The sphere of nutrition is flooded with charts, indexes, maps, models, acronyms, and abbreviations; more than the common dieter can memorize. Due to this considerable overload of information, one often sees a dieter who has merely burned-out making an attempt to stay on top of how much to eat, what time to eat it, how to calculate the calories from fat, the RDI, the DV, and so on. There's an tremendous amount of helpful info among the nutrition field, and it can ironically cause one to eventually become tired out and fatigued, tune out, and go buy a fast food meal.
Yet every every now and then, a breakthrough within the nutrition field surfaces that truly demands attention and respect. A little more than 10 years ago, the USDA’s “Food Pyramid” was one such idea because it helped dieters discover the gaps that there were in their normal daily diet program. Now, as the Food Pyramid begins to take a new shape, and as the nutrition field works to establish itself as the foremost vital branch of health care within the 21st century, new idea known as the Glycemic Index is taking center stage.
The Glycemic Index (GI) isn't new; it's been around for more than 2 decades. Nevertheless till just recently, its exposure outside the world of diabetes has been very limited [i].
The Glycemic Index indicates how “high” or “low” blood sugar levels change in response to carbohydrate ingestion. A “high” Glycemic Index indicates carbohydrates with a quick breakdown, whereas a “low” Glycemic Index indicates carbohydrates with slow, steady breakdown. Each conditions are equally important to diabetics, since there are certain occasions when high Glycemic Index foods are needed, and times where low Glycemic Index foods are required.
Indeed, the Glycemic Index itself is not new, however its function way past the boundaries of a diabetic dialogue is noteworthy; particularly for people trying to lose weight.
Those dieters usually face a nemesis a great deal tougher than establishing an work out regimen or introducing healthier foods into their diet plan. The issue is one of energy. Many dieters are shocked – and distressed – to find out that their diet program is actually causing them to lose more not only causing them to lose inches and pounds: they're also losing energy.
This is typically expressed as a criticism, as in “I’m feeling weak”, or even “I can’t seem to stay awake”. Several people trying to lose weight and people guiding them have mistakenly attributed this to a matter of perspective, or will power, or some other non-biological culprit.
The plain truth is that a lot of people trying to lose weight have been not aware of the Glycemic Index, and therefore, to the actual fact that a lot of the diet foods they have eaten – or are eating at this time – score terribly high Glycemic Index levels. Because of this the foods that they are actually eating only give them an instant but short lived jolt to blood sugar levels after which comes a crash or fall in those levels, causing the drained feeling. This is often as a result of high GI foods typically increase blood sugar levels, that in turn set off the hormone insulin to remove sugar from the blood. Since blood sugar (a.k.a. glucose) is responsible for regulating the body’s energy levels, it stands to reason that this process begins as an initial spurt of energy, and then as a depletion of energy. This rise and plunge of blood sugar levels – and energy – is usually described by dieters employing a “roller-coaster” analogy: one moment they feel assured and sturdy, and the subsequent, they're feeling like they're going to pass out and require some kind of stimulant in order to make it through the day.
Lamentably for most dieters, that stimulant is sometimes additional high Glycemic Index foods, such as candies or soft drinks. It is simple to see how this experience can cause an individual to quit trying to lose weight. After all, before the diet, the individual was just gaining weight. On the diet, the individual is gaining weight and is exhausted for much of the day. It is better to give up on the diet.
This scenario only happens, however, when a dieter unwittingly consumes high Glycemic Index foods. Analysis has shown that low Glycemic Index foods, which raise blood sugar levels a lot more gradually than high Glycemic Index foods, are extremely useful for dieters [ii]. This is because a dieter can experience less of a “roller-coaster” ride while on the diet, and furthermore, will be less inclined to snack as a result of energy in the shape of blood glucose is being released slowly and gradually. Low Glycemic Index foods are a lot more efficient sources of energy than high Glycemic Index foods, as the body utilizes less insulin to change food into energy [iii].
Despite the increased awareness of the fact that low Glycemic Index foods are useful, the world of diet foods has not kept pace. This is a result of many makers are looking frantically to find low Glycemic Index carbohydrates sources for his or her merchandise, and overlooking a basic, straightforward reality: the lowest possible Glycemic Index is not any carbohydrates at all.
These zero-carbohydrate/zero sugar nutritional supplements – that are quite rare in the market – do not deliver any sugar to the bloodstream. Thus, dieters do not need to worry about riding the “roller coaster” of energy spikes and pitfalls.
However there is an even bigger reward for dieters who opt for a ‘zero sugar’ nutritional supplement. If that low Glycemic Index nutritional supplement is rich in complete protein, then it can act as a kind of antidote to high GI foods by helping to combat their unpleasant effects.
For instance, a dieter who consumes a high Glycemic Index candy will alleviate the meteoric rise in blood sugar levels by eating a nutritional supplement that has a very low Glycemic Index and has a rich source of complete protein. This is often a result of the protein in the nutritional supplement which mixes with the high Glycemic Index of the candy, and effectively lowers the general Glycemic Index. This can be welcome news to people trying to lose weight who would otherwise be seeing those additional carbohydrates reworked by insulin into triglycerides, and stored in adipose tissue; additionally called body fat.
Currently, only a handful of nutritional supplements are designed to supply zero carbohydrates and thus score as low as possible on the Glycemic Index. And of these zero-carbohydrate products, even fewer provide a rich source of complete protein that efficiently assists to counter the blood sugar spike impact of high Glycemic Index foods.
It is inspiring to note that Glycemic Index is obtaining some well-deserved attention from outside the diabetic community, where it has helped several individuals eat wisely. Now, dieters and overweight folks can enjoy the knowledge provided by this index.
REFERENCES
[i] Source: “The G.I. Diet: A Food Drill”. CBS News.
http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2004/03/04/earlyshow/living/main604138.shtml
[ii] Source: “The Glycemic Index”. The Healthy Weight Forum.
http://www.healthyweightforum.org/eng/articles/glycemic-index/
Founded in 2001, Protica Research (Protica, Inc.) is a nutritional research firm specializing in the development of capsulized foods (dense nutrition in compact liquid and food forms). Protica manufactures Profect (www.profect.com), IsoMetric, Pediagro, Fruitasia and more than 100 other brands in its GMP-certified, 250,000 square foot facility. One area of specialty is the manufacturing of Medicare-approved, whey protein shots for renal care patients.
You can learn more about Protica at www.protica.com - Copyright - Protica Research
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