Understanding Diabetes and Glycemic Index by Glycemic Index - HTML preview

Making The Switch To A Low Glycemic Index Diet

It’s a difficult transition switching from eating carbohydrates that are unhealthy to those that are healthier because of a low glycemic index. However difficult it may be, your health depends upon your consumption of a healthy diet that includes whole grain products and unbleached flour instead of the white products that you have been accustomed to using. It’s not that difficult a decision to make, but it means a difference between being healthy and continuing a lifestyle that is or may be detrimental to your health.

Choosing a diet with a low glycemic index is not difficult and doesn’t require a great deal of thought. You are not giving up foods, but you are eliminating carbohydrates that have a high glycemic index and replacing them with carbohydrates that have a low glycemic index. There is no need to count numbers of do any arithmetic in order to make sure that you are eating a healthy, low glycemic index diet. The easiest way to do that is by doing the following:

• Eat breakfast cereals that include oats, barley, and bran
• Eat breads that contain wholegrain, stone-ground flour, or sour dough
• Reduce the amount of potatoes you eat
• Eat plenty of fruits and vegetables
• Instead of white rice, use Basmati or Doongara rice

The initial switch is difficult because you will be eating differently that you have been accustomed all your life, but when you body begins to feel better, and you find that you have a higher energy level, you will see how much healthier a lifestyle that you have. Making any kind of change in your eating habits is difficult, whether it’s a reduction in sugar, carbohydrates, or reducing the size of the portions you eat. When you are used to eating a certain way or certain foods, the transition period is very difficult.

If every one of us would grow up eating healthy foods, we would not have to be concerned later in life about counting calories, eating low glycemic carbohydrates, or making sure we have enough fiber in our diets. However, the problem is that we are conditioned to eating poorly for the most part, and only when health conditions plague us or we become unhappy with our weight do we seek to change those poor habits. Hopefully future generations will learn the importance of good eating habits, and there will be no need to make drastic changes later in life.