Seafood has long been known for its health benefits, but did you know that it also plays a role in managing blood sugar levels?
The glycemic index (GI) is a measure of how quickly carbohydrates from food raise your blood glucose. Seafood, especially fatty fish such as salmon and tuna, have low GI values and can help to stabilize your blood-sugar level after eating.
The glycemic index measures the rate at which different foods are broken down into simple sugars during digestion – this affects how quickly they enter the bloodstream. Foods with high GIs will cause rapid spikes in your blood sugar, while those with lower GIs give more gradual increases over time.
Generally speaking, seafood tends to have relatively low GI values compared to other sources of protein like red meat or beans. Certain types of seafood fare better than others when it comes to their GI value: shrimp and cod both have very low GIs while crab has a slightly higher one. Salmon is perhaps the best choice out there due to its incredibly nutritious content consisting mainly of Omega 3 fatty acids along with being among some of the lowest GI proteins available!
In addition, research suggests that substituting beef or pork for fish may result in improved metabolic control despite similar energy intakes across all diets tested – so if you’re looking for ways improve insulin sensitivity without sacrificing flavor then adding more seafood into your diet could be an ideal way forward!
When preparing meals featuring fish always make sure not use too much oil/fat as this can increase their already moderate glycemic indexes quite dramatically making them less suitable options for diabetics who must carefully monitor their carbohydrate intake daily need take special care when planning menus accordingly.
Overall , including plenty servings of lean & healthy seafood dishes within our weekly meal plans can provide us significant nutritional benefits beyond just good taste alone! Their macronutrient composition plus notably lower Glycaemic Indexes makes them great choices helping manage maintain steadier blood glucose levels even after consumption – something which should be kept mind regardless whether we suffer diabetes type 1 / 2 or not!
Below you can find a complete list for seafood with its glycemic index and glycemic load ranks.
Note: GI = Glycemic Index, GL = Glycemic Load
| Photo | Name | GI | GL |
|---|---|---|---|
| Red caviar | 0 | 0.0 |
| Seafood (oysters, shrimp, mussels, etc.) | 0 | 0.0 |
| Crustaceans (lobster, crab, spiny lobster) | 5 | 0.1 |
| Fish (salmon, tuna, etc.) | 0 | 0.0 |
| Surimi (minced fish in crab sticks) | 50 | 3.4 |