The Role of Glycemix Index in Controlling Type 2 Diabetes

What is Glycemic Index (GI)?

Glycemic Index (GI)  is a rating or ranking of foods based on the immediate effect they have on glucose or blood sugar levels.  This ranking makes it clear that all foods are not equal; and especially is this relevant to carbohydrates.  The key is the rate at which your body digests food.  The faster that food is broken down during digestion, the quicker your blood sugar will rise.  Therefore carbohydrates that break down quickly during the digestion process have a high GI ranking--which is bad for you as it translates to a rapid rise in blood glucose.  On the other hand, carbohydrates which break down slowly have a low-GI ranking and are better for diabetics.

It should be kept in mind that one of the essential goals of diabetes management is to keep blood sugar levels steady throughout the day, so foods that cause blood sugar to rise rapidly should be avoided or kept to a minimum.  Foods that are digested more slowly allow the pancreas to produce insulin at a steady level rather than struggling to produce larger quantities than the cells and muscles can absorb. It is reasonable to accept that the ranking of Glycemic Index of various foods can be relied on for accuracy since it has been tested in groups of people using a standardized test method in several different laboratories around the world.

Dr. Thomas M.S. Wolever along with colleagues developed the data for  "The Glucose Revolution"  that revealed that significant research was going on outside of the United States.  Tests done at the University of Toronto and in Sydney, Australia revealed that the level of blood sugar responses to the Glycemic Index were affected significantly by carbohydrate content, but there was very little relationship to fat or protein.