Reading Food Labels When Shopping for Low Glycemic Foods

You need to focus on the glycemic response of a food and then buy foods that are low glycemic. It is the high glycemic foods that trigger fat storage and raise blood sugar. Understanding food labels will help you know what to look for.

We need to be savvy consumers and know what to look for when reading food labels. How can overweight people control their body fat if they do not know which sugars and sweeteners raise blood sugar and stimulate excess body fat?

So the first step is reading food labels carefully! The next step is to compare the list of ingredients with a list of high glycemic sugars and sweeteners. We have provided a list of high glycemic foods beginning with the sweeteners here.

The most common ones are: maltodextrins, dextrins, high fructose corn syrup, corn syrup, added sugar, glucose polymers.

In the beginning take the printable list to the store with you when reading food labels. After a while you will know in a glance whether you should purchase the food.

Reading food labels is tricky because there are lots of misleading labels on the market such as “sugar free” or “ calorie free” or “light.” These are not necessarily good choices! You still need to read the ingredients because manufacturers have not been forced by the FDA to label them high glycemic and it appears as though calories are all that matter.

This is NOT true! Just as the idea that all fats are bad for you or all carbs are fattening, it is misleading. It is the kind of fats and the kind of carbs that are important, the low glycemic kind are the ones to eat that will not raise your blood sugar and create fat storage. And it is the low glycemic sweeteners that are you can eat without getting fat. Reading food labels effectively means knowing which additives are the high glycemic ones.

There are lots of good foods that are perfectly fine for you as far as quality and taste but they are high glycemic foods and will raise your blood sugar. There are some foods that become high glycemic just because they are prepared or cooked a certain way. For example, when you overcook pasta it becomes high glycemic. Also fruits that are very ripe may be high glycemic. Read more about the various food groups and learn which ones are low glycemic foods by reading our page on the glycemic index and scrolling to the bottom. Be sure to take a printable list of low glycemic foods with you when you go grocery shopping so you'll know what to look for when reading food labels.

When reading food labels notice if the fruit juice is 100% pure fruit juice. To be low glycemic it can have no added grape juice or white grape juice and should not contain added sugars, high fructose corn syrup, maltodextrins or pineapple juice. The low glycemic fruits made into pure 100% juice are fine if you dilute them half and half with water. Otherwise, you will have a glycemic load which means they can raise your blood sugar. It’s a case of being too much of a good thing.

Juices that contain pulp also have a lower glycemic response. Remember that pulp is a fiber and high fiber foods tend to have a lower glycemic rating. Tropicana Grovestand Orange Juice has very high pulp content and is a good one if you are shopping for a juice to drink sparingly on your low glycemic plan. So look for pulp when reading food labels for juices.

Again the high glycemic ingredients you really need to look out for when reading food labels are:

maltodextrins, glucose polymers, corn syrup, sucrose, dextrins or high fructose corn syrup.

Do NOT buy foods with these ingredients on the label. Don’t be fooled just because the label says fat free either! Many fat free products have high glycemic ingredients. Even sugar-free salad dressings frequently have high glycemic carbs in them which are not labeled as sugars but are still high glycemic.

Maltodextrins are frequently found in salad dressings. It is one that is slipped into a lot of foods that appear to be ok as far as fat and sugar content but they are NOT! Most people are aware of the dangers of high fructose corn syrup which is added to box drinks, sodas, sport drinks, canned fruits and other foods but most people assume that maltodextrins are a harmless preservative. Maltodextrins are very high glycemic and will raise your blood sugar dramatically.

Some salad dressings that DO have low glycemic ingredients and are acceptable on the Lifetime Fat Loss Low Glycemic Plan are:

While high quality ice cream and frozen desserts that are low in fat and contain high quality, dairy protein are low glycemic foods, watch out for the ones that have too many additives on the label! Reading food labels carefully is especially necessary when buying desserts for the occasional treat. Most ice cream products in grocery stores have all kinds of high glycemic additives, like the maltodextrins. Even ice cream which contains just plain sugar has a lower glycemic response than a frozen dessert with maltodextrins!

Why is ice cream low glycemic?

Because, even though it has sugar, it is prepared with a protein. Eating a protein with the carbohydrate will lower the glycemic response to the carb. But remember that too much protein at one meal becomes a glycemic load and will raise blood sugar. Yes, low fat ice cream made with fructose or other low glycemic sweeteners is preferable. Limit your serving to 2 scoops to control your insulin response and fat storage. Tofu frozen desserts are very high glycemic!

Most jams and jellies are loaded with corn syrup, sucrose, maltodextrins and dextrose. When reading food labels look for those that are sweetened with fructose.

So now that you are reading food labels and know how to identify a high or low glycemic product, it’s time to print out our 2 lists of high and low glycemic foods and remember to read labels when shopping for your low glycemic foods. What to do with all the high glycemic foods in your house? Put them in a box and take them to your local food bank where there are likely people who are not worried about fat storage. Until your new food habits are established you do NOT want temptation around. Visit our portion control tips page for ideas for low glycemic snacks. Stock your kitchen and pantry with low glycemic foods and learn how to read labels the low glycemic way!

Learning How to Grocery Shop the Low Glycemic Way

This is the answer to a reader's question about the best strategy to shop for low glycemic foods in a super market!

Daily Healthy Eating Plan

This is a one week menu guide to low glycemic eating with the calories calculated for you so you can stay with the 1500 - 1800 range!

Portion Control Tips

You need to know what a serving size looks like and there are lots of low glycemic snack ideas here too!

Glycemic Index List of Foods

The glycemic index list of foods includes foods that lower blood sugar and help you to lose fat!

List of Raw Foods

This list of raw foods contains fruits and vegetables that are a powerhouse of nutrients and they are low glycemic, meaning you can eat as much of them as you desire!

Omega 3 Sources in Healthy Salads

Low Glycemic Foods: Super Healthy Whole Grains

Eating lots of super healthy low glycemic foods means that you are once and for all replacing the fat storing high glycemic carbs in your diet with the low glycemic complex carbohydrates....

High Fiber Foods: Delicious Grains and Legumes

There are extraordinary health benefits in eating fiber rich foods including a lifetime of fat loss!

Low Carb Pastas and Cereals

Great news for pasta lovers....you don't need low carb pasta because pasta is low glycemic!

Good Fats

Calcium Rich Foods

Taking a look at dairy products and just how these calcium rich foods affect the glycemic index chart...

Sugar Free Desserts and the Good Sugars

Sugar free desserts that taste good? Is a sugar free dessert a low glycemic recipe? Yes!

Soups, Oriental Cuisine, Protein Foods

Glycemic Load

Too much of a good thing can be a glycemic load and definitely high glycemic foods are a glycemic load.

Acidic Foods: High Glycemic Sugars

Any list of acidic foods will have sodas at the top of the list. These drinks are high glycemic and fat storing drinks!

High Glycemic Foods

Here are some high glycemic foods listed in the high glycemic index chart below that need to be avoided most of the time in order to maintain your fat loss.

Controlling Food Cravings

Controlling food cravings means that you need to avoid the high glycemic foods on these lists! High glycemic sugars in foods stimulate the appetite and lead to food cravings.

Food Lovers Diet

Food lovers can celebrate good food and manage their weight at the same time!

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