Keeping blood sugar steady is the idea with this diet, to help you burn fat explains nutritionist Jo Williams
compiled by VICTORIA TAYLOR & KERRY TORRENS
Your diet decoder
What is the glycaemic index?
Originally devised to help people with diabetes, the glycaemic index (GI) helps manage blood sugar levels. The GI is a measure of the rate at which our bodies break down the carbs in our food to energy – in the form of glucose. It’s a scale from 0-100, with pure glucose scoring 100.
How do low-GI diets work?
Carbohydrates are found in bread, cereals, rice, pasta, vegetables, fruit and dairy foods and are an important part of a healthy, balanced diet. Glucose is essential for our bodies as the primary source of energy of our cells. Foods with low-GI ratings such as lentils, beans, wholegrains, nuts and seeds release their energy more slowly and help prevent sugar highs.
But eating high-GI foods such as white bread, processed breakfast cereals, cakes and biscuits causes glucose levels in the blood to rise. The pancreas then releases a hormone called insulin which helps push glucose into your cells, reducing the levels in your blood back to a more manageable range. At the same time it lowers the speed at which the body burns fat.
If you often eat a lot of high-GI foods, you will have a lot of readily available energy in your blood, which your body will have to work hard to manage. If you are unable to use it as energy, the body will store it for later use.
Low-GI carbohydrate foods cause a steady rise in the level of glucose in the blood, which in turn leads to a small and gentle rise in insulin. Small increases in insulin keep you feeling full and energised for hours after eating and may also encourage the body to burn fat.
What’s the evidence to show the benefits of a low-GI diet?
Studies of low-GI diets have shown varied results, however, in general, they suggest a low-GI diet may be helpful for:
• Managing weight
• Lowering blood pressure
• Lowering total cholesterol levels
• Helping to manage blood sugar levels, especially in those with diabetes
• Lowering the risks associated with diabetes and also cardiovascular disease
Is a low-GI diet good for you?
From a practical perspective there is no counting calories or tracking the macronutrients if you’re following a low-GI diet. You simply swap high-GI foods for low-
