Associations of Glycemic Index and Glycemic Load with Cardiovascular Disease: Updated Evidence from Meta-analysis and Cohort Studies.

We identified high GI or high GL is associated with an increased risk of CVD events including diabetes (DM), metabolic syndrome (MS), coronary heart disease (CHD), stroke, and stroke mortality in the general population, and the risk of CVD outcomes appears to be stratified by sex, obesity status, and preexisting CVD. Both high GI and GL are associated with DM and CHD in the general population. However, high GI is strongly associated with DM/MS, while high GL is strongly associated with an increased risk of CHD in females. In addition, high GL is also associated with incident stroke, and appears to be associated with CVD mortality in subjects with preexisting CVD or high BMI and all-cause mortality in non-obese DM subjects. However, high GI appears to be associated with CVD or all-cause mortality only in females without CVD. High GI/GL is an important risk factor for CVD outcomes in the general population. High GI seems to be markedly associated with DM/MS, and it may enhance the risk of CVD or all-cause mortality in both sexes and predominately females. Although both high GI and high GL are risk factors for CHD in females, high GL is associated with CVD outcomes in at-risk populations for CVD. These data suggest that while high GI increases the propensity of CVD risk factors and mortality in healthy individuals, high GL contributes to the risk of severe heart diseases including CVD or all-cause mortality, particularly in at-risk populations. These data indicate dietary interventions designed for focusing carbohydrate quality by lowering both GI and GL are recommended for preventing CVD outcomes across all populations.