GI for Women
A new study shows that eating low glycaemic index foods
helps women in particular with weight control.
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GI for Jane, but not John
By WLR Dietitian
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Celebs like Kylie Minogue and Jodie Kidd are fans of the
low glycaemic index
diet to help keep them slim – and it seems they’re actually
doing the right thing.
A new study published in the American
Journal of Clinical Nutrition supports the idea that basing
our diets on low glycaemic index foods really does help to prevent the
pounds from piling on.
Danish researchers looked at the diets
and health of almost 400 adults over a six-year period. They
discovered diets that included lots of high glycaemic index foods were
associated with increases in body weight,
body fat and waist
circumference in women, especially those who led sedentary
lives and did little exercise. Surprisingly though, there were
no differences in men.
WLR says:
This study doesn’t reveal any great surprises but
simply confirms what health experts have known for some time.
Eating a diet that contains a lot of high GI foods tends to send
blood sugar levels on a rollercoaster ride of highs and lows,
with the lows causing hunger and cravings for carbs. More often
than not, we succumb to these cravings and end up overeating –
and it’s this that causes the pounds to pile on and our
waistlines to expand.
In contrast, a diet that’s packed with low glycaemic index foods, keeps blood sugar levels steady,
helping to prevent hunger and cravings.
It’s unclear why no
relationship was found between a high GI diet and weight gain
in men. It would seem though that the men, on average,
continued to eat the right amount of calories to maintain
their weight, despite consuming high GI foods. Obviously more
research is needed to investigate this. In the meantime, you
can get more information on the GI
diet.
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