Wholemeal flour roti and blood sugar in people
What it found
In people, roti made with whole wheat flour had a higher glycaemic index than roti made with an added atta mix.
The atta mix roti scored 27.3 and the whole wheat flour roti scored 45.1.
What they found
Studies in people
Glycaemic index values
The glycaemic index of atta mix roti was 27.3, which was considerably lower than the whole wheat flour roti at 45.1.
Appearance and taste
No significant difference was seen between the two rotis in appearance, texture, flavour, taste or acceptability.
Blood sugar response
The incremental area under the curve and glycaemic index values were determined for each test food.
What the authors conclude
“Development of foods with lower dietary glycaemic load such as the atta mix roti could help in the prevention and control of diabetes in South Asian populations, which habitually consume very high glycaemic load diets.”
Also in their conclusions
- They say that developing foods with lower dietary glycaemic load, such as the atta mix roti, could help in the prevention and control of diabetes in South Asian populations, which habitually consume very high glycaemic load diets.
How it was done
The authors wanted to compare the glycaemic index of a newly developed atta mix roti with whole wheat flour roti.
Eighteen healthy non-diabetic subjects ate 50 g available carbohydrate portions of glucose and two test foods (whole wheat flour roti and atta mix roti) in random order after an overnight fast. The reference food was tested on three separate occasions, while the test foods were each tested once. Capillary blood samples were taken from finger-pricks before and at 15, 30, 45, 60, 90 and 120 minutes after each food.
What it can’t tell you
- We summarised it from the abstract only.
- This was a small study in healthy non-diabetic people, so it cannot show what happens in people with diabetes or in other groups.
Who paid
- Authors work at
- Madras Diabetes Research Foundation, India
The paper
- Title
- Glycaemic index of Indian flatbreads (rotis) prepared using whole wheat flour and 'atta mix'-added whole wheat flour
- Type
- Study
- Evidence
- Studies in people
- Summarised from
- Abstract only
- Cite
- Radhika G, Sumathi C, Ganesan A, Sudha V, Jeya Kumar Henry C, Mohan V (2010). Glycaemic index of Indian flatbreads (rotis) prepared using whole wheat flour and 'atta mix'-added whole wheat flour. The British journal of nutrition. doi:10.1017/S0007114509993680PubMed 20100375DOI
Summary written 26 Sep 2026. Check it against the paper before it changes what you eat. How we summarise papers · Report an error