padham is the tamil name of almonds

1. Almond Butter Helps Control Blood Sugar
Posted in Almond Butter
Almonds and almond butter help to reduce spikes in blood sugar and insulin levels that occur
after a high carbohydrate meal. The result is better blood sugar control for diabetics.
Almonds help stabilize blood sugar levels and prevent free radical producing insulin spikes.
The Journal of Nutrition reports a study of 15 healthy people who ate 5 meals with comparable
amounts of protein, carbohydrates and fat. Two meals consisted of bread only. Three meals
consisted of almonds, bread, parboiled rice, and instant mashed potatoes. Blood samples taken
after each meal showed levels of blood sugar and insulin were lower following the almond meal,
and levels of protective antioxidants increased. This study demonstrates the powerful anti-aging
effect of almonds as well as their ability to ward off diabetes.
The more almonds that are eaten as part of a meal, the lower the glycemic index of that meal will
be, and the smaller the rise in blood sugar levels produced by that meal. The benefit of eating
almonds is dose dependent.
"We found that eating two servings of almonds can have a significant impact in blunting the
glycemic and insulin responses of the body when fed with a meal high in carbohydrates," said
co-author Dr. Cyril Kendall from the University of Toronto. He added that including almonds in
the diet may have implications for helping in the management of blood glucose levels. The
health consequences of high blood glucose cause an estimated 3 million deaths worldwide
annually, according to research published last year in The Lancet. A 1-ounce handful of almonds
is an excellent source of vitamin E and magnesium, a good source of fiber, and offers protein,
potassium, calcium, phosphorus, iron and monounsaturated fats.
Lessening after-meal surges in blood sugar helps protect against diabetes and cardiovascular
disease, most likely by lessening the increase in cholesterol-damaging free radicals that
accompanies large elevations in blood sugar. This is one reason why low- glycemic index diets
result in lower risk of diabetes and heart disease.
Almonds appear to not only decrease after-meal rises in blood sugar, but also provide
antioxidants to mop up the smaller amounts of free radicals that still result. (Jenkins DJ, Kendall
CW, Journal of Nutrition)
Researchers fed 15 healthy subjects 5 meals providing a comparable amount of carbohydrate, fat
and protein: 3 test meals (almonds and bread, parboiled rice, and instant mashed potatoes) and 2
bread control meals. Blood samples, taken before each meal and 4 hours afterwards, showed
levels of protective antioxidants increased after the almond meal, but decreased after the other
meals. And not only did the almond meal increase antioxidant levels, but unlike the other foods,
almonds also lowered the rise in blood sugar and insulin seen after eating.

2. Further research shows that eating almonds along with a high glycemic index food significantly
lowers the glycemic index of the meal and lessens the rise in blood sugar after eating. (Jones AR,
Kendall CW, Metabolism)
In this study, after an overnight 10-12 hour fast, 9 healthy volunteers were randomly fed 3 test
meals and 2 white bread (high glycemic) control meals on separate days. Each meal contained 50
grams of carbohydrate from white bread eaten either alone or in combination with 1, 2, or 3
ounces of almonds. To check subjects' rise in blood sugar, blood samples were taken for glucose
analysis immediately after eating, and at 15, 30, 45, 60, 90 and 120 minutes.
Eating almonds reduced the glycemic index (GI) of the meal and subjects' rise in blood sugar in a
dose-dependent manner - the more almonds consumed, the lower the meal's GI and the less the
rise in subjects' blood sugar after eating.
When one-ounce of almonds was eaten along with white bread, the GI of the meal (105.8) was
comparable to eating white bread alone, but when two ounces of almonds were consumed with
the white bread, the GI dropped to 63, and when 3 ounces of almonds were eaten, the GI was
only 45.2 - less than half the GI of the white bread only meal.
Subjects' blood sugar rose 2.8 mmol/L after eating only white bread. When one ounce of
almonds was eaten with the bread, blood sugar rose 2.2 mmol/L. Eating two ounces of almonds
with the bread resulted in a rise in blood sugar of 2.0 mmol/L, and eating three ounces of
almonds caused blood sugar to rise only 1.6 mmol/L - less than half the rise seen after eating
white bread alone.
By controlling the rise in insulin and blood sugar levels after a high carbohydrate treat, almond
butter effectively controls blood sugar.