Fruits with high glycemic index are a list of fruits classified by glycemic index value as made from the fruit’s individual components. This can be helpful in determining which fruits are healthy and which aren’t, helping to avoid the harmful effects of glucose spikes. Different fruits with different glycemic indexes. Research shows that glycemic index can help you lose weight and prevent diabetes, heart disease and strokes.
How does using the glycemic index work? The glycemic index is the scale that was created to determine how fast a carbohydrate-containing food is converted into blood sugar. Now, what you should know is that the GI value of fruit depends on the ripeness, texture, and variety of fruits. There are various lists available online about which fruits have a high glycemic index; however, for you and me, it’s more important to know which fruits are rich in vitamins and minerals rather than only their glycemic index.
Glycemic Index has to do with a food’s ability to raise blood sugar levels – or glucose (dextrose). With a high glycemic index, food can raise blood sugar quickly, but it does not last very long before the body needs more. Foods with a low glycemic index will cause glucose levels to rise more slowly and maintain an even flow of energy over a longer period of time. In this article, you will learn what factors affect a food’s glycemic Index rating? as well as the health benefits of fruits
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Fruits With High Glycemic Index
There are two types of fruits, one is fruits with a high glycemic index and the other is fruits with a low glycemic index. Now if you are confused about the term “glycemic index” then it is nothing but the measure of blood sugar level that rises after a meal containing carbohydrates.
Beginning in the 1980s, researchers developed a method of testing individual foods to see how much they raised blood glucose, resulting in a scale called the glycemic index or GI. Many fruits and vegetables contain minimal to moderate amounts of carbohydrates and therefore have a low GI, but some fruits and starchy vegetables are on the high end.
Glycemic Index Explained
The aim of the glycemic index is to provide health-conscious eaters with a tool for estimating how much impact a food will have on blood glucose levels. To do this, researchers commonly use pure glucose as the benchmark, measuring its effect on blood glucose and using that to set the bar. With this as a reference point, researchers anywhere can test food, measure its impact on the blood glucose levels of volunteers, and then compare it to pure glucose.
A food with a GI of 55 or less is considered to be “low GI,” anything from 55 to 69 is considered “moderate,” and a GI of 70 or greater is considered “high.” To complicate matters, produce items don’t always test at the same GI level. Some varieties of a given fruit or vegetable may have more starches or sugars, and other factors such as the ripeness of the test food and the length of time it’s been in storage can also affect the end result.
High And Moderate GI Fruits
Because of their naturally high sugar content, some fruits have a moderate to the high glycemic index. The highest GI among raw — not dried or canned — fruits is watermelon, with an average GI of 72 and with some samples testing as high as 80. Well-ripened cantaloupes can also have a GI of 70 in some cases. Fruits that qualify as having a moderate GI include:
- Pineapple
- Cherries
- Mango
- Papaya
- Grapes
- Kiwis
- Watermelon
- Cantaloupe
- Many canned fruits
- Dried fruits such as raisins, dates and dried cranberries
High And Moderate GI Vegetables
The majority of vegetables have a very low GI, with high glycemic index numbers cropping up mostly among the starchy vegetables. Russet Burbank potatoes check in at a GI of 111, for example, higher than for glucose itself. Cassava and sweet potato, in some tests, have scored as high as 94. Other vegetables falling into the high and moderate GI brackets in at least some tests include:
- Carrots
- Plantain (a fruit that’s used as a vegetable, like a squash or tomatoes)
- Sweet potatoes and yams
- Rutabaga
- Pumpkin
- Beets
- Sweet Corn
Low GI Fruits
Most fruits fall into the low GI category, despite their relatively high levels of sugar. That’s due largely to their high levels of fiber and fiber-like substances, such as pectin, which slow digestion and moderate their impact on blood glucose levels. Among fresh, low-GI fruits, wild blueberries have one of the highest scores at a GI of 53 in some tests. Some plums reach that level as well, while others — paradoxically — score among the lowest, at a GI of 24. Bananas have an all-tests average GI of 48. So fruits in the low GI category include most of your favorites, such as:
- Bananas
- Oranges
- Grapefruit
- Most grapes
- Kiwi fruit
- Pears
- Nectarines
- Blueberries
- Strawberries
Low GI Vegetables
Most nonstarchy vegetables fall into the low GI category, with those at the high end including sweet and starchy root vegetables such as parsnips at a GI in some tests of 52, carrots in some tests at 49, and — surprisingly — new potatoes at a relatively modest GI of 47. The lowest-tested vegetable in the official GI database maintained at the University of Sydney, in Australia, is raw carrots at a GI of 16. The vast majority of vegetables aren’t included in the database, because their glycemic index is low enough to be negligible and therefore researchers at the University of Sydney, and sister institutions worldwide, don’t bother to test them.
GI Is A Limited Tool
It’s important to bear in mind that the glycemic index is only one tool used to measure the healthfulness of fruits and vegetables, and it has a number of flaws. For one thing, the amount of food used for testing purposes doesn’t necessarily correspond to a portion you’d eat in real life. There’s a related measure called glycemic load or GL, which makes that correction by adjusting the test results to reflect a real-world portion.
Another issue is that real-life meals typically include multiple foods eaten all at once, and the impact of a full meal on your blood glucose is hard to predict. For example, eating a mixed meal with foods that contain protein and fats can help slow your digestion and reduce the impact even of high-GI foods.
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Finding That Balance
That doesn’t mean the glycemic index has no value. Even the American Diabetes Association, which recommends carb-counting as a better method of controlling blood sugar, suggests that it can help fine-tune your meal choices. If most of what’s on your plate are vegetables or other foods with a low GI, then the overall meal itself will probably have a moderate impact on your glucose levels.
It’s important to remember as well that there’s more to food and nutrition than your blood glucose. A key recommendation of the Dietary Guidelines for Americans is to choose foods that are nutritionally dense, meaning they pack a lot of nutrients for the number of calories. Most fruits and vegetables are among the healthiest menu choices, so eating plenty of them, and the widest variety possible should be a bigger priority than their respective GI scores.
What Factors Affect A Food’s Glycemic Index Rating?
What Factors Affect A Food’s Glycemic Index Rating? In most cases, it depends on the food and its other ingredient’s glycemic index rating. Depending on how a food is prepared and how much it is processed, a food’s glycemic index rating can change. The ingredients used in preparing food are the most important factor in determining its glycemic index.
To assign a GI number, foods are assigned to one of three categories: low, medium, or high.
- Low GI foods have a GI of 55 or less.
- Medium GI foods are between 56 and 69.
- High GI foods are 70 or higher.
For glycemic load, under 10 is considered low, 10 to 20 is considered medium, and over 20 is considered high.
Several factors are taken into account when assigning a food a glycemic rating.
These factors include:
Acidity
Foods that are highly acidic, such as pickles, tend to be lower on the GI than foods that aren’t. This explains why bread made with lactic acids, such as sourdough bread, is lower on the GI than white bread.
Cooking Time
The longer a food is cooked, the higher it tends to be on the GI. When food is cooked, the starch or carbohydrates start to break down.
Fiber Content
In general, foods that are high in fiber have lower glycemic ratings.
The fibrous coatings around beans and seeds mean the body breaks them down more slowly. Therefore, they tend to be lower on the glycemic scale than foods without this coating.
Processing
As a general rule, the more processed a food is, the higher it is on the glycemic scale. For example, fruit juice has a higher GI rating than fresh fruits.
Ripeness
The riper a fruit or vegetable, the higher it tends to be on the GI.
While there are certainly exceptions to each rule, these are some general guidelines to follow when evaluating the potential blood sugar impact of a particular food.
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How does using the glycemic index work?
How does using the glycemic index work? It’s a tool used by diabetics to make their foods healthier. It’s also a tool that can be used by those who just want to cut body fat and maintain muscle. In this article, I’ll give you a simple breakdown of what it is, how it works, and how you can use it.
Eating according to the GI can help you better manage your post-meal blood sugar levels. The GI can also help you determine appropriate combinations of food. For example, eating several low-GI fruits and vegetables combined with high-GI food can help you maintain better blood sugar control. Other examples include adding beans to rice, nut butter to bread, or tomato sauce to pasta.
What Are The Benefits Of Using The Glycemic Index?
Choosing foods with low glycemic impact can help to keep your blood sugar levels low. However, you must also carefully adhere to the portion sizes recommended. Glycemic ratings aren’t only for those with diabetes.
Those trying to lose weight or decrease hunger also utilize the GI as a diet because it can control appetite. Because food takes longer to digest in the body, a person can feel fuller for longer.
What Are The Risks Of Eating On The Glycemic Index?
The glycemic index helps you pick higher-quality carbohydrates. However, it’s the total carbohydrate loads in your diet that ultimately affect blood sugar levels.
Choosing low-glycemic foods can help, but you must also manage the total carbohydrates that you consume.
Also, the GI doesn’t take into account the overall nutritional value of a food. For example, just because microwave popcorn is in the middle of GI foods, doesn’t mean you should live only on microwave popcorn.
When you start on a diet to manage your diabetes, the American Diabetes Association recommends that you meet with a registered dietitian who’s familiar with diabetes.
There are many meal plans available. Make sure to ask how you can use the information on the glycemic index to best manage your blood sugar levels.
The glycemic index of common fruits and vegetables
Eating healthy is important for controlling diabetes. Fruits and vegetables are an important part of a healthy diet.
Knowing both the glycemic index as well as the glycemic load of some of the more common fruits and vegetables will help you choose your favorites to incorporate into your daily diet.
| Fruits | Glycemic index (glucose = 100) | Serving size (grams) | Glycemic load per serving |
|---|---|---|---|
| Apple, average | 39 | 120 | 6 |
| Banana, ripe | 62 | 120 | 16 |
| Dates, dried | 42 | 80 | 18 |
| Grapefruit | 25 | 120 | 3 |
| Grapes, average | 59 | 120 | 11 |
| Orange, average | 40 | 120 | 4 |
| Peach, average | 42 | 120 | 5 |
| Peach, canned in light syrup | 40 | 120 | 5 |
| Pear, average | 43 | 120 | 5 |
| Pear, canned in pear juice | 38 | 120 | 4 |
| Prunes, pitted | 29 | 60 | 10 |
| Raisins | 64 | 60 | 28 |
| Watermelon | 72 | 120 | 4 |
| Vegetables | Glycemic index (glucose = 100) | Serving size (grams) | Glycemic load per serving |
|---|---|---|---|
| Green peas, average | 51 | 80 | 4 |
| Carrots, average | 35 | 80 | 2 |
| Parsnips | 52 | 80 | 4 |
| Baked russet potato, average | 111 | 150 | 33 |
| Boiled white potato, average | 82 | 150 | 21 |
| Instant mashed potato, average | 87 | 150 | 17 |
| Sweet potato, average | 70 | 150 | 22 |
| Yam, average | 54 | 150 | 20 |
Takeaway
When you use the glycemic index when planning meals, you’ll be able to better manage your blood sugar levels. You’ll also be able to find and choose foods that you enjoy. You can then incorporate them into a healthy diet plan.
Managing blood sugar levels through diet is an extremely important part of managing your diabetes.
Glycemic Index For 60+ Foods
Measuring Carbohydrate Effects Can Help Glucose Management.
The glycemic index is a value assigned to foods based on how quickly and how high those foods cause increases in blood glucose levels. Foods low on the glycemic index (GI) scale tend to release glucose slowly and steadily.
Foods that are high on the glycemic index release glucose rapidly. Low GI foods tend to foster weight loss, while foods high on the GI scale help with energy recovery after exercise, or offset hypo- (or insufficient) glycemia. Long-distance runners would tend to favor foods high on the glycemic index, while people with pre- or full-blown diabetes would need to concentrate on low GI foods.
Why? People with type 1 diabetes can’t produce sufficient quantities of insulin and those with type 2 diabetes are resistant to insulin. With both types of diabetes, faster glucose release from high GI foods leads to spikes in blood sugar levels. The slow and steady release of glucose in low-glycemic foods helps maintain good glucose control.
To help you understand how the foods you are eating might impact your blood glucose level, here is an abbreviated chart of the glycemic index for more than 60 common foods. A more complete glycemic index chart can be found in the link below.
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Food with Glycemic Index
| FOOD | Glycemic index (glucose = 100) |
| HIGH-CARBOHYDRATE FOODS | |
| White wheat bread* | 75 ± 2 |
| Whole wheat/whole meal bread | 74 ± 2 |
| Specialty grain bread | 53 ± 2 |
| Unleavened wheat bread | 70 ± 5 |
| Wheat roti | 62 ± 3 |
| Chapatti | 52 ± 4 |
| Corn tortilla | 46 ± 4 |
| White rice, boiled* | 73 ± 4 |
| Brown rice, boiled | 68 ± 4 |
| Barley | 28 ± 2 |
| Sweet corn | 52 ± 5 |
| Spaghetti, white | 49 ± 2 |
| Spaghetti, whole meal | 48 ± 5 |
| Rice noodles† | 53 ± 7 |
| Udon noodles | 55 ± 7 |
| Couscous† | 65 ± 4 |
| BREAKFAST CEREALS | |
| Cornflakes | 81 ± 6 |
| Wheat flake biscuits | 69 ± 2 |
| Porridge, rolled oats | 55 ± 2 |
| Instant oat porridge | 79 ± 3 |
| Rice porridge/congee | 78 ± 9 |
| Millet porridge | 67 ± 5 |
| Muesli | 57 ± 2 |
| FRUIT AND FRUIT PRODUCTS | |
| Apple, raw† | 36 ± 2 |
| Orange, raw† | 43 ± 3 |
| Banana, raw† | 51 ± 3 |
| Pineapple, raw | 59 ± 8 |
| Mango, raw† | 51 ± 5 |
| Watermelon, raw | 76 ± 4 |
| Dates, raw | 42 ± 4 |
| Peaches, canned† | 43 ± 5 |
| Strawberry jam/jelly | 49 ± 3 |
| Apple juice | 41 ± 2 |
| Orange juice | 50 ± 2 |
| VEGETABLES | |
| Potato, boiled | 78 ± 4 |
| Potato, instant mash | 87 ± 3 |
| Potato, french fries | 63 ± 5 |
| Carrots, boiled | 39 ± 4 |
| Sweet potato, boiled | 63 ± 6 |
| Pumpkin, boiled | 64 ± 7 |
| Plantain/green banana | 55 ± 6 |
| Taro, boiled | 53 ± 2 |
| Vegetable soup | 48 ± 5 |
Health Benefits of Fruits
1. Boost Energy
2. Heart Health
3. Diabetes
4. Cancer
5. Blood Pressure
6. Kidney Stones
7. Bone Health
8. Prevent Diseases
9. Aid in Digestion
Fibrous fruits aid the digestive process in the body. The skin of some fruits is also rich in dietary fiber, which is a major contributing factor in proper digestion and the excretion process of your body, while simultaneously keeping you safe from problems like gastritis and constipation. However, in some cases, the skin is thick, like in lemons, bananas, melons, and oranges, and cannot be consumed by humans. In those cases, the edible part of the flesh within the skin has plenty of fiber as well.
The fiber content in fruit not only has a brilliant laxative effect but also makes you feel full by adding bulk nutrition to the diet. Fibrous fruits also benefit conditions like heart disease by reducing hyperlipidemia and hypertension, diabetes mellitus and obesity. Owing to this fibrous composition, fruits also have anti-carcinogenic properties and are known to prevent colon cancer and fight bowel irregularity disorders.