Often I hear that the biggest problem in the modern diet is the consumption of simple carbohydrates. And why does this relate to blood sugar? Blood sugar is essentially glucose, a simple carbohydrate that is responsible for fueling the body and especially the brain. The body produces ATP from the sugar, which in turn is the fuel that the muscles use in their activities. There has to be sugar in the blood, otherwise, body stops working. The problem, in effect, is that us modern humans tend to have too high blood sugar level, which is not healthy, either.
Here is how it works:
At a meal time, you eat foods that include nutrients, among them carbohydrates. There are two kinds of carbs, simple carbs and complex carbs. Sugar and white refined flour are simple carbs, which means that it is easier and faster for the body to break them into glucose. This raises blood sugar fast, to which your body has to react by producing insulin. When the blood sugar rises fast, that is to say, increases the amount of sugar in the blood, body needs to produce a lot of insulin to counteract the sugar. This is called a blood sugar spike. When the body has to produce a lot of insulin all of a sudden, the chances are that there will be too much insulin, which then decreases blood sugar fast, as well. When the blood sugar dips, we tend to feel sluggish, tired and sleepy, which we try to help by eating more. See the vicious cycle?
To break the cycle, one should try to avoid simple carbs (sugar, honey, syrup, white bread, pastries, potato chips, candy, soda) and replace them with complex carbs (whole grain pasta, whole grain bread, brown rice etc.). Not only are complex carbs slower to digest, but they usually also contain other nutrients essential to the body whereas simple carbs tend to have only sugar in them. When foods low in simple carbs are consumed, sugar is released into the blood stream slower, which doesn't create a spike in blood sugar. Then, less insulin is needed to balance the blood sugar, which keeps the blood sugar level balanced.
The ability of a food to raise blood sugar is defined by the glycemic index. Glycemic index is a number that tells you the magnitude of of the food's effect on our blood sugar. A low glycemic index means that the food doesn't raise blood sugar fast and a high glycemic index means that the carbs that the food contains raise blood sugar swiftly. As a result, it is more healthy to consume low GI foods than high GI foods.
Glycemic index is high if it is more than 71
GI is medium if the index is between 51 and 69
GI is low if the index is less than 50.
Glucose has a GI of 100. Sugar in fruit has a GI of less than 50!
Examples of low GI: whole wheat bread, al dente pasta, fruits and vegetables, oatmeal.
benefits of low GI foods:
It is important for a well functioning body to to cut down on the simple carbohydrate consumption, especially refined sugar. Among the effects of sugar in the body include: suppression of the immune system, removing of micronutrients from the body and increasing the amount of bad cholesterol (2). This being said, it is not hard to realize that sugar should not be a part of anyone's diet. Is easier said than done you say, and I agree. It is not easy (for me either) to cut down on sugar when the chocolates and pastries and all that are around you all the time (and they taste so good!). Also, sugar is a part of celebrations, or what is a birthday without a cake? That's where the difficulty lies: sugar is a big part of many kinds of traditions and tradition in turn makes eating sugar emotional. When emotions come in, it is easy to push aside the health of your body, especially when the effects are not immediately visible.
I hope you enjoyed the blog,
Anna-Kaisa
Sources: 1. http://www.glycemicindex.com/
They have a glycemic index database that makes it easy to find out which foods are high and which
are low in glycemic index.
2. http://www.webmd.com/food-recipes/features/health-effects-of-sugar
Here is how it works:
At a meal time, you eat foods that include nutrients, among them carbohydrates. There are two kinds of carbs, simple carbs and complex carbs. Sugar and white refined flour are simple carbs, which means that it is easier and faster for the body to break them into glucose. This raises blood sugar fast, to which your body has to react by producing insulin. When the blood sugar rises fast, that is to say, increases the amount of sugar in the blood, body needs to produce a lot of insulin to counteract the sugar. This is called a blood sugar spike. When the body has to produce a lot of insulin all of a sudden, the chances are that there will be too much insulin, which then decreases blood sugar fast, as well. When the blood sugar dips, we tend to feel sluggish, tired and sleepy, which we try to help by eating more. See the vicious cycle?
To break the cycle, one should try to avoid simple carbs (sugar, honey, syrup, white bread, pastries, potato chips, candy, soda) and replace them with complex carbs (whole grain pasta, whole grain bread, brown rice etc.). Not only are complex carbs slower to digest, but they usually also contain other nutrients essential to the body whereas simple carbs tend to have only sugar in them. When foods low in simple carbs are consumed, sugar is released into the blood stream slower, which doesn't create a spike in blood sugar. Then, less insulin is needed to balance the blood sugar, which keeps the blood sugar level balanced.
The ability of a food to raise blood sugar is defined by the glycemic index. Glycemic index is a number that tells you the magnitude of of the food's effect on our blood sugar. A low glycemic index means that the food doesn't raise blood sugar fast and a high glycemic index means that the carbs that the food contains raise blood sugar swiftly. As a result, it is more healthy to consume low GI foods than high GI foods.
Glycemic index is high if it is more than 71
GI is medium if the index is between 51 and 69
GI is low if the index is less than 50.
Glucose has a GI of 100. Sugar in fruit has a GI of less than 50!
Examples of low GI: whole wheat bread, al dente pasta, fruits and vegetables, oatmeal.
benefits of low GI foods:
- Low GI diets help people lose and manage weight
- Low GI diets increase the body's sensitivity to insulin
- Low GI carbs improve diabetes management
- Low GI carbs reduce the risk of heart disease
- Low GI carbs improve blood cholesterol levels
- Low GI carbs can help you manage the symptoms of PCOS
- Low GI carbs reduce hunger and keep you fuller for longer
- Low GI carbs prolong physical endurance
- High GI carbs help re-fuel carbohydrate stores after exercise (1)
It is important for a well functioning body to to cut down on the simple carbohydrate consumption, especially refined sugar. Among the effects of sugar in the body include: suppression of the immune system, removing of micronutrients from the body and increasing the amount of bad cholesterol (2). This being said, it is not hard to realize that sugar should not be a part of anyone's diet. Is easier said than done you say, and I agree. It is not easy (for me either) to cut down on sugar when the chocolates and pastries and all that are around you all the time (and they taste so good!). Also, sugar is a part of celebrations, or what is a birthday without a cake? That's where the difficulty lies: sugar is a big part of many kinds of traditions and tradition in turn makes eating sugar emotional. When emotions come in, it is easy to push aside the health of your body, especially when the effects are not immediately visible.
I hope you enjoyed the blog,
Anna-Kaisa
Sources: 1. http://www.glycemicindex.com/
They have a glycemic index database that makes it easy to find out which foods are high and which
are low in glycemic index.
2. http://www.webmd.com/food-recipes/features/health-effects-of-sugar
How about Nature Valley "Oats 'n Dark Chocolate Bars"? Are those bad for me? :P
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