The Low Glycemic Food Chart List

The low glycemic food chart list below is a compilation of the average glycemic index of some of the most common foods eaten in the western diet. It consists of basic ingredients for meals you make for yourself. If you are interested in a glycemic index chart of various processed foods (most of which are bad for your health, low glycemic or not) you can consult David Mendosa's Revised International Table of Glycemic Index and Glycemic Load Values.

Another useful tool is the University of Sydney's free searchable
GI database that has information about the GI values of thousands of different foods compiled from numerous international studies. Just type in the food you are curious about and it will provide you with its glycemic index number.

However, many simple foods such as cheese, meat, fish and most vegetables are not included on the low glycemic food chart list, mainly because they have little to no carbohydrate content and thus do not register or are very low on the glycemic index chart.

The following low glycemic food chart list is arranged by lowest to highest GI for each food category. Low glycemic ranges from 0 to 55 (in green), medium glycemic is 56 to 69 (in orange), and high glycemic is 70 and above (in red).

FOOD ITEMS	GI
GRAINS
Pearled barley, cooked	28
Barley flour bread (80% barley, 20% white wheat flour)	34
Rye kernel bread (80% kernels, 20% white wheat flour)	41
Buckwheat, cooked	45
Barley kernel bread	45
Corn tortillas	46
Cracked wheat, bulgur, boiled	46
Buckwheat bread (50% dehusked buckwheat groats, 50% white flour)	47
Spaghetti, whole meal	48
Spaghetti, white, boiled 10-15 minutes	49
Rye bread (50% rye flour, 50% wheat flour)	50
Oat bran bread (45% oat bran, 50% white wheat flour)	50
Oatmeal (thick, steel cut oats)	52
Wheat kernel bread (80% intact kernels, 20% white wheat flour	52
Quinoa	53
Multi-grain bread	53
Rice noodles, cooked	53
Oatmeal (rolled oats), cooked	55
Sweet corn	55
Whole meal barley porridge	56
Wild rice	57
Whole meal spelt bread	63
Couscous (from semolina-durham wheat) boiled 5 minutes	65
Oat bread (80% intact oat kernels, 20% white wheat flour)	65
Muesli	66
Millet, boiled	67
Brown rice, boiled	68
Taco shells	68
Cornmeal, boiled in salted water 2 minutes	68
White Rice, boiled	73
Whole wheat bread	74
White flour bread	75
Oatmeal (one-minute oats)	79
Rice cakes	82
White rice, boiled	83
FRUITS
Grapefruit	25
Apples, Dried	29
Prunes	29
Apricots, Dried	30
Apples, Raw	36
Pears	38
Plums	39
Strawberries	40
Oranges	42
Apricots, Raw	46
Grapes	50
Kiwi	52
Bananas	53
Pineapple	59
Papaya	60
Figs, dried	61
Raisins	61
Cantaloupe	68
Watermelon	76
STARCHY VEGETABLES
Carrots, peeled, boiled	33
Carrots, raw, diced	35
Sweet potatoes, boiled	46
Potatoes, boiled	49
Yams	54
Beets	64
French fries	64
Potatoes, Mashed	83
Potatoes, Baked	111
LEGUMES
Lentils, red, cooked	21
Split peas, yellow, cooked	25
Lentils, green, cooked	30
Kidney beans	31
Garbanzo beans, dried, soaked, boiled 35 minutes	31
Navy beans, cooked	35
Pinto beans, dried, boiled	39
Pinto beans, canned	45
DAIRY
Cheese	0
Greek yogurt	12
Whole fat milk	31
Yogurt, low fat, plain	35
Skim milk	36
Yogurt, low fat with fruit	47
SWEETENERS
Stevia	0
Agave syrup*	15
Fructose	18
Raw honey	30
Barley malt syrup	42
Sugar cane juice	43
Maple syrup	54
Evaporated cane juice	55
Black strap molasses	55
Turbinado sugar	65
Pasteurized honey	71
Corn syrup	75
Sucrose (white sugar)	80
Brown rice syrup	85
High fructose corn syrup	87
Glucose	100

*Agave syrup, while low on the glycemic scale, is high in fructose and no better for your health than HFCS.

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