A Brief Review: Carbohydrates and Insulin
- Carbohydrates are broken down into sugar in your body. If you consume sugary food (simple carbohydrates), it will raise your blood sugar levels.
- Sugar spikes your insulin. The body releases insulin in an attempt to normalize your high blood sugar levels. The more sugary the carbohydrate is (eg. White bread, pastas, sugar, white potatoes, cookies, licorice), the more your body will produce insulin.
- The bad news: Insulin = fat storage hormone. Too much circulating insulin will prevent fat from being broken down into useable energy for the body. This is less than ideal when you are trying to lose fat! Ideally, you want to be using your body’s stored fat for energy rather than relying on a “quick potato chip or candy fix” for energy. So if you want to lose fat, then stop consuming simple sugars all the time! The easiest way to do this is to intermittently fast. That way you don't have to abstain from all sugary food. This leads to the next point:
- If you really want to lose fat, then practice intermittent fasting. That is the easiest way to tap into your stored fat for fuel. Click here to subscribe to my free weekly intermittent fasting tutorials.
What is the Glycemic Index (GI)?
Your blood sugar and insulin levels depend on the type of carbohydrate consumed. We know that simple carbohydrates are released more quickly into the bloodstream than complex carbohydrates. The more quickly the carbohydrate is released into the bloodstream, the higher your blood sugar and insulin levels will be.
The Glycemic Index indicates the rates at which certain carbohydrates are formed into glucose and released into the bloodstream. The faster the glucose is released into the bloodstream, the more the body will secrete insulin in response.
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Low Glycemic Index Carbohydrates |
High Glycemic Index Carbohydrates |
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What is the Glycemic Load (GL)?
The Glycemic Load is a more accurate way to approach carbohydrates because it not only considers a food’s glycemic index, but also the amount of carbohydrates per serving. For example, watermelon has a high glycemic index, but is low in carbohydrates, which means it has a low glycemic load. Watermelon has been wrongly given a bad reputation because of its high glycemic index rating.
By taking the glycemic load into account, you will not have to exclude watermelon and other high-glycemic index fruits and vegetables from your diet. In other words, always think critically!
Calculate the glycemic load with this formula:
(Glycemic Index)/100 x carbohydrate content in your serving (grams)
eg. Watermelon:
- glycemic index = 72
- serving size (1 cup of watermelon balls) = 154 g =12 g of carbohydrates
Therefore glycemic load = (72/100) x 12 g = 8.64
Examples of Foods with a High GI but Low GL:
Cantaloupe, papaya, pineapple, carrots, watermelon, pumpkin. When you take the glycemic load into consideration, you will discover that nearly all fruits and vegetables are permitted on your "low-glycemic diet". So stop demonizing fruit! Remember, fat storing is caused by eating more calories than you expend. So quit your weight gain on fruit! Blame your tendency to eat in caloric surplus instead! If you want to learn how to manipulate your tendency to overeat in a way that doesn't sabotage your physique or jeopardize your satiety, then click here to learn about FLEXIBLE DIETING and INTERMITTENT FASTING.
Summary of Glycemic Index and Load:
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Glycemic Index |
Glycemic Load |
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High |
>70 |
>20 |
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Medium |
56-69 |
11-19 |
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Low |
<55 |
<10 |
Conclusion:
Don't judge food by it's glycemic index rating alone. Think critically. Calculate the glycemic load.
Stop demonizing food. Immediately learn how to factor discretionary calories into your diet by clicking here.
References:
http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/foods-high-on-the-glycemic-index-but-low-on-glycem.html
http://www.livestrong.com/article/332065-the-glycemic-index-of-pumpkin/#ixzz2AS25Ybt6
