To keep the weight under control it is well known that you should consume foods with a low glycemic index such as fish, eggs, cheese, meat, green vegetables, limiting refined carbohydrates, fried foods ....
All this is also excellent for those who must prevent or not to increase diabetes, a disease now widespread today, which can touch in many ways all ages.
The diet of the glycemic index is not new, in fact it was created in the 90s by David Jenkis, American doctor.
Dr. Damiano Galimberti, specialist in Food Science and President of the Italian Association of Anti-Aging Doctors (AMIA), explains that "Keeping the level of the glycemic end of the meal under control, modulating glycemia and insulinemia, allows, between the other, to activate the formation of glucagon, a peptide hormone secreted by the pancreas as insulin. Glucagon is a key hormone because, among other things, it controls blood glucose levels, performs a precious detoxifying action and promotes, for complex mechanisms, the balance between the formation of lean mass and fat mass ".
Better to reduce food intake with a high glycemic index, such as bright rice, potatoes, pasta and white bread, sugar, honey and sweets, and adopt some simple strategy to induce at the end of each meal the lowest possible insulin response.
Here are some suggestions from Dr. Galimberti:
1) Switch to the integral
Insert spelled, quinoa, amaranth, buckwheat, kamut, oats, barley into your menu regularly. Whole foods are rich in water-soluble fiber, which absorb water to encourage the formation of a gel that modulates the passage of glucose and fat from the intestine to the bloodstream, thus hindering blood glucose peaks and insulin production by the pancreas.
2) Pay attention to the size and cooking of the pasta
The glycemic index tends to grow as the pasta cooking time increases: better, therefore, drain bucatini, rigatoni etc. al dente. The formats also affect the glycemic index: the short ones, such as penne and fusilli, have a greater glycemic index than spaghetti, probably because the particular processing of the long pasta favors the crystallization of the starch, which translates into digestion times and consequently of assimilation longer.
3) Toast the bread
A trick to contain the glycemic index of bread, rather high, however, is eating stale loaves or toasting slices of bread.
4) Tip on the spices
Turmeric, cumin seeds, ginger, mustard, curry, coriander, in particular, but also chili, cinnamon, thyme and other spices: contain substances, such as carotenes, bioflavones, which (according to one study published in the Journal of Medicinal Food) improve the metabolism of both glucose and cholesterol, thus reducing blood sugar and insulin levels.
5) Legumes and broccoli are your friends
Beans, chickpeas and lentils are the quintessential source of complex carbohydrates with a low glycemic index, thanks to their high content of soluble fibers and their starch rich in amylose. Researchers at the University of Gothenburg, Sweden, have discovered that broccoli also has the ability to control type 2 diabetes due to the sulfurafane antioxidant, which lowers blood sugar levels and, therefore, glycemic peaks.
6) Study strategic combinations
Eat even a tablespoon of legumes at every meal: with this simple trick, you can lower the glycemic index of the entire lunch or dinner for the same amount of carbohydrates taken in the same meal. Adding good fats, such as extra virgin olive oil, to carbohydrates is an excellent strategy, both for the precious intake of essential fatty acids and because the good fats lower the glycemic load.
In general, however, you have to choose the recipes that associate vegetables, legumes or fish with pasta, potatoes and rice are preferred: for example pasta with legumes or fish with potatoes or vegetables.
7) Choose fruit well
Better to avoid the fruits with the highest sugar content (strawberries, figs, persimmons and bananas) and to prefer those not too mature because the glycemic index is lower in the unripe fruit. In particular yes to blueberries: a study published by the Journal of Nutrition showed that eating a handful a day affects the production of insulin. Thumb up also for the avocado which, thanks to the richness of monounsaturated fatty acids, helps to slow down the release of sugars in the blood.
8) Eat early in the evening
To give your body time to digest properly you must also avoid, strictly, night snacks, even frugal and irregular: in addition to increasing the calorie intake and disturbing sleep, weighing down digestion, keep high blood sugar and adversely affect on the secretion of hormones such as leptin, which, among other things, increases energy expenditure.
9) Sleep well and right
Research conducted by scientists at the University of Chicago, published in the journal Diabetology, found that after three nights spent only four hours sleeping stress hormone levels (cortisol and norepinephrine) had increased, as did fats in the blood. Not only that: the functionality of the hormone insulin was significantly reduced. Basically, so - called "insulin resistance" has occurred, a condition very similar to pre - diabetes, which is equivalent to a lower control of sugars. Except for cases of real insomnia, to be treated with appropriate treatments by being followed by a specialist, for a lack of sleep or little refreshment only occasional, it is important to restore or maintain regularity in the rhythms in which you get up and go to sleep, just as it is useful to follow the rituals that bring pleasure and promote relaxation before going to bed. It is also important to avoid forms of technological and light pollution at least 2-3 hours before going to sleep, such as readings and consultations of iPads, smartphones and e-books, because they alter the secretion of the hormone melatonin, which helps falling asleep
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- Tags: Glycemic index diet David Jenkis American doctor Dr. Damiano Galimberti specialist in Food Science and President of the Italian Association of Anti-Aging Doctors (AMIA)
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