Glycaemic Index and Glycaemic Load?

[ThsonBlkg]

Moderator note: Split from this earlier thread to get more attention https://forum.diabetes.org.uk/boards/threads/blood-sugar-levels.105009/#post-1315096

Thanks for breaking down the numbers! Quick question: anyone got tips on managing blood sugar with diet? I've heard about Glycemic Index and Load – tried looking up blueberries' glycemic index, but got a bit lost. Any thoughts on that or any other food suggestions? Would love to hear your experiences!

 

[Inka]

Welcome @ThsonBlkg 🙂 You’re Type 1/LADA? Type 1/LADAs can eat a pretty normal diet as long as they count the carbs and take the appropriate insulin.

GI/GL does have some effect but it’s the correct use of insulin that has more. There are various GI lists online, but what’s more important is the GL - ie taking into account the whole meal. Personally, I’d just eat a healthy diet with plenty of fibre and not bother about GL too much, except for things like pizza where the fat can require a split bolus.

 

[everydayupsanddowns]

Welcome to the forum @ThsonBlkg

Glycaemic Index and Glycaemic Load can be helpful general indicators, but unfortunately responses to food can be peculiarly fickle and individual, so they can’t really be relied upon as a guarantee.

The general feeling/experience on the forum tends to be that berries are often the most BG friendly fruits, with blueberries being a little carbier, followed by things like apples, pears and oranges. With grapes, bananas, and tropical fruits being trickier.

Melon is a GL classic, as it is often quite fast-acting per 50g portion (the GI amount), but that is a LOT of melon, so it’s often not so bad when you only have a smallish quantity.

But it’s all very individual, and tbh I find it more reliable to learn from experience and what I see after meals & snacks through my BG checks / sensor, rather than assuming I can’t have apples because other people find them too spiky (and I don’t). 🙂

 

[Docb]

Hi @ThsonBlkg and welcome from me.

It's hard enough to measure the carb content of anything where at least there is a pretty clear definition of what you are trying to measure but when you come to things like Glycaemic Index and Glycaemic Load you are on a complete loser if you try and define what they mean and then figure out how you measure them so that you can use the measurements to rank foodstuffs in terms of their effect on blood glucose.

In my early days I looked into these things and fairly rapidly came to the conclusion the terms had more to do with marketing and selling books and diets than any serious attempt to rank food stuffs in terms of their immediacy in affecting blood glucose. Lots of opinion masquerading as fact is the way I would sum it up.

@everydayupsanddowns has got it about right. Your experience is a far better guide than anything, mostly because it applies to you and how your system reacts to what you eat.

 

[rebrascora]

Porridge is the classic rebuttal to GI/GL It has such a reputation for being slow release that it is even recommended by the NHS as being an ideal breakfast for people with diabetes.
However even the most minimally processed Jumbo Oats cause my BG levels to rocket within half an hour of eating them, even when I make my porridge with water and then add cream (fat) to try to slow it down. Some people find that it lives up to it's slow release reputation but there are plenty of others like me who find it shoots their levels into orbit and isn't worth the aggravation. Now we have CGM, we can conduct our own experiments.

Learning how your body responds is the key rather that how someone who did a few tests says it is supposed to respond. Human bodies are highly individual and the only important thing for you to know is how yours responds.

I combine my apple (usually a tart crunchy apple) with cheese to help slow it down and mostly stick to half an apple a day. There are blueberries in my summer berry frozen mix that I have with my yoghurt but mostly it is black and red currants and blackberries and raspberries, so the few blueberries provide a pop of sweetness.