| Food | Approx. GI | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Red lentil pasta | ~22–35* | Very high protein/fiber. Exact GI varies considerably by formulation; generally among the better pasta choices. |
| Chickpea / gram-flour roti | ~28 | Very low GI; higher protein and fiber than wheat roti. |
| Regular white durum pasta, al dente | ~27–45 | Surprisingly good. Pasta’s compact starch/protein structure slows digestion. A recent GI database entry measured boiled white pasta at 27. (Glycemic Index) |
| Black-bean pasta | ~30–40* | High protein/fiber and tends to produce a substantially smaller glucose response than refined bread. |
| Chickpea pasta, cooled + reheated | ~33 | Excellent option. Cooling increases resistant starch; one controlled study found GI 33. (PubMed Central (PMC)) |
| Chickpea pasta, freshly cooked | ~39 | Controlled testing found GI 39. Still firmly low-GI. (PubMed Central (PMC)) |
| Barley roti | ~43 | Low GI; barley’s soluble fiber helps slow carbohydrate absorption. |
| Multigrain / dense grain bread | ~43–55 | Can be quite good when made with intact/coarse grains; finely milled “multigrain” may be much higher. (Glycemic Index) |
| Whole-wheat roti / chapati | ~45–60 | Usually a good conventional bread choice, especially thin roti made from whole atta. |
| Corn tortilla | ~50–52 | Relatively modest GI and usually a small carb portion. |
| Quinoa pasta | ~50-ish* | Harder to assign a reliable universal GI. Pure quinoa is around the low-to-medium GI range, but many “quinoa pastas” contain substantial rice/corn flour, which can raise GI considerably. |
| Egg lasagna / durum pasta | ~53 | GI database value for boiled egg lasagna: 53. (Glycemic Index) |
| Dense 100% whole-grain bread | ~50–55 | Better when grain particles remain relatively intact. |
| Traditional pumpernickel | ~50–56 | Dense traditional rye versions are preferable to fluffy commercial “pumpernickel.” |
| Wholemeal / brown pita | ~56 | Better than white pita if genuinely wholemeal rather than simply colored brown. |
| Whole-wheat pasta | ~50–59 | More fiber than normal pasta, although GI is not necessarily dramatically lower than well-cooked regular durum pasta. GI database example: 59. (Glycemic Index) |
| Whole-wheat sliced bread | ~65–70 | “Whole wheat” doesn’t guarantee low GI; finely milled flour can digest rapidly. |
| White pita | ~65–68 | Medium-high GI; one pita may also contain ~30–35 g carbohydrate. |
| Corn pasta / some gluten-free pasta | ~68 | Often worse than wheat pasta. One tested gluten-free corn pasta had GI 68. (Glycemic Index) |
| Bagel | ~70 | High GI and usually a very large carbohydrate dose. |
| Naan | ~70–72 | Refined flour + large serving means substantial glycemic load. |
| White sandwich bread | ~73–75 | Rapidly digested refined flour. |
| Rice + corn gluten-free pasta | ~76 | Important surprise: gluten-free does not mean glucose-friendly. Tested rice/maize pasta had GI 76. (Glycemic Index) |
| French bread / baguette | ~70–80+ | Typically among the fastest-digested bread choices. |
Glycemic understanding
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