Low Glycemic Foods List | 101 Foods in PDF

Low Glycemic Foods List (What GI Really Measures)

Not all carbs behave the same in your bloodstream. That’s the whole idea behind the glycemic index. Foods that raise blood glucose slowly (low GI) tend to keep you full longer, blunt insulin spikes, and support blood-sugar control. Foods that spike hard (high GI) tend to leave you hungry an hour later.

What the GI number actually means: it’s a 0-to-100 scale that compares how much 50 g of digestible carbohydrate from a specific food raises blood glucose over two hours, relative to 50 g of pure glucose (Atkinson, Foster-Powell, Brand-Miller, Diabetes Care 2008). Low is 55 or under, moderate is 56 to 69, high is 70 or above.

What it doesn’t tell you: how much you’re actually eating (glycemic load handles that), how the food acts in a mixed meal, or how your specific body will respond. Use the list below as a guide, not gospel.

What’s on This Page

• GI vs GL: what the numbers mean
• Benefits of a lower-GI eating pattern
• Low-GI fruit
• Low-GI vegetables
• Low-GI grains
• Low-GI dairy
• Low-GI legumes
• Low-GI nuts, seeds, fats
• Low-GI drinks
• GI comparison table (low vs high)
• High-GI foods to portion or skip
• Practical tips for a lower-GI plate
• FAQ

GI vs GL: What the Numbers Mean

Glycemic Index (GI): How fast a food’s carbs raise blood glucose. 0 to 55 is low, 56 to 69 is moderate, 70+ is high.

Glycemic Load (GL): GI multiplied by the actual grams of carbs in a serving, divided by 100. GL is often more useful because it accounts for how much you eat. Watermelon has a high GI (~72) but a low GL per typical serving (~5), because it’s mostly water.

A 2018 review in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology (Vega-Lopez et al.) concluded that low-GI/GL diets modestly improve glycemic control and cardiovascular risk factors in adults with type 2 diabetes, though effects on healthy adults are smaller.

Benefits of a Lower-GI Eating Pattern

• Steadier blood sugar and less post-meal energy crash
• Reduced hunger between meals (fiber-rich carbs are more filling)
• Better glycemic control in people with type 2 diabetes
• Modestly lower cardiovascular risk over years
• Support for weight management via improved satiety

Low-Glycemic Fruit

Whole fruit’s fiber slows sugar absorption. Skip fruit juice and dried fruit if you’re minimizing spikes. Berries are the safest picks; melons and tropical fruit run higher.

• Apples
• Blueberries
• Blackberries
• Cherries
• Coconut
• Cranberries (unsweetened)
• Dried apricots
• Grapefruit (note: interacts with statins and some blood-pressure meds)
• Oranges
• Peaches
• Pears
• Plums
• Raspberries
• Strawberries
• Under-ripe (green-tipped) bananas

Low-Glycemic Vegetables

Almost all non-starchy vegetables are low GI or effectively zero GI because they contain so little carbohydrate. The main exceptions are potatoes, corn, and root vegetables like parsnips.

• Artichokes
• Bell peppers
• Bok choy
• Broccoli
• Brussels sprouts
• Cabbage
• Carrots (raw; cooked runs a bit higher)
• Cauliflower
• Celery
• Collards
• Cucumbers
• Eggplant
• Green beans
• Green peas
• Jalapenos
• Kale
• Lettuce (all types)
• Mushrooms
• Onions
• Snow peas
• Spinach
• Tomatoes
• Yellow squash and zucchini

Low-Glycemic Grains

Choose intact whole grains where possible. The more processed a grain (flour, puffed, extruded), the higher its GI.

• Barley (pearled)
• Black rice
• Buckwheat
• Bulgur
• Steel-cut oats
• Quinoa
• Wild rice
• Rye kernels
• Oat bran and rice bran cereals
• Sourdough bread (fermentation lowers GI)
• 100% whole-wheat kernels
• Pumpernickel bread

Low-Glycemic Dairy Products (and Alternatives)

Dairy has a lower GI than most starches because of the protein and fat content, even though lactose is a sugar.

• Plain Greek yogurt
• Plain yogurt
• Cottage cheese
• Skim, low-fat, and whole milk
• Unsweetened soy milk
• Cheddar, feta, mozzarella, Swiss, blue, brie, ricotta, goat cheese

Note: some unsweetened plant milks (oat, rice) have higher GI values than dairy because of the way the starches break down during processing. Check labels.

Low-Glycemic Legumes

Legumes are among the lowest-GI carb sources in the food supply. They combine slow-digesting starch, fiber, and plant protein.

• Chickpeas (garbanzo)
• Kidney beans
• Pinto beans
• Black beans
• Navy beans
• Lima beans
• Split peas
• Black-eyed peas
• Lentils (all colors)
• Edamame
• Roasted soybeans
• Hummus
• Tofu, tempeh

Low-Glycemic Nuts, Seeds, Fats, and Oils

Nuts and seeds are effectively zero-GI (very little carbohydrate). Fats and oils contain no carbohydrate and don’t register on the GI scale.

• Almonds, cashews, hazelnuts, macadamias, peanuts, walnuts, pecans, pistachios
• Natural nut butters (no added sugar)
• Chia seeds, flax seeds, pumpkin seeds, sunflower seeds, sesame seeds
• Olive oil, avocado oil, sesame oil, flaxseed oil

Low-Glycemic Drinks

• Plain water
• Sparkling water
• Unsweetened tea (green, black, herbal)
• Unsweetened coffee
• Low-fat milk
• Vegetable juice (small portions)
• Fruit juice: sparingly and only 100% juice (naturally high in sugar)

Dark Chocolate (70 percent or higher)

Dark chocolate has a low GI (~23 for 70% cocoa) because cocoa solids replace much of the sugar. A 20 to 30 g square fits within a low-GI plan.

GI Comparison Table (Low vs High)

High-GI Foods to Portion Carefully (or Skip on a Strict Plan)

• White rice (jasmine, calrose)
• Standard whole-wheat bread (surprisingly high GI)
• White bread
• Cornflakes and puffed rice cereals
• Cereal bars with added sugar
• Baked and mashed potatoes
• French fries, potato chips
• Rice crackers
• Pineapples, watermelon (though GL is lower than GI implies)
• Fruit-flavored yogurts (sugar-sweetened)
• Starchy vegetables (parsnips, some winter squash)
• Scones, doughnuts, waffles
• Licorice, jellybeans, hard candy
• Sports drinks and regular soda
• Rice milk, oat milk (higher-GI plant milks)
• Standard pasta cooked al dente is moderate; overcooked pasta runs higher

Practical Tips for a Lower-GI Plate

Mix the meal

Adding protein, fat, or fiber to a higher-GI food lowers the overall meal’s glycemic impact. Rice plus chicken plus vegetables and olive oil is a much smaller glucose spike than rice alone.

Cook al dente

The longer starches cook, the more they gelatinize, the higher the GI. Al dente pasta and firm rice have lower GI than mushy versions.

Cool starches when you can

Cooked and then cooled starches (pasta salad, cold potato salad, day-old rice) develop resistant starch, which behaves more like fiber and lowers GI.

Swap flour for kernels

Intact grains (steel-cut oats, whole barley, wheat berries) always beat flour-based versions of the same grain.

Add vinegar or lemon

A tablespoon of vinegar (in a salad dressing, for example) with a starchy meal blunts the post-meal glucose response by around 20 percent in trials.

Test what works for you

Individual glucose responses vary. If you use a continuous glucose monitor or have diabetes, log a few of your standard meals to see what your body actually does. You may be more sensitive to certain foods than the GI table suggests.

FAQ

Do low-GI diets help with type 2 diabetes?

The evidence supports modest improvements in HbA1c (roughly 0.3 to 0.5 percentage points) with low-GI diets in people with type 2 diabetes. It’s one useful tool alongside carb counting, meal timing, exercise, and medication.

Should people with diabetes avoid fruit?

Whole fruit fits in almost all diabetic eating plans. Portion matters more than avoiding it. Berries are the safest low-GL picks. Skip fruit juice.

Will eating low-GI help me lose weight?

Low-GI eating supports weight loss when it also lowers calories, largely through improved satiety. The effect on weight is smaller than on blood sugar. Calorie balance still rules.

Are cooked carrots really high GI?

Older tables listed cooked carrots as high GI, but revised data put them in the moderate range (~35 to 39). Eat carrots.

Is whole-wheat bread really higher GI than sourdough?

Often, yes. Standard whole-wheat sandwich bread is finely ground and can hit GI 70+. Sourdough fermentation lowers GI because organic acids slow gastric emptying. If you want lower-GI bread, look for stone-ground, pumpernickel, or sourdough.

Should I get a continuous glucose monitor?

CGMs are useful for people with diabetes and increasingly available to non-diabetics. Interpret the data cautiously and with a clinician: individual spikes to normal meals are common and don’t mean pre-diabetes on their own.

When should I see a doctor first?

Any time you have diabetes and want to significantly change your carb intake, especially on insulin, sulfonylureas, meglitinides, or SGLT2 inhibitors. Also for gestational diabetes management. Your medication may need adjustment.

Related Reading

• No sugar diet food list
• Sugar detox food list
• Type 2 diabetes diet plan
• High-fiber diet food list