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| THE MAJOR DIETARY CARBOHYDRATES |
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| Class (DP*) Sub-Group Components |
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| Sugars |
| (1-2) Monosaccharides: Glucose, galactose, fructose Disaccharides: Sucrose, lactose, trehalose Polyols: Sorbitol, mannitol |
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| Oligosaccharides |
| (3-9) Malto-oligosaccharides: Maltodextrins Other oligosaccharides: Raffinose, stachyose, fructo-oligosaccharides |
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| Polysaccharides Starch: |
| (>9) Amylose, amylopectin, modified starches Non-starch polysaccharides: Cellulose, hemicellulose, pectins, hydrocolloids |
| DP* = Degree of polymerization |
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| (Taken from Carbohydrates in Human Nutrition, page 1 and the sugar.ca 'Carbohydrates for human nutrition) |
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| GLYCEMIC INDEX |
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| An established index of carbohydrate foods based on their physiologic functions is the glycemic index (GI) which can be used to classify foods based on their blood glucose raising potential. The glycemic index is defined as the incremental area under the blood glucose response curve of a 50g carbohydrate portion of a test food expressed as a percent of the response to the same amount of carbohydrate from a standard food (either white bread or glucose) taken by the same subject. Food factors shown to have varying effects on the glycemic response include amount of car-bohydrate, nature of the monosaccharide and starch components, processing and cooking methods, and the presence of other macronutrient and non-nutrient food components. |
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| Foods with a low GI are digested and absorbed more slowly than foods with a high GI. Meals containing low GI foods reduce both postprandial blood glucose and insulin responses. In addition, the digestibility of the carbohydrate in low GI foods is generally less than that of high GI foods. Thus low GI foods increase the amount of carbohydrate entering the colon and increase colonic fermentation and short chain fatty acid production. It is, however, not necessary or desirable to exclude or avoid all high GI foods. |
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| for Example values for some basic foods. |
| Food Glycemic Index |
| Bread 100 |
| Cereal 72 |
| Milk 39 |
| Sucrose 87 |
| Orange juice 74 |
| (Adapted from Carbohydrates in Human Nutrition, page 29) |
| Details adapted from the sugar Institute Web Site and Publications http://www.sugar.ca/ |
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| Talk to the dietitians a NAS to learn what glycemic index means for you. |
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