You wrote: >Carbohydrate content of commercial fruit and veg- USDA Agricultural >Handbook #8. Great post! However, the amount of carbohydrate in the fruits and vegetables does not always give a clear picture of the absorption rate into the blood. According to the glycemic index, fruits like apples, peaches, melons, apricots, plums, oranges, grapes, cherries and pears (even bananas and raisins) all enter the blood slower than the following cooked foods: corn, carrots, potatoes, parsnips and beets,(beets and raisins have the same rating) and even buckwheat, millet, and brown rice. One factor that determines the rating is the amount and type of fiber in the food, which is one reason why processed, refined or cooked foods like chips, breads, baked potatoes, corn on the cob, carrot juice, bagels and pasta often have a higher glycemic rating than many fruits and will be more destabilizing to the blood sugar. Even in their uncooked and natural state these foods will probably hit the blood more rapidly than the fruits mentioned above, because they contain more glucose. The fructose in the fruit has to be first converted into glucose before entering the blood, which automatically slows down its rate of absorption, whereas the glucose needs no conversion and is absorbed a lot quicker. A lot of these contentions are from "The Glycemic Index" at URL:http://www.cruzio.com/~mendosa/gi.html and from "The Zone" by Barry Sears. Best regards, Peter Brandt [log in to unmask]