Comparative Evaluation of Glycemic index (GI) of some Traditional Dishes consumed in Enugu North Senatorial zone of Enugu State, Nigeria

The study was undertaken to evaluate the glycemic index (GI) of ‘ayarayaoka’, ‘okpa’ and ‘achichca and agbugbu’ a traditional dish consumed in Enugu North Senatorial zone. The recipes were standardized and prepared accordingly. Nutrient compositions of the prepared dishes were determined using standard procedures. A serving portion of each dish containing 50g of available carbohydrate was served to ten healthy adult subjects. Glucose was used as the reference food. The postprandial blood glucose response of the test and the reference meals were measured over two hours at 30 minutes interval. Blood glucose curves were plotted, area under each curve and corresponding glycemic index value for each dish determined. Data were analyzed using Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS). The dishes had appreciable proximate composition, were moisture ranged from 46.20-62.55%, ash 2.68-3.56%, fat 5.30-8.20%, protein 4.90-17.80%, fibre 0.23-7.20% and carbohydrate 16.31 to 31.22%. The blood glucose concentration of ‘ayarayaoka’, ‘okpa’, ‘achicha and agbugbu’, and glucose reference at 120 minutes were 75.28, 72.80, 80.28 and 88.30 respectively. The glycemic index (GI) and glycemic load (GL) of ‘ayarayaoka’, ‘okpa’ and ‘achicha and agbugbu’ were 47.52, 50.80- and 59.20 for index while 7.75, 10.32 and 18.48 for load respectively. The increametal area under blood glucose response curve showed that glucose standard had 124.93, ayarayaoka had 59.37, okpa had 63.46 while 73.96 were recorded for achicha and agbugbu. Conclusion Glycemic index of the dishes were low except for that of ‘achicha and agbugbu’ that had medium glycemic indices and they can be recommended for diabetics. Key word: Glycemic index, diabetes mellitus, traditional dishes, Okpa, ayarayaoka, achicha and agbugbu.