We know that having too much sugar is bad for us especially at night time just before we go to bed. With the low glycemic foods that are available such as whole meal pasta, brown rice, wholegrain breads and cereals will be more beneficial to your diet and give you longer lasting energy over your period of being awake. During this time we need foods for fuel which are long term and sustainable if we run out of our own stored fuels. Using the scales in the glycemic index we can determine how many calories and what kind of calories we are about to put into our system however keeping away from the sugar is the hardest part of picking something from the low glycemic foods index.

The best way that I have found to go without the overly sugary foods is to cut off everything that has a GI rating of over 40. This leaves out a lot of foods however if they are fresh and natural foods I can still eat them as an alternative or a sometimes food. Dieting is all about calorie control which is how we create the negative calorie equation to lose weight and the GI index is just one of the many tools that people all over the world use to help them with their weight loss program. Once you master the GI index then you will be able to make diet meals that suit your tastes.

When we talk about low glycemic foods you need to picture foods that are high in sugars which are the high glycemic foods and the low sugary foods as low glycemic foods. The body responds favorably to eating more low glycemic foods than it does to sugary foods because the low glycemic foods are a better and more sustainable source of fuel in most cases.

By eating complex carbohydrates such as brands and whole meal breads during your breakfast, morning tea and lunch meals you will ensure that you are full of energy for the day. The body will be fueled and ready to work for you as well as recover during your down time. The low glycemic foods and their potential to help achieve a better diet are not a secret and can be found in many good nutrition and meal planning books.

Your choice of low glycemic foods is relative to what you think is low glycemic. Without feeding raw sugar straight to the children where do we draw the boundaries on eating a low glycemic food or meal? There are many advantages to being on a low glycemic food diet apart for the obvious weight loss. Low glycemic foods can help patients with diabetes regulate their eating better so that the type II sufferers will not have to take their insulin medication so often. The reduced risks of getting cancer and heart disease are also linked with having a low glycemic food diet.

But what would your choice be if you had to start a diet. There are still many food that you could eat that are low glycemic and still be very tasty. If you stocked the fridge and panty with these types of foods you can mix and match different creations and recipes until you perfected the diet. With combination comes flexibility and as long as you as keeping your calorie count low you should be happy with the results of the diet. By eating foods that take longer to digest you also keep your metabolism higher which has many other benefits to aid the well being of your body.

Low glycemic foods are made of complex carbohydrates or fibrous carbohydrates rather that carbs that are just full of sugars. The sugary foods hold little nutritional value and if eating in large quantities the sugar converts to fat and is stored as fatty deposits meaning your weight will increase. The other major drawback of eating high glycemic foods is the increased risk of developing diabetes, especially for young children that eat and drink a lot of sugary products. The other problem with eating high glycemic foods is that they rot your teeth if you do not look after them properly.

Here is a quick rundown of some low glycemic foods. On a GI scale of 1 to 100 the lower the number the less sugar there is in the food source. Below 40 is said to be a healthier option.

Nuts and seeds 10 to 30 GI

Beans and Lentils 20 to 30 GI

Bran cereals 25 to 35 GI

Skim Milk 34 GI

Apples and Pears 38 GI

Rye Bread 42 GI

Spaghetti 44 GI

Brown Rice 55 GI

Table Sugar 68 GI

White Bread 73 GI

Coca Cola 77 GI

Low glycemic foods are low in simple carbohydrate (sugar) which means they are generally healthier for you to eat more regularly if they are not saturated in fats. The low glycemic foods also generally have more energy for you to use and will fuel your body for longer periods of time which is a benefit if you are struggling to eat regular meals each day.

Here are some good examples of low glycemic foods which rate under the 50 GI in the glycemic index scale. The lower the GI rating means there are less sugars in the foods.

(Breakfast) All bran cereal. Natural Muesli. Whole grain toast. Porridge. Eggs. Bacon

(Morning Tea) Whole grain bagel. Whole grain breads. Most fruits. Some muesli bars. Seeds. Nuts. Legumes. Corn chips. Some cakes. Tea. Coffee.

(Lunch) Mixed Vegetables. Baked Potato. Whole grain breads. Low fat sandwich hams. Chicken pieces. Salad sandwiches. Brown rice. Whole meal pasta.

(Afternoon tea) Same as morning tea. Plus. Flavored milk. Low sugar jams. Rice crackers. Cheese.

(Dinner) Same as Lunch. Plus. More variety of lean meats. Taco shells. Vegetable soups. Noodles. Wheat Tortilla.

(Dessert) Low fat yogurts. Fruit salads. Low carb desserts.