The glycemic response of hummus consumed alone was less than one quarter that of white bread for the same amount of available carbohydrate. The GI of hummus was therefore very low (15 GI points on a glucose scale or 22 on a white bread scale) and was achieved without a significant increase in insulin levels and with lower and sustained blood glucose excursions. This suggests a slow release mechanism where the absorption rate of the carbohydrate component is slowed and prolonged over time possibly owing to the high viscous fiber content [
15], the high ratio of amylose starch to amylopectin [
23], and possibly the presence of enzymes inhibitors [
24]. The alpha-glucosidase inhibitor acarbose has been shown to decrease incident diabetes in people with impaired glucose tolerance individuals and decrease cardiovascular events [
25,
26]. The GI of hummus was less than half of that of chickpeas alone (15 versus 36) [
22]. The high and healthy (MUFA and PUFA) fat content of the hummus, 5 g/serving, is 6 times higher than that of chickpeas alone and may partly account for the very low GI observed in this study. Dietary fat delays gastric emptying thereby slowing carbohydrate absorption [
27,
28]. A study of low GI/high unsaturated fat diets demonstrated several health advantages of this dietary combination, including improvements in glycemic control and CVD risk score, particularly in those with metabolic syndrome components (e.g. central obesity) [
29]. The GI of hummus in our study (GI = 15) was similar to another hummus dip reported in the International Tables of GI as item n.1097 [
22]. Other investigators found a slightly lower GI for hummus (GI = 6) [
30]. Food processing may alter the GI of a food. A 35 % higher GI was seen with canned chickpeas than with chickpeas cooked from dry [
22,
31] and as much as 3-fold higher compared to chickpeas cooked for a short time (35 min) [
22,
32], albeit in this study the blood measurements were taken for one hour less than the standard two hours required for healthy people by the standard GI protocol [
33]. Cooking increases hydration and gelatinization of the starch molecule making it more readily available for enzyme digestion and hence absorption of glucose. Cooking may also reduce the content of phytates and lectins which are inversely related to the glycemic response [
24]. It is interesting to note that in our study the highest servings of hummus, either alone or with white bread, not only induced lower blood glucose excursions compared to white bread alone but these responses were obtained with an insulin-sparing effect (at 45 min) and were sustained over time which means that after two hours from meal consumption blood glucose was maintained slightly above baseline. This may have several beneficial metabolic and health implications: suppression of plasma free fatty acids, glucagon and growth hormone, beneficial second meal effects [
34,
35], decreased hunger and possible effects on cognitive functions [
36]. Furthermore, hypoglycemia is related to higher cardiovascular complications in people with type 2 diabetes [
37] hence hummus consumption may help to avoid hypoglycemia. Future studies should assess the effect of hummus on incretin levels and markers of satiety acutely in individuals with diabetes and those without. Longer-term clinical studies should also be undertaken to assess the effect of hummus on body weight and markers of cardiometabolic health.