All About Food Rankings On The Glycemic Index Chart

The glycemic index chart can get confusing and maybe even a tad bit intimidating if you don’t understand what everything means. It was developed so that doctors and their patients (primarily diabetics) would be on the same page regarding what they’re eating…recently it’s been discovered that it’s also one of the best ways to lose weight for non-diabetics. But basically, it can’t help you if you don’t comprehend what the numbers represent.

To begin, the glycemic index chart isn’t some unconquerable beast. It is truly a tremendous discovery and can help you not only with diabetes…but with weight loss and several general health issues. Get set to learn about something that can change your life.

Numbers rule the glycemic index chart: High, Low, and Everywhere in Between

The glycemic index chart, when you look at it, shows a listing of foods. Each food is associated with a number ranging from 0 to 100.

Whenever we eat something, our digestion turns it into glucose (sugar). It’s the glucose that enters our bloodstream and gets used as energy for our cells. Some foods get digested faster than others and will more quickly cause this blood sugar spike.

The numbers on the glycemic index chart indicate how fast a food is digested and how fast your blood sugar will spike. A high number, like 92 means it will happen - fast.

A lower number, like 15 just means that the food is digested slowly and will more slowly enter the bloodstream. Slow and steady is MUCH healthier. Particularly if you are a diabetic or are trying to lose weight.

At first reading the glycemic index chart may take a little effort, but understanding comes quickly. On most charts, numbers in the range of 55 to 69 are considered medium. Numbers below 55 are low and numbers above 69 are high.

Various glycemic index charts are a little different, but they all work on the same ideas. Usually they group foods by the type and category, they aren’t listed by index number.

Ever looked at a glycemic index chart and wondered why some foods are lower than others?

Trying to anticipate where a food is going to rank on the chart is a fun challenge. A quick glimpse of the glycemic index chart can be an eye opener and confusing on quite a few levels. A snickers bar ranks in the 40’s but your daily bagel comes in at a whopping 70’s! I’d have never guessed that!

Once you break it down, it makes more sense. Protein is digested very slowly and the Snickers bar not only has chocolate, but is loaded with protein rich peanuts. They make it slower to digest.

Now for a secret glycemic index loophole…It’s obvious that eating foods ranked low on the glycemic index chart is better for us, but if you MUST eat a higher ranked food, add in some protein. Add tuna to your white bread, or smear some peanut butter on your apple slices.

Proteins and some fats are what cause foods to have unexpected rankings on the glycemic index chart. If you weren’t aware of the loophole, it could seem as nothing but a random assortment of numbers.

As mentioned, there are many health benefits to using the glycemic index chart. It helps with general health issues…like heart disease, it controls the blood sugar spikes for diabetics and it will cause excess weight to drop off faster than you would imagine.

Learning to master the glycemic index chart is a terrific first step to long term health and longevity.

There’s plenty more information about the glycemic index chart - and other weight loss methods - on my website. You can also get a FREE subscription to my “Fast Weight Loss Tips!” mini-course.