THE G.I. FACTOR AND DIABETES
We studied a group of people with diabetes and taught them how to alter their diet by substituting the high G.I. foods they were normally eating for carbohydrate foods with a low G.I. factor. After three months, there was a significant fall in their blood sugar levels. They did not find the diet at all difficult and in fact commented on how easy it had been to make the change and how much more variety had been introduced to their diet.
If you are having trouble controlling your blood sugar level after a meal look up the G.I. factor for the carbohydrates it contains. See if you can find substitutes with a lower G.I. factor amongst the list. Eating a meal with a lower G.I. factor can lower the blood sugar rise after the meal.
Although we haven’t mentioned them yet, don’t think that fatty foods are not important. They are, especially in people who are overweight. But fatty foods do not increase the sugar levels. Only carbohydrate foods do. However, being overweight and eating fatty foods prevents the body’s insulin from doing its job and indirectly causes the blood sugar levels to rise. So, eating hot chips or fried rice (mixtures of high G.I. carbohydrate and fat) causes double trouble. Not only does the high G.I. factor of potato and rice increase the blood sugar levels, but the extra fat will also eventually stop the body’s insulin from working properly and makes it less effective in clearing
the sugar from the blood. Persistently high blood sugar levels will ultimately damage the body.
The G.I. factor is especially important when carbohydrate is eaten by itself and not as part of a mixed meal. Carbohydrate tends to have a stronger effect on our blood sugar level when it is eaten alone. This is the case with between-meal snacks which most people with diabetes have to have. When choosing a between-meal snack, pick one with a low G.I. factor. For example, an apple with a G.I. factor of 36 is better than a slice of normal toast with a G.I. factor of around 70, and will result in less of a jump in the blood sugar level.
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