The glycemic index and glycemic load refer to measures of how certain foods or drinks might affect blood sugar. Blood glucose or blood sugar is the main sugar in the blood. It is the primary source of energy. In fact, glycemic index and glycemic load are two scales that rank carbohydrate-containing food or drink. They are related measures. This is because the glycemic load is obtained by multiplying the glycemic index and the amount of carbohydrates in a serving of that food.
The key difference between glycemic index and glycemic load is their method of measurement. The glycemic index ranks a carbohydrate-containing food or drink by how much it raises blood sugar levels after consumption, while the glycemic load ranks a carbohydrate-containing food or drink according to the glycemic index and the amount of carbohydrate in the food.
CONTENTS
1. Overview and Key Difference
2. What is Glycemic Index
3. What is Glycemic Load
4. Similarities – Glycemic Index and Glycemic Load
5. Glycemic Index vs Glycemic Load in Tabular Form
6. Summary – Glycemic Index vs Glycemic Load
7. FAQ – Glycemic Index and Glycemic Load
What is Glycemic Index?
The glycemic index (GI) measures how much the carbohydrate content of a food or drink raises blood glucose levels when compared to reference values. Based on this, foods and drinks are classified as low, medium, or high glycemic foods or drinks.
This scale ranks foods and drinks on a scale of 0–100. Glycemic index ratings can be classified as below:
- Low (55 or less)
- Medium (56 to 69)
- High (70 or above)
Furthermore, these measures have several benefits, such as helping people improve blood sugar regulation, increasing weight loss, and potentially benefiting those with fatty liver.
What is Glycemic Load?
Glycemic load (GL) uses the glycemic index and total carbohydrate per serving of a specific food or drink to estimate how quickly a food or drink causes blood sugar to rise. Glycemic load gives a fuller picture than glycemic index.
The glycemic load can be calculated by multiplying the glycemic index and the amount of available carbohydrates in a food or drink and dividing it by 100. A food or drink with a higher GL is expected to raise the serum glucose and insulin response per serving size to a greater extent than that of a food or drink with a lower GL value. Furthermore, GL value can help with weight loss and can help to reduce the risk of developing type 2 diabetes.
Similarities Between Glycemic Index and Glycemic Load
- Glycemic index and glycemic load are two measures that rank a carbohydrate-containing food or drink.
- Both are ways of measuring how certain foods or drinks might affect blood sugar.
- Glycemic load is obtained by multiplying the glycemic index and the amount of carbohydrates in a serving of that food.
- Both help to lose weight and manage diabetes.
Difference Between Glycemic Index and Glycemic Load
Definition
- Glycemic index is a measure of how much specific foods increase blood sugar levels
- Glycemic load is a measure that uses glycemic index and total carbohydrate per serving of a specific food or drink to estimate how quickly a food or drink causes blood sugar rise and its extent after eating.
Efficiency
- Glycemic index does not give a fuller picture than glycemic load.
- Glycemic load gives a fuller picture than glycemic index.
Scale
- Glycemic index ratings include low (indicated by 55 or less), medium (indicated by 56 to 69), and high (indicated by 70 or above).
- Glycemic load ratings of 10 or less are considered low, 11–19 are considered medium, and 20 or more are considered high.
Formula Uses
- Glycemic index = (iAUCtest food/iAUCglucose) x 100.
- Glycemic load food = (GIFood x amount (g) of available carbohydrate food per serving)/100.
Benefits
- Glycemic index helps people to improve blood sugar regulation, increases weight loss in people and benefits people with fatty liver.
- Glycemic load helps with weight loss and help to reduce the risk of type 2 diabetes.
The following table summarizes the summarize the difference between glycemic index and glycemic load.
Summary – Glycemic Index vs Glycemic Load
Glycemic index is a measure that explains how carbohydrates in foods or drinks may affect blood sugar levels, while glycemic load is a measure that gives a fuller picture of a food’s impact on the blood sugar levels and it is calculated by multiplying glycemic index and the amount of carbohydrates per serving of foods or drinks. This is the basic difference between glycemic index and glycemic load.
FAQ: Glycemic Index and Glycemic Load
1. What is a good level of glycemic index?
- A glycemic index of less than 55 is considered to be good for food or drink. Meanwhile, a glycemic index of 55 to 70 is considered medium, while a greater than 70 glycemic index is considered to be high.
2. How is the glycemic index calculated?
- The glycemic index value of a food is usually measured giving people a serving of the food containing 50 grams of carbohydrate (excluding fiber) and measuring its effect on their blood glucose levels over the next two hours.
3. What is a good glycemic load number?
- Glycemic load is measured by multiplying the amount of carbohydrates in the food by the glycemic index and dividing that number by 100. Glycemic load under 10 is low and good.
4. What is a bad glycemic load?
- The glycemic load 20 or higher considered to be high and bad. Glycemic load 11 to 17 means intermediate. Processed foods that are made of refined sugar and flour such as bread, cake, candy, and cookies have a high glycemic load while whole foods such as non-starchy vegetables, fruits, and unrefined grains have a lower glycemic load.
5. How do I calculate glycemic load?
- Glycemic load can be calculated by multiplying the glycemic index of a food by the amount of carbohydrates it contains and then dividing that product by 100. Generally speaking, the ranking for glycemic load is as follows: Low = 10 or less. Medium = 11-19 and over 20 high.
Reference:
1. Ajmera, Rachael. “What Is the Glycemic Index?” Healthline, Healthline Media..
2. “Glycemic Load – An Overview.” ScienceDirect Topics.
Image Credit:
1. “Glycemic Index and Glycemic Load of Selected Foods 459” By Ted Eytan (CC BY-SA 2.0) via Flickr
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