Which statement about glycemic load is true?

• A. It is calculated by dividing GI by the grams of carbohydrate
• B. It is based on the fat content of the food
• C. It increases with high GI and/or high carbohydrate grams
• D. It ignores portion size

Answer: (C)

Glycemic load combines both the quality and the amount of carbohydrate that a serving provides. It increases when the GI is high and/or when the carbohydrate grams in a serving are high, because GL is essentially the GI multiplied by the carbohydrate grams per serving (divided by 100). This means a high-GI food can have a modest GL if the portion has little carbohydrate, and a moderate-GI food can have a high GL if the serving is large. It’s not based on fat content, and it does reflect portion size through the carbohydrate amount in the serving. So the true statement is that GL rises with high GI values and/or large amounts of carbohydrate per serving.