The GI Diet Guide
 

 
   
 

High, Medium and Low GI Foods

One of the Internet's most comprehensive lists of foods with their glycemic index. If you are following the GI or South Beach diet you should aim to include more foods with a low glycemic index in your diet. Your body will digest these foods slowly leaving you feeling full for longer and allowing you to eat less calories without feeling hungry. Adding a low GI food to a meal will lower the glycemic index of the whole meal. You can find meals that include low GI foods in our recipe section.

If you prefer the traffic light system used in the low G.I. diet book by Rick Gallop you can find the same data below arranged in red, yellow and green zones on our glycemic index chart.

For help choosing what to buy and eat when out and about you can keep details of GI values with you using one of the cheap pocket guides; such as: The Gi Diet Pocket Guide

Glycemic Index

The number listed next to each food is its glycemic index. This is a value obtained by monitoring a persons blood sugar after eating the food. The value can vary slightly from person to person and from one type or brand of food and another. A noticeable difference is the GI rating of Special-K which produced considerably different results in tests in the US and Australia, most likely resulting from different ingredients in each location. Despite this slight variation the index provide a good guide to which foods you should be eating and which foods to avoid.

The glycemic index range is as follows:
Low GI = 55 or less
Medium GI = 56 - 69
High GI = 70 or more

Breakfast Cereal

Low GI
All-bran (UK/Aus) 30
All-bran (US) 50
Oat bran 50
Rolled Oats 51
Special K (UK/Aus) 54
Natural Muesli 40
Porridge 58

Medium GI
Bran Buds 58
Mini Wheats 58
Nutrigrain 66
Shredded Wheat 67
Porridge Oats 63
Special K (US) 69

High GI
Cornflakes 80
Sultana Bran 73
Branflakes 74
Coco Pops 77
Puffed Wheat 80
Oats in Honey Bake 77
Team 82
Total 76
Cheerios 74
Rice Krispies 82
Weetabix 74

Staples

Low GI
Wheat Pasta Shapes 54
New Potatoes 54
Meat Ravioli 39
Spaghetti 32
Tortellini (Cheese) 50
Egg Fettuccini 32
Brown Rice 50
Buckwheat 51
White long grain rice 50
Pearled Barley 22
Yam 35
Sweet Potatoes 48
Instant Noodles 47
Wheat tortilla 30

Medium GI
Basmati Rice 58
Couscous 61
Cornmeal 68
Taco Shells 68
Gnocchi 68
Canned Potatoes 61
Chinese (Rice) Vermicelli 58
Baked Potatoes 60
Wild Rice 57

High GI
Instant White Rice 87
Glutinous Rice 86
Short Grain White Rice 83
Tapioca 70
Fresh Mashed Potatoes 73
French Fries 75
Instant Mashed Potatoes 80

Bread

Low GI
Soya and Linseed 36
Wholegrain Pumpernickel 46
Heavy Mixed Grain 45
Whole Wheat 49
Sourdough Rye 48
Sourdough Wheat 54

Medium GI
Croissant 67
Hamburger bun 61
Pita, white 57
Wholemeal Rye 62

High GI
White 71
Bagel 72
French Baguette 95

Snacks & Sweet Foods

Low GI
Slim-Fast meal replacement 27
Snickers Bar (high fat) 41
Nut & Seed Muesli Bar 49
Sponge Cake 46
Nutella 33
Milk Chocolate 42
Hummus 6
Peanuts 13
Walnuts 15
Cashew Nuts 25
Nuts and Raisins 21
Jam 51
Corn Chips 42
Oatmeal Crackers 55

Medium GI
Ryvita 63
Digestives 59
Blueberry muffin 59
Honey 58

High GI
Pretzels 83
Water Crackers 78
Rice cakes 87
Puffed Crispbread 81
Donuts 76
Scones 92
Maple flavoured syrup 68

Legumes (Beans)

Low GI
Kidney Beans (canned) 52
Butter Beans 36
Chick Peas 42
Haricot/Navy Beans 31
Lentils, Red 21
Lentils, Green 30
 Pinto Beans 45
Blackeyed Beans 50
Yellow Split Peas 32

Medium GI
Beans in Tomato Sauce 56

Vegetables

Low GI
Frozen Green Peas 39
Frozen Sweet Corn 47
Raw Carrots 16
Boiled Carrots 41
Eggplant/Aubergine 15
Broccoli 10
Cauliflower 15
Cabbage 10
Mushrooms 10
Tomatoes 15
Chillies 10
Lettuce 10
Green Beans 15
Red Peppers 10
Onions 10

Medium GI
Beetroot 64

High GI
Pumkin 75
Parsnips 97

Fruits

Low GI
Cherries 22
Plums 24
Grapefruit 25
Peaches 28
Peach, canned in natural juice 30
Apples 34
Pears 41
Dried Apricots 32
Grapes 43
Coconut 45
Coconut Milk 41
Kiwi Fruit 47
Oranges 40
Strawberries 40
Prunes 29

Medium GI
Mango 60
Sultanas 56
Bananas 58
Raisins 64
Papaya 60
Figs 61
Pineapple 66

High GI
Watermelon 80
Dates 103

Dairy

Low GI
Whole milk 31
Skimmed milk 32
Chocolate milk 42
Sweetened yoghurt 33
Artificially Sweetened Yoghurt 23
Custard 35
Soy Milk 44

Medium GI
Icecream 62

Information provided by the University of Sydney and used with permission.

 
 
Who needs diet pills or appetite suppressants? Lose weight the healthy way with the low GI diet!
Links
feedback text