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Diabetes Diet

Glycemic Index

The glycemic index (GI) is a measure of the potency of a certain food's carbohydrates -- how quickly and how forcefully they impact blood sugar levels. It compares carbohydrate foods, gram for gram, against glucose, which is given a GI of 100. A GI value of 55 or less is considered low; a GI of 70 or more is considered high. Glycemic load (GL) measures both the quality and the quantity of carbohydrate in a serving of a food. Think of the GL as the amount of carbohydrate in a food adjusted for its glycemic potency. GL is calculated by multiplying the GI value of a food by the number of grams of carbohydrate per serving, and dividing that by 100.
Glycemic Index and Glycemic Load Values for Selected Foods
Food
Glycemic
Index
Serving
size
Carb
grams
Glycemic
Load
Dates, dried
103
2 oz
40
42
Cornflakes
81
1 cup
26
21
Jelly beans
78
1 oz
28
22
Puffed rice cakes
78
3 cakes
21
17
Russet potato (baked)
76
1 med
30
23
Doughnut
76
1 med
23
17
Soda crackers
74
4 crackers
17
12
White bread
73
1 lrg slice
14
10
Table sugar (sucrose)
68
2 tsp
10
7
Pancake
67
6" dia.
58
39
White rice (boiled)
64
1 cup
36
23
Brown rice (boiled)
55
1 cup
33
18
Spaghetti, white; boiled 10-15 min
44
1 cup
40
18
Spaghetti, white; boiled 5 min
38
1 cup
40
15
Spaghetti, whole wheat; boiled
37
1 cup
37
14
Rye, pumpernickel bread
41
1 lrg slice
12
5
Oranges, raw
42
1 med
11
5
Pears, raw
38
1 med
11
4
Apples, raw
38
1 med
15
6
All-Bran™ cereal
38
1 cup
23
9
Skim milk
32
8 fl oz
13
4
Lentils, dried; boiled
29
1 cup
18
5
Kidney beans, dried; boiled
28
1 cup
25
7
Pearled barley; boiled
25
1 cup
42
11
Cashew nuts
22
1 oz
9
2
Peanuts
14
1 oz
6
1

SOURCE: The Official Site of the Glycemic Index, www.glycemicindex.com.


Reviewed by Susan Weiner, R.D., M.S., C.D.E., C.D.N. 3/08

Last Modified Date: October 3, 2008


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