From http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Glycemic_index :
The glycemic index, or glycaemic index, (GI) provides a measure of how quickly blood sugar levels (i.e., levels of glucose in the blood) rise after eating a particular type of food. The effects that different foods have on blood sugar levels vary considerably. The glycemic index estimates how much each gram of available carbohydrate total carbohydrate minus fiber) in a food raises a person's blood glucose level following consumption of the food, relative to consumption of pure glucose. Glucose has a glycemic index of 100.
A practical limitation of the glycemic index is that it does not take into account the amount of carbohydrate actually consumed. A related measure, the glycemic load, factors this in by multiplying the glycemic index of the food in question by the carbohydrate content of the actual serving.
From http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23803881 :
Compared with an isocaloric low-GI meal, a high-GI meal decreased plasma glucose, increased hunger, and selectively stimulated brain regions associated with reward and craving in the late postprandial period, which is a time with special significance to eating behavior at the next meal.
From http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2584181/table/t1/
Table 1
The average GI of 62 common foods derived from multiple studies by different laboratories
| High-carbohydrate foods | Breakfast cereals | Fruit and fruit products | Vegetables | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| White wheat bread* | 75 ± 2 | Cornflakes | 81 ± 6 | Apple, raw† | 36 ± 2 | Potato, boiled | 78 ± 4 |
| Whole wheat/whole meal bread | 74 ± 2 | Wheat flake biscuits | 69 ± 2 | Orange, raw† | 43 ± 3 | Potato, instant mash | 87 ± 3 |
| Specialty grain bread | 53 ± 2 | Porridge, rolled oats | 55 ± 2 | Banana, raw† | 51 ± 3 | Potato, french fries | 63 ± 5 |
| Unleavened wheat bread | 70 ± 5 | Instant oat porridge | 79 ± 3 | Pineapple, raw | 59 ± 8 | Carrots, boiled | 39 ± 4 |
| Wheat roti | 62 ± 3 | Rice porridge/congee | 78 ± 9 | Mango, raw† | 51 ± 5 | Sweet potato, boiled | 63 ± 6 |
| Chapatti | 52 ± 4 | Millet porridge | 67 ± 5 | Watermelon, raw | 76 ± 4 | Pumpkin, boiled | 64 ± 7 |
| Corn tortilla | 46 ± 4 | Muesli | 57 ± 2 | Dates, raw | 42 ± 4 | Plantain/green banana | 55 ± 6 |
| White rice, boiled* | 73 ± 4 | Peaches, canned† | 43 ± 5 | Taro, boiled | 53 ± 2 | ||
| Brown rice, boiled | 68 ± 4 | Strawberry jam/jelly | 49 ± 3 | Vegetable soup | 48 ± 5 | ||
| Barley | 28 ± 2 | Apple juice | 41 ± 2 | ||||
| Sweet corn | 52 ± 5 | Orange juice | 50 ± 2 | ||||
| Spaghetti, white | 49 ± 2 | ||||||
| Spaghetti, whole meal | 48 ± 5 | ||||||
| Rice noodles† | 53 ± 7 | ||||||
| Udon noodles | 55 ± 7 | ||||||
| Couscous† | 65 ± 4 |
| Dairy products and alternatives | Legumes | Snack products | Sugars | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Milk, full fat | 39 ± 3 | Chickpeas | 28 ± 9 | Chocolate | 40 ± 3 | Fructose | 15 ± 4 |
| Milk, skim | 37 ± 4 | Kidney beans | 24 ± 4 | Popcorn | 65 ± 5 | Sucrose | 65 ± 4 |
| Ice cream | 51 ± 3 | Lentils | 32 ± 5 | Potato crisps | 56 ± 3 | Glucose | 103 ± 3 |
| Yogurt, fruit | 41 ± 2 | Soya beans | 16 ± 1 | Soft drink/soda | 59 ± 3 | Honey | 61 ± 3 |
| Soy milk | 34 ± 4 | Rice crackers/crisps | 87 ± 2 | ||||
| Rice milk | 86 ± 7 |
Data are means ± SEM.
*Low-GI varieties were also identified.
†Average of all available data.
Glycemic index and glycemic load offer information about how foods affect blood sugar and insulin. The lower a food's glycemic index or glycemic load, the less it affects blood sugar and insulin levels. Here you'll find a list of the glycemic index and glycemic load for more than 100 common foods.
| FOOD | Glycemic index (glucose = 100) | Serving size (grams) | Glycemic load per serving |
| BAKERY PRODUCTS AND BREADS | |||
| Banana cake, made with sugar | 47 | 60 | 14 |
| Banana cake, made without sugar | 55 | 60 | 12 |
| Sponge cake, plain | 46 | 63 | 17 |
| Vanilla cake made from packet mix with vanilla frosting (Betty Crocker) | 42 | 111 | 24 |
| Apple, made with sugar | 44 | 60 | 13 |
| Apple, made without sugar | 48 | 60 | 9 |
| Waffles, Aunt Jemima (Quaker Oats) | 76 | 35 | 10 |
| Bagel, white, frozen | 72 | 70 | 25 |
| Baguette, white, plain | 95 | 30 | 15 |
| Coarse barley bread, 75-80% kernels, average | 34 | 30 | 7 |
| Hamburger bun | 61 | 30 | 9 |
| Kaiser roll | 73 | 30 | 12 |
| Pumpernickel bread | 56 | 30 | 7 |
| 50% cracked wheat kernel bread | 58 | 30 | 12 |
| White wheat flour bread | 71 | 30 | 10 |
| Wonder™ bread, average | 73 | 30 | 10 |
| Whole wheat bread, average | 71 | 30 | 9 |
| 100% Whole Grain™ bread (Natural Ovens) | 51 | 30 | 7 |
| Pita bread, white | 68 | 30 | 10 |
| Corn tortilla | 52 | 50 | 12 |
| Wheat tortilla | 30 | 50 | 8 |
| BEVERAGES | |||
| Coca Cola®, average | 63 | 250 mL | 16 |
| Fanta®, orange soft drink | 68 | 250 mL | 23 |
| Lucozade®, original (sparkling glucose drink) | 95±10 | 250 mL | 40 |
| Apple juice, unsweetened, average | 44 | 250 mL | 30 |
| Cranberry juice cocktail (Ocean Spray®) | 68 | 250 mL | 24 |
| Gatorade | 78 | 250 mL | 12 |
| Orange juice, unsweetened | 50 | 250 mL | 12 |
| Tomato juice, canned | 38 | 250 mL | 4 |
| BREAKFAST CEREALS AND RELATED PRODUCTS | |||
| All-Bran™, average | 55 | 30 | 12 |
| Coco Pops™, average | 77 | 30 | 20 |
| Cornflakes™, average | 93 | 30 | 23 |
| Cream of Wheat™ (Nabisco) | 66 | 250 | 17 |
| Cream of Wheat™, Instant (Nabisco) | 74 | 250 | 22 |
| Grapenuts™, average | 75 | 30 | 16 |
| Muesli, average | 66 | 30 | 16 |
| Oatmeal, average | 55 | 250 | 13 |
| Instant oatmeal, average | 83 | 250 | 30 |
| Puffed wheat, average | 80 | 30 | 17 |
| Raisin Bran™ (Kellogg's) | 61 | 30 | 12 |
| Special K™ (Kellogg's) | 69 | 30 | 14 |
| GRAINS | |||
| Pearled barley, average | 28 | 150 | 12 |
| Sweet corn on the cob, average | 60 | 150 | 20 |
| Couscous, average | 65 | 150 | 9 |
| Quinoa | 53 | 150 | 13 |
| White rice, average | 89 | 150 | 43 |
| Quick cooking white basmati | 67 | 150 | 28 |
| Brown rice, average | 50 | 150 | 16 |
| Converted, white rice (Uncle Ben's®) | 38 | 150 | 14 |
| Whole wheat kernels, average | 30 | 50 | 11 |
| Bulgur, average | 48 | 150 | 12 |
| COOKIES AND CRACKERS | |||
| Graham crackers | 74 | 25 | 14 |
| Vanilla wafers | 77 | 25 | 14 |
| Shortbread | 64 | 25 | 10 |
| Rice cakes, average | 82 | 25 | 17 |
| Rye crisps, average | 64 | 25 | 11 |
| Soda crackers | 74 | 25 | 12 |
| DAIRY PRODUCTS AND ALTERNATIVES | |||
| Ice cream, regular | 57 | 50 | 6 |
| Ice cream, premium | 38 | 50 | 3 |
| Milk, full fat | 41 | 250mL | 5 |
| Milk, skim | 32 | 250 mL | 4 |
| Reduced-fat yogurt with fruit, average | 33 | 200 | 11 |
| FRUITS | |||
| Apple, average | 39 | 120 | 6 |
| Banana, ripe | 62 | 120 | 16 |
| Dates, dried | 42 | 60 | 18 |
| Grapefruit | 25 | 120 | 3 |
| Grapes, average | 59 | 120 | 11 |
| Orange, average | 40 | 120 | 4 |
| Peach, average | 42 | 120 | 5 |
| Peach, canned in light syrup | 40 | 120 | 5 |
| Pear, average | 38 | 120 | 4 |
| Pear, canned in pear juice | 43 | 120 | 5 |
| Prunes, pitted | 29 | 60 | 10 |
| Raisins | 64 | 60 | 28 |
| Watermelon | 72 | 120 | 4 |
| BEANS AND NUTS | |||
| Baked beans, average | 40 | 150 | 6 |
| Blackeye peas, average | 33 | 150 | 10 |
| Black beans | 30 | 150 | 7 |
| Chickpeas, average | 10 | 150 | 3 |
| Chickpeas, canned in brine | 38 | 150 | 9 |
| Navy beans, average | 31 | 150 | 9 |
| Kidney beans, average | 29 | 150 | 7 |
| Lentils, average | 29 | 150 | 5 |
| Soy beans, average | 15 | 150 | 1 |
| Cashews, salted | 27 | 50 | 3 |
| Peanuts, average | 7 | 50 | 0 |
| PASTA and NOODLES | |||
| Fettucini, average | 32 | 180 | 15 |
| Macaroni, average | 47 | 180 | 23 |
| Macaroni and Cheese (Kraft) | 64 | 180 | 32 |
| Spaghetti, white, boiled, average | 46 | 180 | 22 |
| Spaghetti, white, boiled 20 min, average | 58 | 180 | 26 |
| Spaghetti, wholemeal, boiled, average | 42 | 180 | 17 |
| SNACK FOODS | |||
| Corn chips, plain, salted, average | 42 | 50 | 11 |
| Fruit Roll-Ups® | 99 | 30 | 24 |
| M & M's®, peanut | 33 | 30 | 6 |
| Microwave popcorn, plain, average | 55 | 20 | 6 |
| Potato chips, average | 51 | 50 | 12 |
| Pretzels, oven-baked | 83 | 30 | 16 |
| Snickers Bar® | 51 | 60 | 18 |
| VEGETABLES | |||
| Green peas, average | 51 | 80 | 4 |
| Carrots, average | 35 | 80 | 2 |
| Parsnips | 52 | 80 | 4 |
| Baked russet potato, average | 111 | 150 | 33 |
| Boiled white potato, average | 82 | 150 | 21 |
| Instant mashed potato, average | 87 | 150 | 17 |
| Sweet potato, average | 70 | 150 | 22 |
| Yam, average | 54 | 150 | 20 |
| MISCELLANEOUS | |||
| Hummus (chickpea salad dip) | 6 | 30 | 0 |
| Chicken nuggets, frozen, reheated in microwave oven 5 min | 46 | 100 | 7 |
| Pizza, plain baked dough, served with parmesan cheese and tomato sauce | 80 | 100 | 22 |
| Pizza, Super Supreme (Pizza Hut) | 36 | 100 | 9 |
| Honey, average | 61 | 25 | 12 |
A behavioral intervention incorporating specific glycemic index goals improves dietary quality, weight control and glycemic control in adults with type 2 diabetes
From http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3671479/ :
An intervention including a specific goal to consume six to eight servings of LGI foods daily can improve diabetes outcomes. Clinicians should help patients set specific targets for dietary change and identify ways of achieving those goals.
