OnFitness Magazine - November/December 2021 - 33

33 WWW.ONFITNESSMAG.COM | VOL 22 NO 3 | 2021
a high glycemic rating include
processed cereals, white rice,
breakfast bars, some meal
replacement shakes, and whiteflour-based
foods such as
pancakes, waffles, pasta, bagels,
and bread.
These tasty foods all have a
complex-carb counterpart, such as
brown or wild rice, whole-grain
waffles, and multi-grain bagels.
These are far better for your body
than their white-flour versions.
Meal replacement and sports
bars come in very low-carb
versions, but then you have the
problem of artificial sweeteners.
These should be outright
avoided. It's better to eat the
occasional high glycemic index
energy bar that has no artificial
ingredients.
All " junk " food with a very
high glycemic index include cake,
pastries, toaster tarts, cookies, and
candy. However, you can find
whole-grain counterparts, such as
high fiber cookies that contain
healthy seeds and nuts, at health
food stores.
These don't contain white
flour. But because they also have
added sugar, or sometimes cane
juice, for sweetness, they still
qualify as containing simple carbs.
But the whole grains make them
preferable to conventional cookies.
Sugar in the blood is vital for
survival. However, an overload can
be deadly, and everything in
between, including immune
system suppression and increased
cancer risk (cancer cells feed off of
sugar for fuel), not to mention a
higher risk of heart disease and
nagging hunger - which makes
you eat even more. The high
glycemic index diet is also a risk
factor for type II diabetes.
A high glycemic index way of
eating just has no virtues at all,
and our bodies didn't evolve on
this kind of eating, which is why it
produces so many adverse effects,
including fatigue, headaches, and
irritability in some people.
-
As far as glycemic ratings, pure
sugar (glucose) comes in at one
hundred. All other ratings are
relative to this. The lower the
number, the lower the glycemic
index, and the better the food is
for you, as far as stabilizing blood
sugar, improving the immune
system, having more overall
energy, and curbing appetite.
Low glycemic index foods are
fifty-five or lower, intermediate
glycemic index foods are fifty-five
to seventy, and high glycemic
index foods are over seventy.
Restrict intake of foods with a
glycemic index over sixty (with
exception of fruits, organic whole
juices, and other high antioxidant
whole foods such as raisins,
organic boiled potatoes, or raw
fava beans), though occasional
indulgences won't sabotage an
otherwise healthy dietary regimen.
Foods ninety and over include
middle Eastern flatbread,
commercial-brand corn flakes,
instant rice, puffed rice, rice pasta,
carrot juice, russet potatoes,
parsnips, dates (100-plus!), candy.
Foods eighty to eighty-nine
include baked potato, crispy rice
cereal, rice cakes, white potatoes,
pretzels, candy, and jelly beans.
Foods seventy to seventy-nine
include white bagel, white bread,
whole wheat bread, white waffles,
broad (fava) beans, watermelon,
millet, corn tortilla, corn chips,
and vanilla wafers.
Foods sixty to sixty-nine
include croissant, cantaloupe,
pineapple, sweet/boiled corn,
canned beets, one hundred
percent barley flour, bran muffins,
raisins, dried figs, and angel food
cake without the icing.
Foods fifty to fifty-nine
include steamed brown rice,
basmati rice, buckwheat, white
pita bread, whole-grain bread, ripe
banana, raw oat bran, blueberry
muffin, bulgur bread, red-skin and
sweet potatoes, popcorn, grapes,
and potato chips.
Foods forty to forty-nine
include instant noodles, canned
chickpeas, pumpernickel/rye
bread, oatmeal, carrots, green
peas, canned baked beans, overripe
banana, black-eyed beans,
pear, grapes, blueberries, orange,
orange juice, grapefruit juice, and
canned kidney beans.
Foods thirty to thirty-nine
include apple, pear, yam (peeled
and boiled), butter beans, lima
beans, tomatoes, dried apricots,
strawberries, peaches, yogurt,
skim milk, and flaxseeds
Foods twenty to twenty-nine
include lentils, pearled barley,
grapefruit, plums, cherries, and
whole milk.
Foods ten to nineteen include
peanuts, cauliflower, radishes,
greens, and most un-processed
meats and fish.
Foods that are zero include
raw broccoli, raw bok choy, celery,
and lettuce.
Some of these rankings, no
doubt, are unexpected, and
different sources for glycemic
index ratings aren't identical.
Nevertheless, even with the
inconsistencies from one listing to
the next, there are definite
generalities. For instance, green
vegetables will never be ranked
high, and most white-flour-based
foods will never be ranked low.
When you consider the
glycemic index of foods, you must
also consider the bigger picture
and how such foods fit into your
overall eating habits, plus your
risk for certain diseases.
A person with a family history
of type II diabetes, who is
overweight and hardly exercises,
really needs to avoid foods over
seventy as much as possible, more
so than the lean, muscular athlete
who eats a lot of fruits and
vegetables.
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Cucumber
savvy
Select
cucumbers that are
firm, and free of shriveling
or soft or puffy spots.
Organic is better because
the skins are not waxed,
as in most conventionally
grown cucumbers. You
should eat cucumber skin
because it's nutrientdense.
Unwashed,
waxed
cucumbers should be
stored in your refrigerator
and should last for about
a week. Organic
cucumbers should be
tightly wrapped in plastic
and will remain crispy for
two to three days. Never
freeze cucumbers.
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OnFitness Magazine - November/December 2021

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