Nutritionists and doctors are becoming increasingly aware of the benefits of eating foods with a low glycemic index (GI).

Foods with a high GI cause sharp spikes in blood sugar levels. The pancreas immediately responds by secreting insulin, which allows the cells to take up excess sugar from the blood.

When this phenomenon occurs regularly, there is a risk of weight gain because of the important cellular storage of sugars, but also because the body does not use its fat reserves.

These sugars are quickly consumed and quickly stored. The body will also quickly manifest a new call for food (new sugar), as it quickly runs out of fuel.

In short, blood sugar and insulin spikes can lead to weight gain, increased appetite and hypoglycemia.

All processed refined products generally have a high GI, whereas more whole-grain products (bread, pasta, rice or cereals) have a moderate or low GI, as do vegetables or legumes. Most fruits have a moderate GI, except for the banana if it is too ripe.

In order to control your blood sugar, you must also master the notion of glycemic load, because it is obvious that the glycemic impact of a food will depend on the types of sugars it contains, but also on the quantity you eat.

The glycemic load (GL) is calculated by multiplying the GI of a food by the amount of carbohydrate in a serving of that same food. The whole will be divided by 100.

CG = (GI X amount of carbohydrate per serving of food)/100

The GC therefore informs us both on the quality of the carbohydrates contained in a food, but also on their quantity. This index is also a good indicator of the amplitude of the insulin peak.

A CG > 20 = high.

A GC between 11 & 19 = moderate.

A CG < at 10 = low.

This concept is very interesting for diabetics, but also for people who wish to maintain or lose their ideal weight.

It is very easy to understand that a high CG mobilizes large amounts of insulin which promotes fat storage and weight gain due to a weakening of their combustion.

It is known that all this also promotes cardiovascular diseases, cancers and various inflammations.

If you have a sweet tooth and like starchy foods, you can both reduce the amount of food you eat and choose foods with a low GI.

Reducing the amount of starchy foods by 15% and choosing foods with a 30% lower GI will reduce the total CG by 40%!

If opting for a low carbohydrate diet gives quick results in terms of weight loss, adopting a reduction of the GC of one's diet will have slower results, but clearly more beneficial in the long term and on health in general.

Article source: "The best way to eat" - Thierry Souccar and Angélique Houlbert - éditions Thierry Souccar