Aim For A Lower Glycemic Index

The glycemic index measures the impact of a food on a person's blood sugar levels.  A food with a high glycemic index causes a rapid rise in blood sugar, while a low glycemic food will not.  Numerous research studies have reported that following an overall low glycemic diet appears to have a variety of health benefits.  In regards to obesity, some studies have suggested that a diet with a low glycemic index typically has a better nutritional profile and might help improve weight control.

A new obesity research study explored the impact of the dietary glycemic index on the body mass index (BMI) and waist size of children (6-11 years of age).  For this study, obesity researchers measured the body weight, waist size, and BMI of more than 3,700 Italian school children and asked their parents to fill out a food frequency questionnaire designed to measure the types and amounts of foods and drinks consumed during the previous year.  Based on the responses to the dietary questionnaire, the study investigators calculated the glycemic index and glycemic load of each child's diet as well as their nutrient intake.  The relationship between each child's dietary habits and body measurements were analyzed.  These obesity researchers reported that:

• Children grouped into the highest quarter of glycemic index measures had the highest body mass index and highest incidence of obesity with almost a third of these children being obese.
• Over 25% of the children in the top two glycemic index levels were considered overweight.
• An increasing glycemic index value was linked to an increase is waist size.
• A high glycemic index diet was linked to increased intake of energy, carbohydrates, and fiber and decreased intake of dietary fat.

Overall, the results of this new obesity research study showed that consuming a diet with an overall high glycemic index was linked to increased body weight, waist size, and obesity risk in children. These results emphasize the importance of avoiding an overall high glycemic index diet. Previous research has also suggested that following a low glycemic diet might be important for healthy weight management due to its ability to support normal blood sugar health and to suppress hunger.

Following an overall low glycemic diet does not necessarily mean avoiding all foods that have a high glycemic index.  In fact, some fruits (watermelon) and vegetables (some potatoes) have been reported to have a high glycemic index, but these can still be a nutritious part of an overall healthy diet.  Instead of trying to avoid all high glycemic index foods, a better approach would be to aim for a healthy balanced diet that includes plenty of low glycemic or medium glycemic index foods.  By doing this, even if you have the occasional high glycemic item, your overall diet is more likely to remain at a low or medium glycemic index level.  The Glycemic Index has a searchable database of foods and their glycemic index values, making it easier to aim for a lower glycemic diet.

My protein bars and shakes are a great way to add delicious low-glycemic, hunger-satisfying foods to your weight management plans.  Visit us to learn more about my easy diet plan!

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Impact of Glycemic Index & Load on Heart Health

The glycemic index is a ranking system that ranks the quality of carbohydrates based on how quickly or slowly they impact blood sugar.  Many studies have reported that a low glycemic index diet might have a variety of health benefits.  However, different foods have different amounts of carbohydrates.  To take these differing amounts of carbohydrates into account, the glycemic load can be calculated in order to determine the impact of different foods on blood sugar.

A new study examined the impact of the glycemic index and glycemic load on heart health in a population of nearly 50,000 men and women.  To determine this impact, dietary intake was assessed with a dietary questionnaire and the risk for poor heart health was determined over about an 8-year follow-up.  The results of this study showed:

• Women in the group with the highest quarter of carbohydrate consumption were twice as likely to have poor heart health compared to women in the group eating the lowest levels of carbohydrates.
• The increased risk for poor heart health was associated with high glycemic index carbohydrates... eating high levels of high glycemic index carbohydrates was associated with about a 68% increased risk for poor heart health, while eating high levels of low glycemic index foods was not associated with poor heart health.
• Women consuming the highest level of high glycemic load foods were at a more than 2-fold increased risk for poor heart health compared to women with the lowest level of high glycemic load foods.
• No associations between heart health and glycemic index or glycemic load were seen for men in this study.

This new study confirms previous studies on the potential health benefits of a low glycemic index diet.  Low glycemic foods (those that rank below 55) have minimal impact on blood sugar, while high glycemic foods (those that rank above 70) have a large impact on blood sugar.  To learn more about the glycemic index, visit The Glycemic Index.  Their website does a great job of describing the glycemic index, provides a list of foods and their glycemic index and publishes a frequent newsletter.

Following a low glycemic index diet is easy with my Slim and Beautiful diet plan.  Two recent studies documented that my milk protein bars, milk protein shakes, soy protein bars, soy protein shakes, and pasta have a low glycemic index.