Blood Sugar Levels Axles

The majority of glucose in the body is derived from carbohydrates. There are two groups of carbohydrates, sim­ple and complex. Simple carbohydrates are naturally found in fruits and vegetables, but most of the simple sugars consumed in America are in the form of refined sugar. When high sugar foods are eaten, blood sugar levels rise quickly, producing a strain on blood sugar control.

The body responds to the rise in blood glucose levels after meals by secreting insulin. Insulin lowers blood glucose by increasing the rate that glucose is taken up by cells throughout the body. Repeated spikes in after-meal blood sugar levels greatly stress blood sugar control and contribute to loss of sensitivity to insulin. As a result, blood sugar levels can become persistently elevated.

In people with diabetes, elevations of blood glucose levels after a meal can cause serious problems. Research indicates that an elevation in post­prandial (after meal) blood sugar levels is perhaps the major contributor to the development of diabetic complications, especially heart disease and diseases of the small blood vessels within the eye, kidneys, and nerves. We hope that this startling research helps you understand why blunting the after-meal increase in blood sugar levels is such an important goal.

The Glycemic Index And Glycemic Load

The primary diet strategy to reduce postprandial blood sugar levels involves avoiding foods that cause a rapid rise in blood sugar levels. Accomplishing this goal involves familiarizing yourself with two useful tools: The Glycemic Index and Glycemic Load.

The glycemic index (GI) is a numerical scale used to indicate how fast and how high a particular food raises blood glucose levels. Refined sug­ars, white flour products, and other sources of simple sugars are quickly absorbed into the bloodstream, causing a rapid rise in blood sugar. But, even “good carbohydrates” can be harmful if over-consumed. While the GI is quite useful, it doesn’t tell you how much car­bohydrate is in a typical serving of a particular food. That is where gly­cemic load comes in.

The glycemic load (GL) is a relatively new way to assess the impact of car­bohydrate consumption. The GL gives a fuller pic­ture of the effect that a food has on blood sugar levels because it takes into account a typical serving size. For example, beets have a high GI, but a low GL. Although the carbohydrate in beets has a high GI, you typically don’t eat a lot of it. Because of this, beets have a low GL of around 5. (A GL of 20 or more is high, a GL of 11 to 19 inclusive is medium, and a GL of 10 or less is low.) Thus, as long as a person eats a reasonable portion of a low GL food, the impact on blood sugar is acceptable even if the food is high in its GI.

The Role of Fiber

The effectiveness of fiber on reducing appetite, blood sugar, and choles­terol is based directly on the amount of water the fiber is able to absorb (water-holding capacity) and the degree of thickness or viscosity the fiber imparts when in the stomach and intestine. For instance, this water solu­bility and viscosity is why oat bran lowers cholesterol and controls blood sugar better than wheat bran. With this in mind, researchers have been seeking to identify and isolate dietary fibers with the highest viscosity and water-holding capacity. , for example, has a high level of viscosity, gel-forming properties, and expansion with water. Small quantities can be added to foods or taken as a drink before meals to have an impact on appetite and blood sugar.

This article is an excerpt of the booklet “Diabetes,” by Dr. Michael Murray. To read the entire booklet, see:

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