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Why Low Glycemic Foods?


Some currently popular eating plans like The Perricone Prescription, A Week in the Zone and The Protein Power Lifeplan recommend low glycemic foods.

The theory is that sugar and high glycemic carbs that rapidly convert to sugar trigger a release of insulin to control the level of sugar in the bloodstream. Excess sugar in the bloodstream is inflammatory and causes a cascade of free radical damage.

To explain how dangerous this is, Dr, Perricone points out that diabetics with poorly controlled blood sugar age one third faster than nondiabetics and are prone to kidney failure, blindness, heart attack and stroke.

So insulin comes to the rescue to clear the excess sugar from the bloodstream. And what do you suppose the insulin does with all this sugar? It stores it as fat. And worse yet, until the insulin sweeps up the excess sugar, it runs rampant throughout the body causing glycation and cross-linking of the body’s collagen.

The effect is visible on the skin, which becomes leathery and inflexible as we age. Though it can’t be seen, the same damage is taking place inside the body where it affects other vital organs including the kidneys, lungs and brain.

So far, so good. Nutritionists have recommended that people cut their consumption of sugar for decades. The surprise when one ranks sugars and carbs by their glycemic index, is that some foods we normally think of as healthy show up as being bad for you.

The glycemic index is a ranking from 1 to 100, with 100 indicating the increase in blood sugar from eating table sugar (or white bread in one scale). Whichever scale is used, the important thing is a rank ordering of a food’s effect on blood sugar.

The low glycemic food diets mentioned above have different cut off points. For example, Dr. Perricone’s 28-day program prohibits any foods that score above 50 on the glycemic scale. That leaves out such things as bananas, bagels, carrots, corn, potatoes, rice and watermelon.

You can read more about the glycemic index (GI) and view the whole table http://www.mendosa.com/gi.htm here. This site is authored by David Mendoza, a freelance medical writer and consultant specializing in diabetes. The site is a gold mine of information.

Mr. Mendoza points out that a food’s glycemic index tells you how rapidly a particular carb turns into sugar, but not how much of that carbohydrate is in a serving. In other words, it’s not just the quality of the carb, but also the quantity, that counts.
The version of glycemic index on his site (courtesy of Professor Jennie-Brand Miller of the University of Sydney) includes a column called glycemic load (GL) as well as a column of serving size in grams. A glycemic load of 20 or more is considered high; 11 to 19 is medium; and 10 or less is low.

Looking at this bigger picture, some of the “bad” carbs in low-glycemic food diets turn out to be not so bad. A 120g serving of watermelon has a horrible GI of 74 but a very low GL of 4. A medium banana (129g) has a bad GI of 51 but a medium GL of 13. An 80g serving of carrots has a borderline GI of 47 but a low GL of only 3. The same amount of corn has a GI of 47 but a low GL of 7.

On the other hand, some carb foods look bad whether you go by the GI or the GL. A 70g bagel has a high GI (72) as well as a high GL (25). A 150g serving of boiled white rice has a GI of 56 and a GL of 24. A medium baked potato (159g) has a high GI (60) and a marginal GL (18).

If you decide to concentrate on low-glycemic foods, I recommend you focus on a food’s glycemic load. Just be careful to adhere to the indicated serving sizes (or adjust the calculation accordingly), GL is a better measure of how much sugar in total is being poured into the bloodstream and the amount of sugar that will be stored as fat.

This article is for informational purposes only. It does not purport to offer medical advice.

For more articles on diet and nutrition, visit http://www.ageless-beauty.com/antiaging-nutrition.html

1health Nutrition
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The Pros and Cons of Fad Dieting


It is very tempting to try that fad diet that you have found
in the latest magazine that promises the world with
fantastic fat losses without doing a thing. Just take
a couple of fat burning pills follow the diet and then
bang! A brand new you in a couple of weeks.

The sad fact is they do not work, they just provide more
suffering in your efforts to lose weight, the only thing
you lose is your hard earned money.

Firstly we will look at the latest fad diets on the scene at
the moment, their pros and cons and then you will be shown
how to save your time, money and unnecessary suffering by
pointing you in the right direction for permanent weight
loss.

The latest studies show that 90 per cent of fad dieters
regained everything they had lost and even gained more
within eighteen months.


The Atkins Diet.

The body burns carbohydrates and then fat for energy.
This diet recommends limiting the intake of starchy,
high carb foods so that the fat is burned first. So by
eating meat, cheese and eggs and keeping bread and potatoes
to a minimum, fat is lost.

Pros: Steak with cheese topping, Chocolate mocha ice cream
and pork scratchings.

Cons: Studies show high protein diets lead to increased risk
of heart disease, colon cancer, bad breath (halitosis) and
constipation. Consuming more carbohydrate that can
be used by the body will store this excess in fat cells.


The Zone Diet.

This diet claims to decrease hunger and boost energy by
keeping your bodies eating habits in the zone or at its peak.
This is done by keeping all your meals and snacks in the ratio
of 40% carbohydrates, 30% protein, 30% fats.

Pros: Being a low calorie diet, you can`t help but lose weight.

Cons: Very difficult to adhere to the strict regime the diet
requires. Will experience metabolism slow down because of low
calories and will lead to starvation response which will eat
away at the muscle tissue while retaining the fat.


The Blood Group Diet.

By having a blood test and determining your blood group, this
then tells you how you can absorb nutrients, thus you can plan
your diet accordingly. Different blood groups can eat different
food groups.

Pros: Another calorie restricting diet so weight will be lost.

Cons: There appears to be little clinical and scientific evidence
behind this diet and by the elimination of whole food groups important
nutritional deficiencies are likely with long term health problems
encountered.


The Ashram Diet.

This diet is basically a very low calorie diet (near starvation)
which is coupled with a very high intensity exercise regime.
A sample of this diet would include: One boiled egg for
breakfast, a green salad for lunch and a baked potato with
salsa for dinner.

Pros: A very quick weight loss, 10 - 15 lbs in a week (Mostly
muscle tissue and water).

Cons: Fast weight loss leads to many unpleasant side effects
such as bad breath, bone loss, constipation, deprivation of nutrients
(vitamins and minerals), muscle loss, metabolism slow down, headaches
and poor sleep. Who would want all these problems for the sake of
quick weight loss where the weight will eventually be put back on and more in a
couple of months?


The Hay Diet.

The main rule to follow for this diet is to not eat protein and
carbohydrates together. Combination of these two foods together
appears to prevent protein from being digested in the gut and
can lead to an accumulation of toxins. Vegetables and fruit
form the bulk of the diet with very small portions of protein
and carbs.

Pros: Plenty of fruit and veggies in the diet means plenty of
vitamins, minerals and antioxidants.

Cons: There doesn`t appear to be too much scientific evidence
about food combinations and by limiting yourself to certain food
groups you will miss out on important nutrients.


All these diets work because of a drastic cut in calories, when
this happens our metabolic rate can be brought down in a matter
of 36 hours by as much as 50% which means your body is now burning
only half of your calories. To compound matters further, hunger
kicks in after a period of inadequate eating setting you up for
over eating and binging.

Everyone is an individual so you have to be careful of diets that require
you to set out what types of foods and quantities you have to eat
at every meal. Just because a movie star lost weight on a fad diet
doesn`t mean that you will. Before starting a weight loss program
take into account your age, fitness levels, activity levels and
medical history.

A real weight loss program includes all the food groups, strength
training, low level aerobics, a slight decrease in your daily
calorie levels and a program that can be followed for life.