Ever since the South Beach Diet engulfed the land of thin-obsessed, the glycemic index–a 100 point scale that measures how quickly carbohydrates enter the bloodstream as sugar– has been a major influence on the daily menus of believers. Now, a researcher at the University of South Carolina says the index is bunk, and her stance is encouraging other doubters of the index’s usefulness to come out of the woodwork.
The Seattle Post Intelligencer reports that the South Beach school of thought, echoed by other diet experts, argues that high-glycemic foods such as white bread and potatoes quickly raise a person’s blood-sugar level, while low-glycemic
foods such as carrots and apples do not, because they are absorbed more slowly. Low-glycemic foods theoretically make a
person feel full longer and reduce the craving for food. But the USC study, funded by the National Institutes of Health and
conducted over five years, followed more than 1,000 people at four
clinical sites, looking for a correlation between the glycemic index of diet and blood glucose levels. Using several different measures of blood-glucose levels, the
researchers found that the glycemic index of the diet was not related
to any of the measures of blood glucose. Dr. Elizabeth Mayer-Davis, a noted diabetes researcher and the study’s lead author writes that "In general, the glycemic index does not seem to be useful in
understanding how diet impacts health, and use of the glycemic index
may not be an effective way to identify foods for optimal health." Read more about the study here.
Health, fitness and lifestyle tips for people over 50 who still like to play hard
Saturday, May 10, 2025
Not all carbohydrate foods are created equal, in fact they behave quite differently in our bodies. The glycemic index or GI describes this difference by ranking carbohydrates according to their effect on our blood glucose levels. Choosing low GI carbs – the ones that produce only small fluctuations in our blood glucose and insulin levels – is the secret to long-term health reducing your risk of heart disease and diabetes and is the key to sustainable weight loss.
My personal food plan uses the GI to determine what foods I choose. This enables me to eat for health and does not prevent me from using my menu choices to build a strong local economy. The kitchen is more than a place to prepare and consume food. The decisions you make have an impact not only on your health but on the health and welfare of your community, country and planet. Everything is connected.