Index

The Importance Of The Glycemic Index In Any Diet

Whenever you eat anything (fat, carbohydrates, proteins), your body goes to work using those calories for energy, repair, brain function, etc. In this process, mostly due to the intake of carbohydrates, your body releases the hormone Insulin from the Pancreas into the bloodstream. Insulin is the major hormone that allows the transport of nutrients and calories from the bloodstream into the cells. Imagine all the cells in your body as a locked door. In order to open the door you need a key; in this case, insulin. Insulin binds to the cells and allows the transport of calories and nutrients into the cells. Depending on the food consumed or the glycemic index rating of that food, the insulin will either be a very fast, abundant release or a slow and steady release. Our goal is to induce a slow and steady release of insulin. Insulin can be your best friend when you encourage a slow release because it will promote level blood sugar levels all day, resulting in steady energy and increased fat loss. When you spike the release of insulin, the body freaks out in a sense and tries to rapidly decline insulin levels by shuttling nutrients wherever it can. The bad news is that by rapidly declining the level of insulin in the blood the calories will mainly go to fat cells because they are the easiest site of storage. Your body doesn't care where it stores it, as long as it has energy. Our bodies were designed to store energy as backup in the event that a famine ever occurred. Having a slow and steady release of insulin into the bloodstream will encourage the body to use fat stores as energy and will ensure that you don't have an energy crash throughout the day like you would when you cause an insulin spike. Ever wonder why you are hungry shortly after eating a meal high in carbohydrates? The sudden surge of insulin stores the nutrients and calories so fast, leading to a lower blood sugar, thus signaling to your brain that you need to eat to raise your blood sugar levels to a normal level.

The Danger of Constant Insulin Spikes

Your body is very adaptable to everything. You work out for a few weeks and eventually it adapts and you can run longer or lift more weight. In another sense, regular alcoholic beverages will increase your "tolerance" causing you to need more to feel the same effect. Your body is also adaptable to its own hormones. Every time a cell is exposed to insulin, the production of GLUT4 (type 4 glucose receptors) on the cell's membrane decreases. The constant, everyday abuse of high insulin levels in the blood will cause your cells to become "de-sensitized" to the insulin. What this means is that the cells will be less likely to respond to the insulin or they will require more insulin to produce the same effect that it did before. This is exactly what Type II Diabetes is; after so long, the cells will become so de-sensitized that the insulin will no longer transport the calories into the cells or the pancreas itself no longer produces the amount of insulin needed, thus resulting in high blood sugar levels. Other factors have been shown to lead to insulin resistance, such as genetics or diseases such as hepatitis C. By ensuring a steady release of insulin, you actually increase the sensitivity of the cells, allowing your body to use less insulin to get the job done. I will also note that this is yet another benefit to fish oils (omega-3 and -6 fatty acids). Fish oil has been shown to actually increase insulin sensitivity and promote healthier use of the calories you ingest, thus also lowering your risk of diabetes and cardiovascular disease. If you already have diabetes, for instance you were diagnosed at a young age with Type I diabetes-Diabetes mellitus type 1- (the cells are still receptive to insulin however, the pancreas no longer secretes insulin) or contracted Type II diabetes (Diabetes mellitus type 2) later in age, then using the glycemic index can be very beneficial to you. I know for an example, my sister, regularly sees her endocrinologist (studies the endocrine system, i.e. hormones) to check her recent blood sugar levels and change her insulin dosages accordingly. By eating foods low on the GI, you can keep your insulin sensitivity high so you will be less likely to have to increase your insulin dosages every time you see your doctor.

Using the Glycemic Index for Smarter Food Choices

The Glycemic Index prescribes a number from 1 to 100 to foods based on how fast they are absorbed by the body (basically how fast or slow the insulin is released into the blood stream). 55 and below is considered low, 56 to 69 is medium, and 70 to 100 is high. The ONLY time I would encourage the use of a high GI carbohydrate is after exercise, because at this point your muscles are in a state of super compensation, meaning they are trying to rapidly replace muscle glycogen (carbohydrate) stores in the muscle cells. This is good because it will start recovery immediately by shutting down catabolism and ensures you have the energy for the next day's workout. Therefore, the meal after your workout should include some high GI carbohydrates like grape juice or a sports drink to replenish your muscles energy stores. Also, on the plus side, exercise has been shown to increase the cell's sensitivity to insulin, reducing your risk of contracting insulin resistance or type 2 diabetes mellitus. Besides this meal, you should opt for low to medium GI carbohydrates. Other high GI carbohydrates include candy, bleached flour, table sugar, white bread, white rice, potatoes, and soda. If you go with organic food, it is low on the GI scale 99% of the time as nothing has been processed to remove nutrients and fiber. Most of the foods that are high on the GI scale have been processed, like white bread, to give it a longer shelf life. When processed the original fiber and nutrient content is virtually all taken out leaving you with nothing but a recipe for insulin disaster.

It is not completely necessary to research all the food you eat on glycemicindex.com as most GI foods are self explanatory. Foods high in fiber such as vegetables, whole wheat bread and rice, yams, beans, and oatmeal are all low on the GI scale. Although milk has no fiber, it has a low GI rating of 21. If you love milk then this is good news for you, although you should try to keep it at least 2% milk. You can also feel safe with the medium GI carbohydrates, as anything else with your meal will lower the GI rating of the meal and decrease the overall insulin secretion. That doesn't mean eat a ton of fat with your meal to lower the GI rating, but adding lean meat or some other protein source with a healthy source of fat will lower the GI rating of the meal as well as keep you full longer. You should try to limit the intake of fats during a high carbohydrate meal as the insulin is more likely to store the fat in your fat cells at this time.

Learning to use the glycemic index effectively will not only increase your success in fat loss, but offers a wealth of other benefits; lower risk for Type II diabetes and cardiovascular disease, increased energy, better sense of well-being, increase in cell insulin sensitivity, and a better overall functioning of the body in its use of calories and nutrients. Remember to eat 5-6 small meals a day, all containing low to medium GI carbohydrates with a protein and light serving of a healthy fat source. Do this and you WILL notice more fat loss as well as a better sense of well being since you will likely not have the awful "sugar crash" anymore.