What is the glycemic index and where does seaweed sit?
The glycemic index is simply a measure of how much and how fast glucose hits your blood after eating different foods, and therefore how fast insulin is needed to dampen the peak. High GI foods put a big strain on our insulin system which leads to all sorts of complications if it happens consistently when you eat. That is why it is important to eat mostly foods that are known to have a lower GI.
Things like pasta made with proper durum semolina have a lower GI than you might think, because the starch is bound up and more resistant to digestive enzymes. Add seaweed to it and it will be even lower.
Our specific type of seaweed extract used in SeaFibre-3, is known to regulate enzymes that extend the digestion of food throughout your gut down to your bowel (BelHadj et al 2013). This reduces the sugar hit effect from food and effectively lowers the glycemic index.
This might be one of the processes that led to improved metabolic markers in our clinical research. However, there are also interactions directly with our microbiome, the gut lining, immune cells, the food in our system and even our genetics. So it is a complicated ecosystem that works in different ways for each individual. For most of us in the modern world on an industrialised diet however, including seaweed in your diet everyday can make an important difference.
