title: Glycemic indices, glycemic load and glycemic response for seventeen varieties of dates grown in Saudi Arabia.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Dates are consumed worldwide, and are an important fruit for many individuals in Saudi Arabia. Currently, limited information is available on the glycemic indices of different date varieties.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  To determine the glycemic index (GI), glycemic load (GL) and glycemic response for 17 common date varieties in Saudi Arabia.
  
  
  METHODS
  Prospective clinical trial on healthy subjects.
  
  
  METHODS
  College of Medicine, Qassim University, Buraydah, Saudi Arabia.
  
  
  METHODS
  The available carbohydrate content of Tamer stage dates was determined using standard laboratory methods. Healthy subjects (ten males and nine females) received 50 g of glucose (on three separate occasions) and 50 g equivalent of available carbohydrates from the seventeen varieties of date (each once). The GI and GL were then calculated.
  
  
  METHODS
  GI, GL, and glycemic response.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The mean (SEM) GI of the date samples was 55.2 (7.7) (range, 42.8-74.6). Sellaj and Maktoomi exhibited the highest GI (74.6 [10.1] and 71.0 [11.1]), respectively, whereas Shaqra, Sukkary, and Sag'ai had the lowest GI (42.8 [5.5], 43.4 [4.7] and 44.6 [6]), respectively. The GL of the date samples ranged from 8.5 to 24. Sellaj had a high GL (24), whereas Ajwah and Shaqra had a low GL (8.5 and 9.2). The analyses suggested no significant difference in GI between the date varieties. However, the GL values differed significantly between the 17 date varieties (P < .001).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The results provide reliable GI and GL values for 17 common date varieties in Saudi Arabia. The identification of date varieties with lower glycemic responses may help lower the GI of the diet of both healthy and diabetic Saudi individuals.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  We used dates at the Tamer stage, which may not be translatable to all types of dates.
authors.affiliation: Dr. Metab Ali AlGeffari, Department of Family Medicine,, Qassim University,, PO Box 143 Buraydah 51411,, Qassim, Saudi Arabia, T: +966163800050, Ext: 2595,, F: +966163801228, mgeffari@qumed.edu.sa, ORCID: http://orcid.org/0000-0002-0614-2558.
authors.forename: Metab Ali
authors.initials: MA
authors.lastname: AlGeffari
authors.forename: Ebtehal Solaiman
authors.initials: ES
authors.lastname: Almogbel
authors.forename: Homaidan Turki
authors.initials: HT
authors.lastname: Alhomaidan
authors.forename: Ragab
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: El-Mergawi
authors.forename: Issam Alsaed
authors.initials: IA
authors.lastname: Barrimah
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D001786:Blood Glucose / Q000378:metabolism*; D004040:Dietary Carbohydrates / Q000032:analysis*; D005260:Female; D038321:Glycemic Index; D000067940:Glycemic Load; D064368:Healthy Volunteers; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D065749:Phoeniceae / Q000378:metabolism; D019518:Postprandial Period; D011446:Prospective Studies; D012529:Saudi Arabia
chemical_list: D001786:Blood Glucose; D004040:Dietary Carbohydrates