What foods do not turn into sugar
12 foods that wont raise blood sugar
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Exercise and medication are the only things that can bring down blood sugar acutely. However, certain foods, such as leafy greens, whole grains, eggs, and nuts, will not raise it as much as others and can help lower long-term fasting glucose levels.
This means these foods will not raise a persons blood sugar, also known as blood glucose. These foods may also help them avoid a blood sugar spike. In addition to diet changes, staying or becoming active is also important.
This article details which foods a person can add to their diet plan. Individuals may prevent prediabetes or type 2 diabetes by adding more of these foods, spices, and drinks to their diet.
Protein
Fish is a good source of protein. It is low in unhealthy fats and a good source of omega-3 fatty acids. Options include:
- salmon
- trout
- albacore tuna
- mackerel
- halibut
Fish can also be quick and easy to prepare. For example, by seasoning a filet with salt, pepper, and lemon and baking at 425F (218C) for 20 minutes until the flesh is flaky.
Garlic has the potential to help manage blood sugar.
Garlic has a very low GI of 1030, so it will not increase blood sugar levels. A person can add more garlic into their meals by trying this garlic spread it can last for a week and replace butter or salad dressing.
Sour cherries have the chemical anthocyanins. Older studies have shown that anthocyanins may protect against type 2 diabetes and obesity.
A person can include sour cherries as well as other unsweetened red or purple berries, which all have a lower glycemic index and are rich sources of anthocyanins. For dessert, try this no-added-sugar cherry crisp.
The acetic acid in apple cider vinegar reduces certain enzymes in the stomach. A
A person can drink 20 milliliters (ml), which is around 4 teaspoons of apple cider vinegar in 40 ml (1/3 cup) of water before they eat to help reduce a spike in blood sugar.
Leafy greens are high in fiber and nutrients such as magnesium and vitamin A. These nutrients can help lower blood sugar. Leafy greens that a person can add to their diet include:
Eating more leafy greens per day
All leafy greens have a low GI. Per 1 cup, spinach even has a glycemic load (GL) of less than 1.
Chia seeds are beneficial and high in fiber and healthy fats, omega-3s, calcium, and antioxidants. Studies have shown that diets high in chia seeds can help lower a persons bad cholesterol and triglycerides, a type of fat.
Chia seeds have a GI of 30, which doctors consider low, and people can easily add them to recipes. The gooey texture works as a thickener in this pudding recipe without the maple syrup. A person can also try this low carb pizza crust using chia seeds and cauliflower.
Cacao is the base for chocolatey spreads and treats such as cocoa butter and chocolate. Before confectioners add sugar, it is bitter, like dark chocolate.
Cacao seeds are high in antioxidants. They also contain a flavonol known as epicatechin, which
A person can replace milk chocolate with dark chocolate that contains 70% or more cacao. They can also use cacao nibs as toppings for yogurt, smoothies, and desserts.
Almonds can help regulate and reduce rises in blood sugar after meals and help prevent type 2 diabetes.
A
The small amounts of carbohydrates in almonds and other nuts are primarily fiber. A person can roast almonds with cayenne and cumin to create a healthy snack or try this Chinese chicken noodle salad. For the noodle salad, people may want to use kelp (seaweed) or shirataki (yam) noodles, which have low-to-no carbs.
Individuals can choose nuts such as pistachios, walnuts, and macadamias instead of crackers and other snacks.
Whole grains, such as millet or quinoa, can be a better choice than white grains, which are high in carbohydrates and can cause blood sugar spikes. Whole grains have higher amounts of fiber, phytochemicals, and nutrients and can help to regulate blood sugar.
A 2020 review found that eating high fiber whole grains or pseudocereals benefited insulin sensitivity and reduced blood sugar response after meals. However, it is important to note that whole grains still contain carbohydrates, and people should be aware of appropriate portion sizes.
Some people may avoid eggs because they contain a high amount of cholesterol. However, a
As with all pure protein sources, eggs can make a person feel full. Hardboiled eggs may work as a satisfying snack or quick breakfast.
There are several apps that make it easier to spot healthier eating choices. People can use these to check the carbohydrate and sugar content of foods. This can help them avoid spikes or intake of sugar and carbohydrates. These apps include:
To help prevent type 2 diabetes and prediabetes through diet, people can avoid foods that are high in sugar. They can also consider lowering the amount of total carbohydrates and sugar they consume.
Certain foods, such as leafy greens, whole grains, eggs, and nuts, will not raise blood sugar as much as other foods and can help lower a persons long-term fasting glucose levels.
However, the most important way to help avoid the onset of type 2 diabetes if a person is insulin resistant is to lose weight if necessary, exercise regularly, and follow a balanced, whole-food diet. They can also aim to choose lower GI foods where possible. No single method, food, or workout will take the place of the long-term benefits of a healthy diet.
Carbohydrates and Blood Sugar
When people eat a food containing carbohydrates, the digestive system breaks down the digestible ones into sugar, which enters the blood.
- As blood sugar levels rise, the pancreas produces insulin, a hormone that prompts cells to absorb blood sugar for energy or storage.
- As cells absorb blood sugar, levels in the bloodstream begin to fall.
- When this happens, the pancreas start making glucagon, a hormone that signals the liver to start releasing stored sugar.
- This interplay of insulin and glucagon ensure that cells throughout the body, and especially in the brain, have a steady supply of blood sugar.
Carbohydrate metabolism is important in the development of type 2 diabetes, which occurs when the body cant make enough insulin or cant properly use the insulin it makes.
- Type 2 diabetes usually develops gradually over a number of years, beginning when muscle and other cells stop responding to insulin. This condition, known as insulin resistance, causes blood sugar and insulin levels to stay high long after eating. Over time, the heavy demands made on the insulin-making cells wears them out, and insulin production eventually stops.
Glycemic index
In the past, carbohydrates were commonly classified as being either simple or complex, and described as follows:
Simple carbohydrates:
These carbohydrates are composed of sugars (such as fructose and glucose) which have simple chemical structures composed of only one sugar (monosaccharides) or two sugars (disaccharides). Simple carbohydrates are easily and quickly utilized for energy by the body because of their simple chemical structure, often leading to a faster rise in blood sugar and insulin secretion from the pancreas which can have negative health effects.
Complex carbohydrates:
These carbohydrates have more complex chemical structures, with three or more sugars linked together (known as oligosaccharides and polysaccharides). Many complex carbohydrate foods contain fiber, vitamins and minerals, and they take longer to digest which means they have less of an immediate impact on blood sugar, causing it to rise more slowly. But other so called complex carbohydrate foods such as white bread and white potatoes contain mostly starch but little fiber or other beneficial nutrients.
Dividing carbohydrates into simple and complex, however, does not account for the effect of carbohydrates on blood sugar and chronic diseases. To explain how different kinds of carbohydrate-rich foods directly affect blood sugar, the glycemic index was developed and is considered a better way of categorizing carbohydrates, especially starchy foods.
The glycemic index ranks carbohydrates on a scale from 0 to 100 based on how quickly and how much they raise blood sugar levels after eating. Foods with a high glycemic index, like white bread, are rapidly digested and cause substantial fluctuations in blood sugar. Foods with a low glycemic index, like whole oats, are digested more slowly, prompting a more gradual rise in blood sugar.
- Low-glycemic foods have a rating of 55 or less, and foods rated 70-100 are considered high-glycemic foods. Medium-level foods have a glycemic index of 56-69.
- Eating many high-glycemic-index foods which cause powerful spikes in blood sugar can lead to an increased risk for type 2 diabetes, (2) heart disease, (3), (4) and overweight, (5,6) (7). There is also preliminary work linking high-glycemic diets to age-related macular degeneration, (8) ovulatory infertility, (9) and colorectal cancer. (10)
- Foods with a low glycemic index have been shown to help control type 2 diabetes and improve weight loss.
- A 2014 review of studies researching carbohydrate quality and chronic disease risk showed that low-glycemic-index diets may offer anti-inflammatory benefits. (16)
- The University of Sydney in Australia maintains a searchable database of foods and their corresponding glycemic indices.
Many factors can affect a foods glycemic index, including the following:
- Processing:Grains that have been milled and refinedremoving the bran and the germhave a higher glycemic index than minimally processed whole grains.
- Physical form:Finely ground grain is more rapidly digested than coarsely ground grain. This is why eating whole grains in their whole form like brown rice or oats can be healthier than eating highly processed whole grain bread.
- Fiber content:High-fiber foods dont contain as much digestible carbohydrate, so it slows the rate of digestion and causes a more gradual and lower rise in blood sugar. (17)
- Ripeness:Ripe fruits and vegetables tend to have a higher glycemic index than un-ripened fruit.
- Fat content and acid content:Meals with fat or acid are converted more slowly into sugar.
Numerous epidemiologic studies have shown a positive association between higher dietary glycemic index and increased risk of type 2 diabetes and coronary heart disease. However, the relationship between glycemic index and body weight is less well studied and remains controversial.
Glycemic load
One thing that a foods glycemic index does not tell us is how much digestible carbohydrate the total amount of carbohydrates excluding fiber it delivers. Thats why researchers developed a related way to classify foods that takes into account both the amount of carbohydrate in the food in relation to its impact on blood sugar levels. This measure is called the glycemic load. (11,12) A foods glycemic load is determined by multiplying its glycemic index by the amount of carbohydrate the food contains. In general, a glycemic load of 20 or more is high, 11 to 19 is medium, and 10 or under is low.
The glycemic load has been used to study whether or not high-glycemic load diets are associated with increased risks for type 2 diabetes risk and cardiac events. In a large meta-analysis of 24 prospective cohort studies, researchers concluded that people who consumed lower-glycemic load diets were at a lower risk of developing type 2 diabetes than those who ate a diet of higher-glycemic load foods.(13) A similar type of meta-analysis concluded that higher-glycemic load diets were also associated with an increased risk for coronary heart disease events. (14)
Here is a listing of low, medium, and high glycemic load foods. For good health, choose foods that have a low or medium glycemic load, and limit foods that have a high glycemic load.
Low glycemic load (10 or under)
- Bran cereals
- Apple
- Orange
- Kidney beans
- Black beans
- Lentils
- Wheat tortilla
- Skim milk
- Cashews
- Peanuts
- Carrots
Medium glycemic load (11-19)
- Pearled barley: 1 cup cooked
- Brown rice: 3/4 cup cooked
- Oatmeal: 1 cup cooked
- Bulgur: 3/4 cup cooked
- Rice cakes: 3 cakes
- Whole grain breads: 1 slice
- Whole-grain pasta: 1 1/4 cup cooked
High glycemic load (20+)
- Baked potato
- French fries
- Refined breakfast cereal: 1 oz
- Sugar-sweetened beverages: 12 oz
- Candy bars: 1 2-oz bar or 3 mini bars
- Couscous: 1 cup cooked
- White basmati rice: 1 cup cooked
- White-flour pasta: 1 1/4 cup cooked(15)
Heres a list of the glycemic index and glycemic load for the most common foods.
References
2. de Munter JS, Hu FB, Spiegelman D, Franz M, van Dam RM. Whole grain, bran, and germ intake and risk of type 2 diabetes: a prospective cohort study and systematic review.PLoS Med. 2007;4:e261.
3. Beulens JW, de Bruijne LM, Stolk RP, et al. High dietary glycemic load and glycemic index increase risk of cardiovascular disease among middle-aged women: a population-based follow-up study.J Am Coll Cardiol. 2007;50:14-21.
4. Halton TL, Willett WC, Liu S, et al. Low-carbohydrate-diet score and the risk of coronary heart disease in women.N Engl J Med. 2006;355:1991-2002.
5. Anderson JW, Randles KM, Kendall CW, Jenkins DJ. Carbohydrate and fiber recommendations for individuals with diabetes: a quantitative assessment and meta-analysis of the evidence.J Am Coll Nutr. 2004;23:5-17.
6. Ebbeling CB, Leidig MM, Feldman HA, Lovesky MM, Ludwig DS. Effects of a low-glycemic load vs low-fat diet in obese young adults: a randomized trial.JAMA. 2007;297:2092-102.
7. Maki KC, Rains TM, Kaden VN, Raneri KR, Davidson MH. Effects of a reduced-glycemic-load diet on body weight, body composition, and cardiovascular disease risk markers in overweight and obese adults.Am J Clin Nutr. 2007;85:724-34.
8. Chiu CJ, Hubbard LD, Armstrong J, et al. Dietary glycemic index and carbohydrate in relation to early age-related macular degeneration.Am J Clin Nutr. 2006;83:880-6.
9. Chavarro JE, Rich-Edwards JW, Rosner BA, Willett WC. A prospective study of dietary carbohydrate quantity and quality in relation to risk of ovulatory infertility.Eur J Clin Nutr. 2009;63:78-86.
10. Higginbotham S, Zhang ZF, Lee IM, et al. Dietary glycemic load and risk of colorectal cancer in the Womens Health Study.J Natl Cancer Inst. 2004;96:229-33.
11. Liu S, Willett WC. Dietary glycemic load and atherothrombotic risk.Curr Atheroscler Rep. 2002;4:454-61.
12. Willett W, Manson J, Liu S. Glycemic index, glycemic load, and risk of type 2 diabetes.Am J Clin Nutr. 2002;76:274S-80S.
13. Livesey G, Taylor R, Livesey H, Liu S. Is there a dose-response relation of dietary glycemic load to risk of type 2 diabetes? Meta-analysis of prospective cohort studies.Am J Clin Nutr. 2013;97:584-96.
14. Mirrahimi A, de Souza RJ, Chiavaroli L, et al. Associations of glycemic index and load with coronary heart disease events: a systematic review and meta-analysis of prospective cohorts.J Am Heart Assoc. 2012;1:e000752.
15. Foster-Powell K, Holt SH, Brand-Miller JC. International table of glycemic index and glycemic load values: 2002.Am J Clin Nutr. 2002;76:5-56.
16. Buyken, AE, Goletzke, J, Joslowski, G, Felbick, A, Cheng, G, Herder, C, Brand-Miller, JC. Association between carbohydrate quality and inflammatory markers: systematic review of observational and interventional studies. The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition Am J Clin Nutr. 99(4): 2014;813-33.
17. AlEssa H, Bupathiraju S, Malik V, Wedick N, Campos H, Rosner B, Willett W, Hu FB. Carbohydrate quality measured using multiple quality metrics is negatively associated with type 2 diabetes. Circulation. 2015; 1-31:A:20.
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