Guest guest Posted July 30, 2004 Report Share Posted July 30, 2004 I've found that potatoes don't really bother me at all... last night I took a reading only a couple of hours after eating (probably something I shouldn't have!) and then ate a small meal including french fries... 2 hours after that, my BGL had actually gone DOWN 2 points (208 to 206). Later that night it was 120. So I think different results for different people, but on the whole the quantity of food you eat (GL) is far more important that the GI. Dawn -- _______________________________________________ Graffiti.net free e-mail @ www.graffiti.net Check out our value-added Premium features, such as an extra 20MB for just US$9.95 per year! Powered by Outblaze Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted July 31, 2004 Report Share Posted July 31, 2004 No, Dawn..a couple of hours after eating is actually a good time to check your BGs. You don't really know where your peak is, so at least for a while, it might be good to test 1 and 2 hours after and make a good note of where t he peak seemed to be. The drop from 208 to 206 is meaningless. There's a 20% allowable difference in meter readings and it's extremely rare for 2 readings in a row to be identical even if you take another test immediately after the first using the same drop of blood. Also, 208 is way higher than you should be aiming for. I believe the guidelines suggest no higher than 140 2 hours after eating. This is, of course, if your goal is to avoid complications. (And I assume it is). The thing about fried foods is that the fat makes the peak stay up longer, so for instance, with a high GI carb such as potato, the peak would rise pretty quickly -- sort of like a mountain -- then go down pretty quickly too. OTOH, with fat added, the action graph would look more like a plateau -- up then staying at that level for quite a few hours, then down again. For most diabetics, pizza is the word offender in this area. Vicki Re: GI/GL debate > I've found that potatoes don't really bother me at all... last night I took a reading only a couple of hours after eating (probably something I shouldn't have!) and then ate a small meal including french fries... 2 hours after that, my BGL had actually gone DOWN 2 points (208 to 206). Later that night it was 120. > > So I think different results for different people, but on the whole the quantity of food you eat (GL) is far more important that the GI. > > Dawn > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted July 31, 2004 Report Share Posted July 31, 2004 > I've found that potatoes don't > really bother me at all... Nor me! According to Dr. Mercola, I am a " carbohydrate type " and you might well be, too, Dawn. There really does seem to be some truth behind his notion of " metabolic types " . As far as the GI for potatoes is concerned, the subject is not at all clear. The table distinguishes between instant mashed potato (GI=85+/-3), boiled potato (GI=56-101) and baked potato (GI=85+/-12) but it is well known that apart from the cooking method, the value is influenced by the type of potato, the size of the potato from which the test sample was taken, how ripe it is and whether the skin is included or not. Part of the problem is that the carbohydrate content of the potato varies so widely. You can find values between 14.2% and 20.1% so that to get the 50g CH test sample you would need between 352g and 250g of potato - a difference of about 30%! For us in Germany the problem is increased because the potato type used to get the values in the table did not include most of the types of potato sold here. In my opinion, the biggest argument against using the GI as a guide to healthy food is, of course, that the fried potato chip (undeniably a very unhealthy food) has a much lower GI than the boiled potato (which contains a large number of nutrients and is definitely a healthy food). > ... last night I took a reading only > a couple of hours after eating > (probably something I shouldn't have!) > and then ate a small meal including > french fries... 2 hours after that, my > BGL had actually gone DOWN 2 points > (208 to 206). There you are then! French fries, apart from being a nutrionally " unhealthy " food, have a medium to low GI (45) whereas a nutritionally " healthier " alternative like a boiled potato has a GI of around 98! > So I think different results for > different people, but on the whole > the quantity of food you eat (GL) > is far more important that the GI. And I reckon that eating a varied and nutritionally balanced diet is more important than both of them! Remember that your BG meter does not tell you one thing about how nutritionally healthy the food is that you are eating. It is best to find a balance between controlling blood glucose elevation and getting an adequate nutrition. Eating french fries is not the usually recommended way to go! Regards Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted July 31, 2004 Report Share Posted July 31, 2004 Anyone who is seriously interested in using the GI?GL data should go direct to the web site http://www.glycemicindex.com It has the correct figures and also has two charts for foods tested and added in the last 6 months or a year. Mendosa was gven permission to upload the data some time back and like the books is inevitably out of date. The figures given in recent postings here are not the figures in the books by Jennie Brand et al or on their website. Less than a month after I was diagnosed in March 2001 I have been using the Glycemic Index - and later when it was published - the Glycemic Load as a guide to my food choices. I buy very little in the way of fast food - packaged or as a takeaway. As Jennie Brand et al say in their books, there are several other factors that have to be considered in creating meal plans not the least of which is whether you want to lose weight. This in turn means you have to engage in counting calories (or kilojoules), directly or indirectly. As part of calculating the Glycemic Load of a food item one needs to know the amount of available carbohydrate in the portion - so you have to read the label or weigh the item. There are several other factors that affect the GL of a particular meal - and it takes time to learn and adapt to a new WOE. Certainly I am very pleased with my efforts and I have taught several other people how I use the GI/GL to help manage my diabetes. Glycemic Load = Glycemic Index times the available carbohydrate (gms) over 100. Many of us don't eat potatoes - especially fries because (of the fat/oil) and that they raise our BGs too much - but if one is keen to eat potatoes there are several principles outlined in Jennie Brand et al's books. They have shown that the GI is lower if the potato is boiled with the skin on. It is higher if you cut it very small and overboil it. etc. For foods not tested so far I find it very easy to use guess how much of an untested food I should try - and then weigh it. Then I take my BG before I eat it and one hour and two hours after. Once I am satisfied the food fits in with my repertoire I add it to other ingredients and test the effect of adding it to meals I have previously tested, and again check my BG before and after. Bea Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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