Low GI best for diabetics

The International Life Sciences Institute in Europe held a workshop for scientists to review the scientific evidence about the glycaemic effect of foods and found that low GI is best for type 2 diabetics and people with pre-diabetes.

The glycaemic index (GI) measures how carbohydrate foods act when they are digested. In foods with a high GI, the carbohydrate quickly breaks down to glucose so blood glucose levels increase rapidly. In low-GI foods, they are slowly digested so the blood glucose increase is less, but over a longer time.

After reviewing the evidence, the scientists concluded that lower GI and lower glycaemic load (GL) diets are beneficial for health in people with type 2 diabetes or pre-diabetes, and that the worse the condition, the greater the effect of lower GI and lower GL diets. On the other hand, it is not clear whether they have any effect for healthy people. They also found that dietary fibre in foods seems to have at least as big an effect on health as GI.

While the glycaemic index of food seems to be a useful tool for many to consider when making changes to their diets, it certainly isn’t the whole story about food.