The Glycemic Index is an interesting way of learning how to eat.
I was going over some emails my had wife sent me about the Glycemic Index (GI) (there’s a definition a little lower on this page) method of eating which contained a very helpful way of viewing food. And also opened one’s eyes when considering picking up that package of processed foods — you know, the ones with all those chemicals and preservatives. If you don’t know what I’m talking about, just pick up a package of processed food at a grocery store and read the ingredients legend. Or go to your pantry if you don’t want to travel very far. You’ll find a ton of words requiring definitions and understanding.
One can learn how to lose weight. Reading the ingredients legends, one can find out about MSG and BHT and all that stuff! That "stuff" taxes your body systems, starting with the digestive tract. Just think of it: all those years of eating processed foods with the attendant accumulation of small amounts of poisons — and, to top it off, you might be eating food that gets converted to inches somewhere on your body.
Definition of Glycemic Index
Glycemic index: A numerical index given to a carbohydrate-rich food that is based on the average increase in blood glucose levels occurring after the food is eaten.
[From glycemia, presence of glucose in the blood]
~ from Answers.com
Blood glucose basically means sugar in the blood. Also, from the same Answers.com glycemic index article:
GI values can be interpreted intuitively as percentages on an absolute scale and are commonly interpreted as follows:
| Classification | GI range | Examples |
|---|---|---|
| Low GI | 55 or less | most fruit and vegetables (but not potato), oats, buckwheat, whole barley, All-bran, Basmati rice |
| Medium GI | 56 - 69 | sucrose, Mars bar, croissant |
| High GI | 70 or more | corn flakes, baked potato, Jasmine rice, white bread |
A low GI food will release glucose more slowly and steadily. A high GI food causes a more rapid rise in blood glucose levels and is suitable for energy recovery after endurance exercise or for a person with diabetes experiencing hypoglycemia.
The above chart gives you an idea where the food you eat might fall with respect to blood sugar levels in your body. We’re talking energy here — fuel for that carbon oxygen engine known as your body and what to expect when you spoon all those teaspoons of processed white sugar into your coffee. Or munch on that chemical- and preservative-laced cupcake. And don’t forget the tax paid on your body systems from the chemicals and preservatives to go along with the "JOLT" from the sugar.
Take a look at these two links: Glycemic Index (GI) for Blood Glucose Control to measure the glycemic index of the food you eat (go ahead, make my day!) and Health Effects of High Glycemic Value Carbs.
Now think what your kids might be going through. How about your parents, too!
I grew up in the cupcake-and-pie era, and then the coffee-to-go-along-with-my-sugar (or honey) era. Until I recognized that I wasn’t doing so well. My body systems were being affected adversely and I put on A LOT of weight. I changed the way I ate and came down 40 (or more) pounds. I’ve educated myself enough to buy healthy food not laced with chemicals and preservatives or food with pesticides.
Use your good judgment. As to the fellow who says the poisons we use to process and grow your food is so small that "we don’t think it will be bad for you" — why even accept that as a potential future problem!
Just cut all that stuff out of your diet as best you can. And see what happens.
George Vigil
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