Erin is a licensed and registered dietitian who worked as a health educator for many years, covering topics like meal planning, vegetarianism, eating organic, and healthy eating both in-person and in print.

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It's often helpful to have a glycemic index chart, especially when you have diabetes and struggle to keep blood sugar levels in check. The chart below helps you determine how foods affect blood sugar. For example, a low-glycemic index (GI) food raises blood sugar slow and steadily, while high glycemic index foods cause more rapid blood sugar spikes.

GI Categories

To put glycemic index (GI) into perspective and know how certain foods affect your levels, it's important to understand what's considered high, medium, and low. According to Mayo Clinic, a low GI food is 1 to 55, medium GI foods are 56 to 69, and high GI foods are 70 or higher. The chart below provides you with GI numbers for specific foods in a variety of categories.

Fruits		Vegetables		Grains		Are you InTheKnow? Sign up for our newsletter featuring all the latest stories and products we love. Invalid email I agree to receive email communications from LoveToKnow.com Sweets, Snacks, and Drinks
Watermelon	76	Russet potato	111	White bread	71	Rice cakes	82
Apple	39	White potato	82	Whole-wheat bread	69	Jelly beans	78
Orange	40	Mashed potatoes	87	Whole-grain bread	51	Soda crackers	74
Pear	38	Sweet potato	70	Muesli	56	Doughnuts	76
Banana	60	Lentils	29	Pumpernickel bread	46	Graham crackers	74
Pineapple	58	Kidney beans	28	White pita bread	68	Vanilla wafers	77
Dates	42	Parsnips	52	Corn tortilla	52	Ice cream	57
Raisins	64	Sweet corn	60	Wheat tortilla	30	Rye crisps	64
Prunes	29	Black beans	30	White bagel	72	Shortbread	64
Peaches	42	Chickpeas	10	Hamburger bun	61	Corn chips	42
Grapes	59	Navy beans	31	White rice	70	Fruit roll-ups	99
Grapefruit	25	Green peas	51	Brown rice	50	Pretzels	83
Orange juice	50	Carrots	35	Couscous	65	Potato chips	51
Cranberry juice cocktail	68	Yam	54	Quinoa	53	Popcorn	55
Apple juice	41	Tomato juice	38	Bulgur	47	Peanut M&Ms	33
Mango	51	Pumpkin	64	Oatmeal	55	Snickers bar	51
Kiwi fruit	58	Soybeans	15	Instant oatmeal	79	Hummus	6
Cantaloupe	65	Baked beans	40	Cream of wheat	66	Cheese pizza	80
Pomegranate juice	53	Beets	64	All bran	44	Supreme pizza	36
Grapefruit juice	48	Red potato	89	Corn flakes	81	Honey	61
Avocado	0	Butternut squash	51	Raisin bran	61	Table sugar	63
Strawberries	40	Zucchini	15	Barley	28	Maple syrup	54
Blackberries	32	Mushrooms	1	Grape nuts	75	Cola	63
Lemon	25	Onions	10	White spaghetti	46	Orange soda	68
Cherries, sweet	22	Bell pepper	40	Whole-grain spaghetti	32	Gatorade	89
Plum	24	Chili peppers	10	Pancakes	67	Vanilla cake with frosting	42
Apricot, dried	32	Broccoli	11	Waffles	76	Jam/Jelly	49
		Cauliflower	20	Kaiser roll	73	Cashews	25
		Asparagus	15	Barley bread	34	Peanuts	18
		Celery	15	Fettuccini	32	Reduced-fat yogurt	33
		Brussels sprouts	12	Rice noodles	53	Milk	35
		Cabbage	10			Blueberry muffin	50

Using GI Charts

Choosing lower GI foods is generally best when you have diabetes, as these foods help prevent blood sugar spikes. However, high-GI foods come in handy pre- or post-exercise, when you need a quick pick-me-up. Often times foods with more fiber, protein and/or fat content have lower GIs. Some foods you might consider healthy (like potatoes) may have higher GIs than you thought.