Free Four Loads tool
Glucose Load Meal Builder
Tap what’s on the plate. Each pick is tiered Low, Moderate, or High Glucose Load based on typical carbohydrate and fiber content for a single serving, then the whole plate gets one overall tag.
Pick what’s on the plate
Build your plate
Tap items to add them. Tap again to add another serving.
Nothing you build here is saved or sent anywhere. It resets when you leave the page.
Your plate will appear here
Add items from the categories on the left. The plate updates its Glucose Load tag as you go.
The quick answer
What this tool does
It teaches the first of the Four Loads by letting you build with it.
Glucose Load is the first of the Four Loads: what happens in the hours right after you eat. Every food carries a rough tier based on how much it tends to raise blood glucose in a single serving, mostly driven by total carbohydrate, fiber, and how refined the food is.
Instead of memorizing a chart, build a plate the way you actually eat, and watch the tags respond. A plate of grilled chicken, broccoli, and olive oil stays Low. Swap in white rice and orange juice and it climbs to High, mostly because of what’s on the plate together, not any one food in isolation.
How it’s scored
How the tags are set
Each food gets one of three tiers. The plate averages them.
Every item in the builder is tiered Low, Moderate, or High based on typical glycemic load ranges for one serving of that food on its own. Non-starchy vegetables, plain proteins, and most fats and dairy sit at Low. Whole grains, legumes, and most whole fruit sit at Moderate, since fiber slows how quickly the carbohydrate shows up. Refined grains, sugary drinks, and starchy vegetables without much fiber sit at High.
| Tier | What tends to land here | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Low | Non-starchy vegetables, plain proteins, most fats and dairy, berries | Broccoli, grilled chicken, olive oil |
| Moderate | Legumes, whole grains, most whole fruit | Lentils, quinoa, an apple |
| High | Refined grains, starchy vegetables without fiber, sugary drinks | White rice, white potato, soda |
When you build a plate, the tool averages the tier of everything on it, weighted by how many servings of each you added. It does not add up precise numbers, and it does not know your portion sizes, cooking method, or what you ate an hour earlier, all of which change a real response.
Common questions
FAQ
Is this medical advice?
No. This is an educational pattern tool. It is not a diagnosis, a lab result, or a substitute for guidance from your physician.
Can this predict my blood sugar?
No. It shows a general pattern based on typical glycemic load ranges for each food alone. Your actual response depends on your body, your portions, and what you eat together, none of which this tool measures.
Why do some foods seem tiered differently than I expected?
Tiers reflect one typical serving of that food eaten alone. A food most people think of as “healthy,” like a banana or a sweet potato, can still land at Moderate or High because of its carbohydrate content, separate from its overall nutrition.
I take insulin or a medication that lowers blood sugar. Should I use this?
Talk with your physician before changing how you eat based on this or any tool. If you take a medication that can cause hypoglycemia, do not reduce carbohydrate intake without medical guidance.
Does this account for the other three loads?
Not yet. This version scores Glucose Load only. Storage, Regulatory, and Inflammatory Load depend on factors this tool doesn’t capture, like sleep, stress, and overall eating pattern over time.
Continue exploring
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See how Glucose Load fits into the bigger picture.
Content reviewed September 2026.
