ABSTRACT
In order to provide information for the nutritional management of diabetes mellitus, glycaemic indices (GI) of three varieties of banana commonly eaten in Myanmar were determined using twelve healty women volunteers with normalglucose tolerance. After an 8-10 hour overnight fast, the subjects consumed one kind of selected banana in amount equivalent to 50 g available carbohydrate portion {~ three and a half pieces of Phee-Kyan (189 g); ~four and a half pieces of Rakhine (165 g)~~ three pieces of Thee-hmwe (yellow) (192 g)}. After a week interval, GI was determined for another kind of banana. Venous blood samples were collected and immediately analyzed for plasma glucose by glucose oxidase method.GIs of Myanmar bananas (mean -+ S.E.M) were 51.7 -+ 7.69 percent for Rakhine, 55.29 -+ 5.66 for Phee-Kyan and 63.73 -+ 8.46 for Thee-hmwe (yellow). They were lower than GI of commonly eaten Myanmar rice, Pawsun. Banana also contains vitamins A and C which were not provided by cooked polished rice. Furthermore, banana hasa higher calcium and fibre content. Therefore, all three varieties of Myanamr banana can be recommended as a source of complex carbohydrate with low or moderateGI for diabetic diet