The Glycemic Index offers a stimulating, and scientifically valid, way of assessing the
kinds of carbohydrates we eat. It measures and rates the way these carbohydrates
enter the bloodstream. And in doing so offers how of approaching a meal in order that it's
going to be both nutritionally valid, and keep hunger pangs cornered. This of course is one
way of preventing overheating. And it’s a great way for parents to try and curb their children’s
desire to eat unhealthy food between meals.
The Glycemic Index rates carbohydrates as having either a high, low, or medium glycemic
index. And the idea is to eat more foods that have either a coffee or medium glycemic index
and fewer with a high one. Low glycemic index foods enter the bloodstream more slowly,
then don’t raise blood glucose levels like high glycemic index foods.
So, what is a carbohydrate? All sugars, or foods that are weakened into sugar, are
carbohydrates. This includes regular sugar, glucose (often used in sports drinks), fructose,
(in fruit), lactose, (found in milk and similar products like yogurt), maltose, (found in malt
which is often used to flavor cereals), all kinds of starches, from potatoes to noodles and
pasta, and legumes, like lentils and peas (though these also contain some protein).
The fruit is taken into account to possess a coffee GI (not fruit crush though). Interestingly
though, recent research has found what they believe may be a link between fructose and
obesity. However, the sort of fructose studied was in syrup, which may be a refined and concentrated sort of fructose. It also doesn’t have the beneficial fiber, antioxidants, and
other phytochemicals that fruit does. This was also preliminary research done in an animal
model, so it may not be valid for humans. Researchers from the University of Florida found
that fructose may make people believe they're hungrier than they ought to be. And when
these researchers interrupted the way fructose was metabolized, the rats they were working
with didn't place on weight, albeit they still ate fructose.
This is not the primary research that has suggested fructose could also be linked to a
propensity to place on weight, more so than other sorts of food. A study at the University
of Cincinnati found that eating fructose (high fructose corn syrup), led to greater fat storage.
They say that the body processes fructose differently to other sorts of sugars, though again,
it's not clear if this is often mitigated by perhaps the lower concentration of fructose in fruit as compared to the syrup utilized in the study.
The research from the University of Florida found that there have been higher levels of acid
within the bloodstream after eating or drinking fructose. This spike in uric acid affects insulin,
by blocking it. Insulin regulates the way our cells store and use fat. If uric acid levels are
elevated a lot, then symptoms of metabolic syndrome can develop. These symptoms include
high blood pressure, high cholesterol levels, as well as gaining a lot of weight. What is of
possible concern to people is that fructose is employed during a lot of soda drinks, so if you
drink tons of soda it's going to be quite easy to frequently spike acid levels within the blood. Metabolic syndrome is also a precursor of type 2 diabetes.
Signs of metabolic syndrome include fat on the abdomen, such the waist appears as big
because the hips or larger. There tend to be lower amounts of the good type of cholesterol
in the blood, and high levels of triglycerides which make the blood ‘sticky’. Metabolic syndrome
is associated with the way the body responds to insulin so that there are higher levels of
glucose in the blood. All of these things can be tested by doctors.