The ADA Disorders of Lipid Metabolism workgroup concurs with the following statement and grade from the USDA Nutrition Evidence Library (NEL):

Due to limited evidence, no conclusion can be drawn to assess the relationship between either glycemic index or load and cardiovascular disease.

• Grade I means there is Good/Strong evidence supporting the statement;
• Grade II is Fair;
• Grade III is Limited/Weak;
• Grade IV is Expert Opinion Only;
• Grade V is Not Assignable.
• High (A) means we are very confident that the true effect lies close to that of the estimate of the effect;
• Moderate (B) means we are moderately confident in the effect estimate;
• Low (C) means our confidence in the effect estimate is limited;
• Very Low (D) means we have very little confidence in the effect estimate.
• Ungraded means a grade is not assignable.

• Detail
• Quality Rating Summary
  For a summary of the Quality Rating results, click here.
• Worksheets
  • Beulens JW, de Bruijne LM, Stolk RP, Peeters PH, Bots ML, Grobbee DE, van der Schouw YT. High dietary glycemic load and glycemic index increase risk of cardiovascular disease among middle-aged women: A population-based follow-up study. J Am Coll Cardiol. 2007 Jul 3; 50 (1): 14-21. Epub 2007 Jun 18.
  • Halton TL, Willett WC, Liu S, Manson JE, Albert CM, Rexrode K, Hu FB. Low-carbohydrate-diet score and the risk of coronary heart disease in women. N Engl J Med. 2006 Nov 9;355(19):1991-2002.
  • Kaushik S, Wang JJ, Wong TY, Flood V, Barclay A, Brand-Miller J, Mitchell P. Glycemic index, retinal vascular caliber and stroke mortality. Stroke. 2009 Jan; 40 (1): 206-212. Epub 2008 Oct 23.
  • Levitan EB, Mittleman MA, Håkansson N, Wolk A. Dietary glycemic index, dietary glycemic load and cardiovascular disease in middle-aged and older Swedish men. Am J Clin Nutr. 2007 Jun; 85 (6): 1,521-1,526.
  • Liu S, Willett WC, Stampfer MJ, Hu FB, Franz M, Sampson L, Hennekens CH, Manson JE. A prospective study of dietary glycemic load, carbohydrate intake, and risk of coronary heart disease in US women. Am J Clin Nutr. 2000 Jun;71(6):1455-61.
  • Oh K, Hu FB, Manson JE, Stampfer MJ, Willett WC. Dietary fat intake and risk of coronary heart disease in women: 20 years of follow-up of the nurses' health study. Am J Epidemiol. 2005 Apr 1; 161(7): 672-679.
  • Tavani A, Bosetti C, Negri E, Augustin LS, Jenkins DJ, La Vecchia C. Carbohydrates, dietary glycaemic load and glycaemic index, and risk of acute myocardial infarction. Heart. 2003; 89(7):722-6.
  • van Dam RM, Visscher AW, Feskens EJ, Verhoef P, Kromhout D. Dietary glycemic index in relation to metabolic risk factors and incidence of coronary heart disease: the Zutphen Elderly Study. Eur J Clin Nutr. 2000 Sep;54(9):726-31.