Fruit blood sugar ranking, 4 pictures to help you eat with confidence

Summer is the season with the most fruits, lychees, peaches, watermelons.... Walking into the fruit store, you can easily be captured by the sweet fruit.

But many people have some concerns about the sugar content of fruits, especially people who have metabolic disorders, blood sugar, blood lipids, or high uric acid, hesitate whether this sweet fruit can be eaten, which one is good?

Most fruits have a low glycemic index

In fact, compared to rice steamed buns, the glycemic index of most fruits is not so high.

The glycemic index (GI value) is an indicator of how carbohydrate-containing foods affect blood sugar after meals.

●GI≤55 is low GI, and this food digests slowly, converts to glucose slowly, and raises blood sugar slowly.

● Between 55~70 is medium GI food.

● ≥70 is a high GI food, which is quickly digested, converted to glucose quickly, and blood sugar rises quickly.

Although fruits are sweet, most of them do not have a high glycemic index.

I have compiled a table of glycemic index tables of fruits that I often eat, so you can take a look.

Here is a reminder that the sugar content of fruits is affected by many factors such as variety, origin, ripeness and so on; At the same time, everyone's blood sugar response is also different, and the blood sugar response of different people in different states is also different for the same food.

For example, studies comparing the glycemic response of lychee to healthy people with type 2 diabetes, measured GI values of 48 and 60, respectively [1].

▲Source: Reference 1-9

▲Source: Reference 1-9

It can be seen that the GI value of most fruits is below 55, which belongs to low glycemic index fruits.

Even fruits that are considered very sweet, such as grapes, lychees, and bananas, are not as valuable as rice and steamed buns (white rice has a GI of 83 and steamed buns is 85).

However, for some people, rice is not overeaten, but sweet and juicy fruits are easy to overeat. In summer, many people have no appetite, take fruit as a meal, or only eat fruit, but also eat vigorously, the impact on blood sugar is very strong.

Therefore, in addition to the GI value, we also have to consider how much sugar is eaten at the bottom.

Multiplying the GI value by the sugar content is the correct way to evaluate the blood sugar response of fruits. This indicator is called glycemic load (GL)

Pay attention to "blood sugar load"

Glycemic load is calculated by the GI value of this food × carbohydrate content (g) ÷ 100.

●≥ 20 are high-glycemic load foods, which have a large impact on blood sugar.

●11 to 19 are medium-glycemic load foods.

●≤ 10 are low-glycemic load foods, which have less effect on blood sugar.

In order to facilitate calculation and comparison between different foods, the blood sugar load of 100 grams of food (edible part) is generally calculated, and the blood sugar load of the actual intake of food is calculated according to the actual intake.

For example, the GI value of watermelon is 76, the sugar content of sweet watermelon is calculated by 10%, 100g of watermelon sugar is about 10g, then the blood sugar load when eating 100g of watermelon is 76 x 10% = 7.6;

If you show off two pounds of watermelon (two pounds of pulp) in one go, then the GL at this time is 76 x 100% = 76.

I have also compiled a list of the blood sugar load of commonly eaten fruits (calculated by eating 100g) for everyone to see.

▲Source: Reference 1-9

▲Source: Reference 1-9

Some fruits, although low GI foods, but high sugar content, such as durian, jackfruit, plantain, shakya, have become medium to high glycemic load foods.

And some high-GI fruits, because the sugar content is not high, have become low-glycemic load foods. For example, cantaloupe, watermelon.

From the perspective of blood sugar control, if you eat the same amount of fruit, it is wiser to choose less sugar under the same GI value; For the same sugar content, it is wise to choose those with lower GI values.

For example, the GI values of pineapple and lotus fog are 66 and 67 respectively, which are similar, but the sugar content of lotus fog is 8%, which is 13% lower than pineapple;

For example, watermelon and kiwi have similar sugar content, both of which are about 10%, but kiwi fruit is a low GI fruit, so it is wiser to choose it.

Many people don't eat enough fruit

Sharing this information is not to let everyone eat only low-sugar fruits or low-GI fruits from now on; Or, if you see high-sugar and high-GI fruits, you will blacken and do not eat them

Fruits high in GI and high in sugar, eating less in moderation and through reasonable matching can also help maintain blood sugar homeostasis; Conversely, eating too much low-GI foods can also increase the postprandial blood sugar burden.

In fact, many people's problem is that they don't eat enough fruit.

Photo: Anna Shvets, https://www.pexels.com/zh-cn/photo/3962285/

Dietary Guidelines for Chinese Residents

It is recommended to eat 200-350g of fresh fruit every day, fruit juice can not replace fresh fruit.

But in fact, according to the "Scientific Research Report on Dietary Guidelines for Chinese Residents 2021", urban residents who eat more fruits are only 55.7 grams / day, far below the recommended standard.

Many studies have proved that eating more fruits can help prevent a variety of chronic diseases, including type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease.

A recent study published in The Lancet by the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention showed that from 2002 to 2018, inadequate intake of fruits, whole grains and vegetables was the main dietary risk factor for cardiovascular disease in China.

Studies have shown that from 2002 to 2018, insufficient intake of fruits, whole grains and vegetables was the main dietary risk factor for cardiovascular disease in China.

So let's check your diet first to see if you have eaten enough fruit.

What fruit did you eat today?

 Resources 

[1] Chen, Ya-Yen et al. “Glycemia and peak incremental indices of six popular fruits in Taiwan: healthy and Type 2 diabetes subjects compared.” Journal of clinical biochemistry and nutrition vol. 49,3 (2011): 195-9. doi:10.3164/jcbn.11-11

[2] Atkinson, Fiona S et al. “International tables of glycemic index and glycemic load values 2021: a systematic review.” The American journal of clinical nutrition vol. 114,5 (2021): 1625-1632. doi:10.1093/ajcn/nqab233

[3] Afaghi, Ahmad, et al. "GLYCEMIC INDEX AND GLYCEMIC LOADS OF VARIETY OF FRUITS: CLINICAL IMPLEMENTATION OF FRUITS'SERVING SIZE IN LOW GLYCEMIC LOAD DIET." Current Topics in Nutraceutical Research 7.3 (2009).

[4] Bunprakong, L., et al. "Glycaemic index and glycaemic load of commonly consumed Thai fruits." (2021).

[5] Wolever, T.M.S., et al., Glycaemic index of fruits and fruit products in patients with diabetes. International Journal of Food Sciences and Nutrition, 1993. 43(4): p. 205-212.

[6] Kentaro Murakami and others, Dietary glycemic index and load in relation to metabolic risk factors in Japanese female farmers with traditional dietary habits, The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, Volume 83, Issue 5, May 2006, Pages 1161–1169, https://doi.org/10.1093/ajcn/83.5.1161

[7] FICC, H. Basavana Gowdappa MD, and M. Mahesh. "A study of glycemic index of ten Indian fruits by an alternate approach." E–International Scientific International Scientific International Scientific Research Journal Research Journal (2011): 11.

[8] Hettiaratchi, U P K et al. “Nutritional assessment of a jackfruit (Artocarpus heterophyllus) meal.” The Ceylon medical journal vol. 56,2 (2011): 54-8. doi:10.4038/cmj.v56i2.3109

[9] Chinese Food Composition List

[10] Fang, Yuehui, et al. "The burden of cardiovascular disease attributable to dietary risk factors in the provinces of China, 2002–2018: a nationwide population-based study." The Lancet Regional Health–Western Pacific (2023).