ABSTRACT
Table 22.1 compares the glycemic index (GI) of common cereal grains. ´e GI classi…cation system was developed to assess the impact of various foods on postprandial plasma glucose (Jenkins et al., 1978; Truswell, 1992; Wolever, 1990; Wolever et al., 1994, 2003). ´e GI is the ratio of incremental blood glucose under the curve of a test food to incremental blood glucose under the curve of white wheat bread × 100. Typically, foods with a low degree of starch gelatinization or more compact granules (e.g., spaghetti) and whole grains with high levels of viscous soluble …ber (e.g., barley, oats, and rye) have slower rates of digestion and lower GI values (Liu, 2002). Quick oatmeal, for example, is equivalent to rolled barley. GI is a function of structure, starch type, …ber content, and the interaction of these characteristics (Granfeldt et al., 1994).
