A diabetic diet can help someone diagnosed with diabetes to keep blood sugar levels under control. The glycemic index can be a potent tool in a diabetic diet, but it does have some drawbacks. By understanding how the glycemic index works, and how it can help you choose the right foods to manage your diabetes, you may be able to eliminate or reduce the need for insulin or diabetes medication.
Diabetes
Individuals with diabetes struggle with blood sugar levels that get too high because of a problem with insulin. A diabetic's body either cannot produce insulin, produces too little insulin or cannot use the insulin that is produced. Over 90 percent of diabetics have type 2 diabetes, the kind that develops slowly over time as the body's response to insulin declines. While individuals with type 1 diabetes usually require insulin injections, many cases of type 2 diabetes can be controlled through diet and physical activity alone. An insulin-dependent diabetic may be able to reduce his insulin dose by following a diet that minimizes blood sugar fluctuations.
Glycemic Response
The glycemic index measures how fast and how high a specific amount of a given food raises blood sugar levels. Foods with a high glycemic index have a stronger effect on blood sugar than foods with a low glycemic index. Foods with a high glycemic index tend to be high in refined grains and sugars, like white bread, pastries and candy. Foods high in fiber and protein tend to score lower on the glycemic index. Examples of low glycemic index foods include nuts, beans, whole grain bread and non-starchy vegetables.
Using the Glycemic Index
Diabetics sometimes use a diet plan that focuses on foods with a low glycemic index, avoiding high glycemic index foods as much as possible. A diet that uses the glycemic index as a guideline for food choices tends to prioritize healthy whole foods over refined foods. According to the Linus Pauling Institute, diabetic individuals on a low-glycemic, high-fiber diet improve blood glucose control and have fewer episodes of hypoglycemia.
Considerations
Using the glycemic index for the control of diabetes does have a few drawbacks. The glycemic index only looks at carbohydrate content of foods, and not at other nutritional components, so some foods with a low glycemic index may be high in fat or low in nutrients. The glycemic index also does not take into account how much food is eaten or how it is prepared. The glycemic index also ignores the changes in blood sugar reaction when two or more foods are eaten together.
