Paying attention to GI value ~ Nutritionist's Column Vol.7
Autumn is known as the season of appetite, and now it's also the time when events such as Christmas and New Year's begin to increase.
I'm sure there are many people who end up overeating.
This is a time when people on diets need to be especially careful.
Eat healthily
Eating is essential to building the human body and living. Even in seasons when it's easy to gain weight, it's very important to choose what you eat and lead a healthy diet.
What is "GI value"?
People often say that we should be mindful of calories when eating, but being mindful of the "GI value" is key to building a body that is less prone to gaining weight. The "GI value" is a measure of the speed at which carbohydrates, which are abundant in the rice, bread, sugar, potatoes, etc. we eat, turn into sugar in the body and cause blood sugar levels to rise, and is called the glycemic index value.
The five major nutrients that we need in our diet are carbohydrates, lipids, proteins, vitamins, and minerals.
Among these, carbohydrates are essential for energy.
Carbohydrates are often treated as the bad guy when dieting, but they are an essential nutrient for maintaining good health. Carbohydrates are found in large amounts in staple foods such as rice, bread, and pasta.
It is converted into glucose in the body and becomes energy for the body.
Carbohydrates, in particular, are the brain's only source of energy.
People who are on a low-carbohydrate diet often experience symptoms such as feeling dizzy and lacking concentration, which is thought to be due to a lack of glucose reaching the brain. It is very important to balance the amount of carbohydrate intake.
Insulin and Blood Sugar
Insulin is a hormone secreted to help glucose reach the brain and body tissues and provide energy.
When you eat carbohydrates, the amount of sugar in your blood increases, causing your blood sugar level to rise.
At that time, insulin is secreted from the pancreas, which transports sugar to the brain and various tissues of the body where it is converted into energy, resulting in a drop in blood sugar levels.
When you eat a lot, your blood sugar level rises rapidly, and your body also secretes more insulin in an attempt to lower the amount of sugar in your blood.
The sugar that cannot be transported is stored as fat due to the action of excessive insulin.
This leads to gaining weight.
To build a body that is less prone to gaining weight
In other words, preventing excessive secretion of insulin leads to a body that is less prone to gaining weight.
The key is to eat foods that are converted into sugar in the body and cause blood sugar levels to rise slowly, foods with a low GI rating.
A low GI food can prevent a sudden rise in blood sugar levels after a meal and suppress insulin secretion.
Many foods that tend to raise blood sugar levels contain a lot of carbohydrates, such as white rice, white bread, potatoes, and sugar, which are easily digested and quickly converted into energy.
Unrefined foods, such as brown rice rather than white rice and whole wheat bread rather than white bread, are harder to digest and therefore have a lower GI value.
By focusing on the GI value, you can eat a healthy diet that doesn't put a strain on your body.
A diet focused on GI values
I would like to introduce some of the key points.
1. Choose foods with a low GI
We recommend foods that are rich in dietary fiber.
Grains: Buckwheat, rolled barley, vermicelli, brown rice (unrefined)
Vegetables: Leafy greens, broccoli, peppers, mushrooms (low starch vegetables)
Fruits: apples, strawberries, melons, grapefruit, mandarins Dairy products: milk, cheese, unsweetened yogurt, butter
2. Pay attention to the order in which you eat
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When it comes to the order in which you eat, start with foods that are rich in fiber, such as vegetables.
We recommend the following order for each meal: 1) vegetables and soup (dietary fiber) → 2) main dish (protein) → 3) staple food (carbohydrates). By eating vegetables first, your blood sugar level will not rise as much as it would if you started to digest the fiber first, and you can also expect to suppress the absorption of fat.
Additionally, vegetables contain a lot of dietary fiber, which helps you feel fuller.
In addition, eating it together with foods that contain dietary fiber can help lower the GI value of other foods.
In particular, water-soluble dietary fiber, which is found in large amounts in seaweed and mushrooms, wraps around sugar and makes it difficult for it to be absorbed, which has the effect of slowing the rise in blood sugar levels.
3. Eat slowly and chew thoroughly
Try to chew each bite about 30 times before swallowing.
Even with fruit, peeling it and eating it slowly and chewing it well can help prevent a sudden rise in blood sugar levels, rather than making it into juice and drinking it all at once.
When eating foods with a high GI rating, it is important to pay special attention to eating slowly and chewing thoroughly.
It is important to chew brown rice well, even though it has a low GI value.
If you have been eating white rice, which is easy to digest, you should be careful as eating in the same way may cause indigestion.
4. Be creative with your cooking methods
The GI value can be lowered by cooking methods. For example, cooking methods that use oil. When the surface of rice is coated with oil, such as in fried rice or pilaf, the GI value is lower than when it is white rice.
Cooking methods that use vinegar are also said to lower the GI value.
The citric acid and acetic acid contained in vinegar also suppress the absorption of sugar and slow the rise in blood sugar levels.
Adding pickles or vinegared dishes as side dishes can also help lower the GI value.
In this way, incorporating low GI foods that allow sugar to be absorbed gently, and living a diet that lowers the GI value, is highly recommended for those who want to live a healthy lifestyle and diet.
This diet allows for the slow absorption of carbohydrates, an essential energy-producing nutrient for humans, and helps prevent a sudden rise in blood sugar levels and the build-up of fat.
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Script by Ayako Ishihara
Photos by Moeko Sawada & ARISA
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Nutritionist, Food Education Instructor, Food 6th Industrialization Producer Level 4
Ayako Ishihara
A nutritional advisor in the healthcare field and an agribusiness professional.
She is involved in a variety of activities specializing in the fields of beauty and health, including giving lectures to Miss World Japan candidates.
With the philosophy of "enriching the mind and body through food and realizing a vibrant society where people and communities are connected," he founded i-Field Co., Ltd. in 2013 and serves as its representative.
He is a core member of the food team for "DINING OUT," which opens outdoor restaurants in various regions, and also participates in fashion brand projects.
She is also involved in the promotion of local ingredients, product development and production specializing in "health" and "beauty," branding, concept design, food hygiene, sales promotion, training planning and management, etc. She is in charge of nutritional supervision for GRØN's product development, proposing ways to incorporate them more effectively into consumer health.
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