Health: Reduce High-glycaemic food intake

clipped from news.bbc.co.uk A diet rich in potatoes, white bread and white rice may be contributing to a "silent epidemic" of a dangerous liver condition. "High-glycaemic" foods - rapidly digested by the body - could be causing "fatty liver", increasing the risk of serious illness. The study, carried out at Boston Children's Hospital, looked at the effect of diets with precisely the same calorific content, but very different ingredients when measured using the glycaemic index (GI). After six months on the diet, the mice weighed the same, but those on the high GI diet had twice the normal amount of fat in their bodies, blood and livers. The researchers say that because the processed carbohydrates are absorbed so quickly, they trigger the release of more of the chemical insulin, which tells the body to lay down more fat.