glycemic index

Just when you started to get a handle on the glycemic index (GI) of foods, there's another value to grasp — glycemic load (GL). The GI ranks specific carbohydrates from zero to 100, based on the rate in which they affect your blood sugar levels. A GI of 1 to 55 is low, 56 to 69 is medium, and 70 to 100 is high — these high-ranking foods should be limited.

Glycemic load measures the blood-sugar-raising power per serving of food. Here's the lowdown on the equations used to figure the load. First you multiply the GI of a food by the amount of grams of carbohydrate in a specific serving, and then that number is divided by 100. A glycemic load of 10 or less is low, 11 to 19 is medium, 20 or more is high. If you add up the glycemic load amounts for your entire day, a total GL amount of 80 or less is considered low. Your daily GL shouldn't exceed 120.

Both measurements are useful. Glycemic load helps you select appropriate portion sizes, while glycemic index helps you differentiate between good and bad carbohydrate choices. The lower each number, the less it affects blood sugar levels.

Looking at some food's values may help you understand the two better. So read more

Deciding what to eat before hitting the gym isn't always easy, but new research might help narrow down your choices. Before grabbing a pre-workout snack consider that what you put in your mouth could determine how much fat you burn while exercising. New research, involving female subjects averaging 24 years in age, shows that a low-glycemic meal causes you to burn about 50 percent more fat during your workout.

Previous studies with similar findings were focused on male and endurance athlete participants, so this new study broke new ground by focusing on women with a "typical healthy weight." Women who ate high-glycemic breakfasts before exercising burned half as much fat as the women who ate low-glycemic meals with the same caloric values. The reason? High-glycemic carbohydrates cause your blood sugar to spike sharply, while low-glycemic carbs let the body use energy for fat burning instead of blood sugar.

To maximize fat burning during your workouts, aim to consume low-glycemic meals consisting of foods like muesli, yogurt, skimmed milk, whole grains, porridge, some whole grain cereals, and soy. What do you eat in the morning before a workout?

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If you don't know much about the glycemic index (GI), it could be affecting your health. The GI ranks specific carbohydrates from zero to 100, based on how they affect your blood sugar levels after eating them. Typically, eating foods that have a high GI (such as white bread and soda) causes a spike in blood sugar levels. When you consume these foods, you may feel a surge of get-up-and-go at first, but will have an energy crash soon afterward. High GI foods have also been linked to an increased risk for cancer, type 2 diabetes, acne, Alzheimer's, and weight gain. Foods that are low on the GI have been associated with feeling full, which can prevent you from overeating.

Sweeteners are a type of carbohydrate that are tough to avoid since many people crave sweet foods such as chocolate, cookies, candy, and ice cream. All these treats are made with different types of sweeteners, so when cooking or choosing foods, it's good to know how they compare. To see where different types of sweeteners fall on the glycemic scale, read more

Command central of the body, a healthy brain is vital for a healthy life. Of course you want to take care of your gray matter, and one way to do that is to feed it well. Your brain eats up 20 percent of your daily calories, so use these four tips to stay sharp.

1. In every meal, include healthy carbs such as fruits, veggies, and whole grains. These fuel your brain with the glucose it needs.
2. Graze throughout the day. Your brain works well on 25 grams of glucose circulating in the bloodstream, which is equal to one banana. For optimum brain function, try eating many smaller meals as opposed to three huge meals.

To find out what other foods benefit your brain read more.

When it comes to corn chips, I am game for any color - yellow, white, or blue. Now, I have a valid reason to go blue. New research indicates that blue corn is more nutritious than its white counterpart.

Researchers from south of the Rio Grande have found blue corn to contain 20 percent more protein than white corn. Not only that, but blue corn also contains less starch and a lower glycemic index, meaning the sugar content of blue corn is absorbed by the body more slowly and provides a steady source of energy, with less chance of creating a blood sugar spike.

I often say, eat for color and now I know this approach to food applies to tortillas and chips as well.

Lentils are my favorite legume by far -- I just love their creamy taste. So you can imagine I was more than thrilled when I read the good news on lentils.

An Australian review reports that eating foods like lentils with a long, gentle release of sugar -- a low-glycemic index -- may help people lose weight. So fire up the stove and cook up some yummy lentil soup.

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We've all been programmed to think of carbs as the bad guy but not all carbs are bad. However, carbs that spike blood sugar can possibly raise your risk of Type 2 diabetes, heart disease, not to mention possibly cancer, acne and Alzheimer's and can cause weight gain. Carbs low on the Glycemic Index (GI) are the good carbs that produce only small fluctuations in our blood glucose and insulin levels. These carbs are often considered the secret to health (you reduce your risk of heart disease and Type 2 diabetes) and promote weight loss. Jean Caper, a nutrition researcher from the University of Sydney, gives the low down on controlling your blood sugar spikes with these foods:

• Chocolate. Despite its high sugar, chocolate has a low glycemic index and doesn't cause blood glucose to surge. Even diabetics need not eat reduced-sugar chocolate. But note that high-calorie chocolate is a weight gain risk.
• Bread. Beware: Some whole-grain breads spike blood sugar as much as white bread. Smart choices: coarse, dense bread with visible grainy bits; and sourdough, pumpernickel, soy or fruit breads.
• Juice. Unsweetened fruit juices have a low glycemic index but are hazardous when overdone. Restrict a serving to 3/4 cup, dilute with water, or mix high-sugar fruit juices with low-sugar vegetable juices. Better yet, eat the whole fiber-packed fruit.

For the scoop on veggies, salad dressing and to learn which carbs most/least apt to spike your blood sugar read more