Which Is Higher for Your Blood Sugar?

When the desserts come out on Thanksgiving, you might marvel which basic dish—pumpin pie or apple pie—is healthier in your blood sugar. In accordance with diet consultants, pumpkin pie reigns supreme.

Anybody watching their blood sugar ought to select pumpkin pie over apple, consultants agreed.

A typical slice of apple pie accommodates about 30 grams of pure and added sugar, whereas pumpkin pie is available in barely decrease at round 25 grams. Pumpkin pie can also be decrease in carbohydrates, which your physique breaks down into glucose.

However sugar and carbohydrate content material aren’t the one components that matter, Lena Beal, MS, RDN, LD, a registered dietitian nutritionist and spokesperson for the Academy of Diet and Dietetics, advised Well being. The general nutrient profile additionally impacts how shortly blood sugar rises—together with the protein and fiber, which assist sluggish digestion and blunt spikes.

Even on these fronts, nonetheless, pumpkin pie nonetheless has an edge: A slice accommodates about 2.39 grams of fiber and 5.19 grams of protein, in contrast with 2.19 grams of fiber and a pair of.97 grams of protein in apple pie.

That mentioned, the glycemic load—a measurement of how shortly and the way a lot a meals raises blood sugar—of each pies is taken into account medium, Sharon Palmer, MSFS, RDN, a registered dietitian nutritionist from California, advised Well being. That signifies that even a slice of apple pie would have solely a average impact on blood sugar.

It’s not simply pumpkin pie’s results on blood sugar that might make it a extra nutritious choice. Apple pie usually accommodates extra energy than pumpkin pie (397 versus 323 per slice), which can matter for those who’re watching your weight.