What is glycaemic index?

Any food containing carbohydrates, when consumed, increases blood sugar levels. If you drink 100 grams of pure glucose liquid, then after 1 hour it will be wholly absorbed in the blood stream, so it has been assumed that the glycemic index (GI) for glucose is 100. And if you eat a piece of rye bread containing the equivalent of one hundred grams of glucose, then after 1 hour the blood glucose level will rise by 53% compared with the glucose solution. This means that the GI value for rye bread is 53. In general, the lower the GI of a certain food product, the slower it “releases” glucose into the blood stream, the longer and fuller it is consumed by the body and the less glucose is stored. That is, a low GI value is a sign of a “healthy” product. The Mediterranean diet is packed with low GI foods. MAKFA’s range offers a wide variety of low GI groceries.

GI value of some foods that make up the classic Mediterranean diet

Food product	GI
Bread
White flour wheat bread	70
Whole flour wheat bread	69
Rye bread	76
Pita	57
Pasta
Spaghetti	43
Meat ravioli	39
Fettuccine with eggs	32
Cereals
Buckwheat	54
Bulgur	48
Basmati rice	58
Brown rice	55
Long-grain white rice	56
Short-grain rice	72
Fruit & berries
Apple	38
Banana	55
Cherry	22
Grapefruit	25
Grapes	46
Kiwi	52
Mango	55
Orange	44
Papaya	58
Peach	38
Pineapple	66
Plum	39
Watermelon	103
Vegetables
Broccoli	10
Cabbage	10
Carrot	49
Corn	55
Green peas	48
Lettuce	10
Mushrooms	10
Onion	10
Potato (baked)	93
Potato (mashed, instant)	86
New potato	62
Potato (French fries)	75
Paprika	10
Pumpkin	75
Sweet potato	54
Milk & dairy
Whole milk	22
Skim milk	32
Skim yogurt	33
Ice cream	50
Legumes
Chickpeas	33
Lentils	30
Lima (lima beans)	32
Red beans	27
White beans	31
Soybeans	18