51

split pea soup w/ham

66

hamburger bun

61

Fruit

vanilla wafers

77

tomato soup

38

muffins

 

apple

38

Wheat Thins

67

Drinks

apple, cin

44

apricots

57

Crackers

apple juice

40

blueberry

59

banana

56

graham

74

colas

65

oat & raisin

54

cantalope

65

rice cakes

80

Gatorade

78

pita

57

cherries

22

rye

68

grapefruit juice

48

pizza, cheese

60

dates

103

soda

72

orange juice

46

pumpernickel

49

grapefruit

25

Wheat Thins

67

pineapple juice

46

sourdough

54

grapes

46

Cereal Grains

Milk Products

rye

64

kiwi

52

barley

25

chocolate milk

35

white

70

mango

55

basmati white rice

58

custard

43

wheat

68

orange

43

bulgar

48

ice cream, van

60

Root Crops

papaya

58

couscous

65

ice milk, van

50

french fries

75

peach

42

cornmeal

68

skim milk

32

pot, new, boiled

59

pear

58

millet

71

soy milk

31

pot, red, baked

93

pineapple

66

Sugars

tofu frozen dessert

115

pot, sweet

52

plums

39

fructose

22

whole milk

30

pot, white, boiled

63

prunes

15

honey

62

yogurt, fruit

36

pot, white, mash

70

raisins

64

maltose

105

yogurt, plain

14

yam

54

watermelon

72

table sugar

64

 

 

 

 

* Actually, the GI indirectly measures a food's effect on blood sugar. It actually measured the "area under the blood sugar curve" following a set intake of that carb.

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