G I values of common foods The following lists of G I values should be regarded as guidelines and not as absolute values. The GI is influenced by a wide variety of factors, namely:
HUMAN FACTORS
Individual variations
Effect of exercise and physical fitness
Carbohydrate content of the diet in general
Presence of diseases, e.g. patients with diabetes will react differently when compared to healthy subjects
Age
Sex
Race
PHYSICAL FOOD FACTORS
Physical form of starch granules and their size
Amylose to amylopectin ratio (i.e. ratio of the different types of starch in a food)
Processing such as pre-cooking, processing of foods such as pasta, blending, grinding
Type of heat used to cook the food (dry of moist)
Temperature and time of cooking (see difference in GI of pasta cooked for shorter or longer periods in the table below)
Degree of ripeness of fruit and vegetables
Amount of resistant starch in food
Presence of anti-nutrients such as phytate, lectins, tannins and saponins
Removal of protein from wheat products to produce gluten-free flour increases the GI
Presence of fat in foods lowers the GI
Presence of different fibres in foods – gel-forming fibres of soluble fibres lower the GI
Addition of salt can increase the GI
Addition of sugar in small quantities does not necessarily increase the G
In view of all these factors that can influence the GI of food, a working group has recently been appointed in South Africa to define the methods which should be used to determine the GI of local foods. The working group has issued a warning that “all results and GI values currently used in South Africa need to be used with caution …”
Readers should, therefore, use the GI values listed below with caution and not regard any of the GIs as final, absolute values.
In general, foods with a GI below 55 are classified as low-GI foods, those with a GI between 55 and 70 as intermediate –GI foods, and those with a GI of 70 or higher, as high-GI foods.
Food
GLYCAEMIC INDEX (GI) using white bread with a GI of 100 as reference
BREADS
Bagel, white
103
Hamburger bun
87
Melba toast
100
Oat bran bread
68
Rye kernel bread
66
Pumpernickel
71
Rye flour bread
92
Linseed rye bread
78
Wheat bread, white
100
Wheat bread, high fibre
97
Wheat bread, gluten-free
129
Wheat bread, wholewheat
99
Wholewheat snack breads
105
Pita, white
82
Mixed grain bread
64
BREAKFAST CEREALS
All-bran
60
All-bran with raisins
74
Cocoa pops
110
Cornflakes
119
Cream of wheat
100
Meusli
80
Oat bran
78
Oatmeal
87
Puffed wheat
105
Rice bran
27
Rice crispies
117
Shredded wheat
99
Special K
77
CEREAL GRAINS
Barlet, pearled
36
Barley, cracked
72
Barley, rolled
94
Bulgur wheat
68
Couscous
93
Maize meal
97
Millet
101
Sweet corn
78
Rice, white
81
Rice, Basmati (high amylose content)
83
Rice, brown
79
Rice, instant, boiled for 6 minutes
128
Rice, instant, boiled for 1 minute
65
Rice, parboiled
68
Rice, wild
81
Rye kernels
48
Tapioca boiled with milk
115
CAKES AND BISCUITS
Butter biscuits
79
Cake, angel food
95
Cake, banana loaf
67
Cake, sponge
66
Coffee cookies
113
Crispbread
116
Croissant
96
Crumpet
98
Digestive biscuits
84
Doughnut
108
Graham crackers
106
Maizena cookies
95
Muffins
88
Oat cookies
79
Pastry
84
Pizza base with cheese
86
Rice cakes
117
Rye crispbread
93
Shortbread
91
Waffle
109
Water biscuits
102
Wheat crackers
96
DRINKS
Cold drinks, sweetened
97
Cordials
94
Lucozade (energy drinks)
136
FRUIT AND FRUIT JUICES
Apple
52
Apple Juice
58
Apricots, fresh
82
Apricots, canned in syrup
91
Apricots, dried
44
Banana
76
Cherries
32
Fruit cocktail
79
Grapefruit
36
Grapefruit juice, unsweetened
69
Grapes
62
Kiwi fruit
75
Mango
80
Orange
62
Orange juice
74
Pawpaw
83
Peach, raw
40
Peach, canned
79
Pear, raw
51
Pear, canned
63
Pineapple, raw
94
Pineapple juice
66
Plum
34
Raisins
91
Spanspek
93
Sultanas
80
Watermelon
103
LEGUMES
Baked Beans, canned
69
Beans, dry
40
Broad beans
113
Butter beans
44
Chickpeas
47
Chickpeas, canned
60
Kidney beans
42
Kidney beans, canned
74
Lentils
41
Lentils, grean, canned
74
Lima beans, frozen
46
Soya beans
25
Soya mlik
43
Split peas, boiled
45
MILK AND DAIRY PRODUCTS
Ice cream
87
Ice cream, low-fat
71
Milk, whole
39
Milk, skim
46
Milk, chocolate, sweetened with sugar
49
Milk, chocolate, artificially sweetened
34
Custard
61
Yoghurt, low-fat, fruit, sweetened with sugar
47
Yoghurt, low-fat, artificially sweetened
20
Yoghurt, plain
51
PASTA
Fettucine
46
Gnocchi
95
Instant noodles
67
Macaroni
64
Macaroni and cheese
92
Ravioli, meat filling
56
Spaghetti, protein-enriched
38
Spaghetti, white, boiled 15 minutes
59
Spaghetti, boiled 5 minutes
52
Spaghetti, durum
78
Spaghetti, wholewheat
53
Vermicelli
50
SNACKS AND SWEETS
Jelly beans
114
Lifesavers
100
Chocolate
70
Chocolate bars
91
Energy bars
81
Maize snacks
105
Muesli bars
87
Popcorn
79
Potato chips
77
Peanuts
21
Pretzels
116
SOUPS
Bean soup
92
Green pea soup, canned
94
Lentil soup, canned
63
Split pea soup, homemade
86
Tomato soup
54
SUGARS
Honey
104
Fructose
32
Glucose powder
138
Glucose tablets
146
Maltose
150
Sucrose (table sugar)
92
Lactose
65
High-fructose corn sugar (used as sweetener)
89
Maltodextrin
107
VEGETABLES
Beetroot
91
Carrots
101
Parsnips
139
Peas, dried
32
Peas, green
68
Potato, instant mash
118
Potato, baked
121
Potato, new
81
Potato, boiled
80
Potato, boiled, mashed
104
Potato, microwaved
117
Potato chips, deep-fried (french fries)
107
Pumpkin
107
Sweet corn
78
Sweet potato
77
TIPS TO LOWER THE GI OF MEALS
If you need to lower the GI of a meal, then you can do the following;
Add vegetables to a starchy meal to reduce the GI – eating a green salad with
meat and rice lowers the high GI of rice.
By cooking starches and cooling them down, you can lower their GI’s – for
example cold maize meal porridge has a lower GI than hot porridge, and cold
potato salad has a lower GI than hot boiled potatoes.
Select foods that are less ripe- for example a firm, yellow banana has a lower
GI than a soft, ripe, mushy banana (75 vs 90)
Add organic acids like vinegar to a high starch meal – serve that salad with a
bit of oil and vinegar to lower the GI of the starch in the meal.
Use what we call the “second meal effect” to lower the GI of your diet – e.g. by
eating foods with a low GI at breakfast (All Bran cereal, milk and orange juice)
the effect carries over to lunch (bread, lettuce, ham, apple).
Add legumes to meals to lower the GI – dry beans, peas and lentils, tinned
beans, bean soup, and textured vegetable protein (Toppers) will all lower the GI
of a meal (e.g. eat baked beans with toast, 3 bean salad with rice, or add a tin
of butter beans or Toppers to stews served with mashed potato).
REPLACEMENT FOODS
Here is a list of foods that can be substituted for high GI foods to lower your
blood glucose and insulin levels:
Brown and white bread – replace with
wholewheat bread which contains plenty of unprocessed wheat grains, bran, oats
and raisins (bake for yourself if you have blood sugar problems or need to
slim).
Processed breakfast cereals – replace with Raisin Bran, maize meal which
have been cooked, cooled and heated up again, oat porridge, Maltabella.
Plain biscuits and crackers – replace with biscuits or rusks that contain dried fruit,
whole grains, bran and nuts (start baking again).
Tropical fruits – replace with fruits that grow in a cool climate like apples, peaches, pears and citrus.
Potatoes, replace with pasta, legumes, samp, long grain rice, Basmati rice.
White rice – replace with cooked crushed wheat.
Cooked maize meal (mielie pap) – replace with cooked, cooled and reheated maize meal porridge.
