by Dr. Paul Cribb Ph.D. CSCS.
AST Director of Research
Decreasing the rate of blood glucose that hits the system after a meal is key aspect of fat loss but also long term protection against diabetes and heart disease. The selection of low glycemic index (GI) meals is an important strategy that achieves this result. A step further is to add certain foods or compounds to meals in an attempt to lower the meal’s GI and the influx of glucose into the system. Along this line, almonds appear to contain a compound that effectively lowers the GI response to a meal.
In a study of 15 healthy people given 2 bread control meals and 3 test meals (almonds and bread; parboiled rice; and instant mashed potatoes), results showed that almonds have a significant impact on blood sugar. While the results in this case aren’t really applicable for people that want to lose body fat; a 66gram dose of almonds was used (containing over 30grams of fat). It appears as though almonds do contain a component that has a positive impact on the GI of a meal. More research to identify the compound is underway.
The identification of certain nutrients and compounds that can be added to meals to lower their GI response is a direction that is going to receive a lot of attention in the near future. Healthy people can apply this information to build a lean, muscular physique.
Source: J Nutr. 2006 Dec;136(12):2987-92.
