Glycemic Load

The glycemic load (GL) is a ranking system for carbohydrate content in food portions based on their glycemic index (GI) and the portion size. A GI value tells only how rapidly a particular carbohydrate turns into sugar and doesn't tell you how much of that carbohydrate is in a serving of a particular food. To understand the food's effect on blood sugar, both must be known. That is where glycemic load comes in.

Glycemic load for a single serving of a food can be calculated as the quantity (in grams) of its carbohydrate content, multiplied by its GI, and divided by 100. For example, a 100g slice serving of watermelon with a GI of 72 and a carbohydrate content of 5g (it contains a lot of water) makes the calculation 5*0.72=3.6, so the GL is 3.6. Glycemic Load also has a scale. Low is 10 or less, Medium is 11-19 and 20 or greater is considered High.

The usefulness of glycemic load is based on the idea that a high glycemic index food consumed in small quantities would give the same effect as larger quantities of a low glycemic index food on blood sugar. So, multiplying the amount of carbohydrates in a food serving by the glycemic index gives an idea of how much effect an actual portion of food has on blood sugar level.

According to a health study, women whose diets had the highest glycemic index were 21 percent more likely to develop type 2 diabetes than women whose diets had the lowest glycemic index. A diet programme that manages the glycemic load aims to avoid sustained blood sugar spikes, and can help avoid onset of type 2 diabetes. For diabetics, glycemic load is a highly recommended tool for managing blood sugar.